Is That A Compact In Your Pocket?

I've had the LX2 for some time now, it doesn't get used as much as it should do really, it certainly has it's purposes.

Sometimes when I'm walking to the shops with the dogs, I just can't be bothered with my SLR, so just stick a compact in my pocket. It's either the LX2 or Ricoh GR1 (film).

We also had a Fuji F31fd, Samantha's camera really. While I liked it and it had fairly good high iso capability. We decided we would just keep the Lumix and sell the Fuji, so that's what we did.

Of course compact cameras have come on even further now, with the Sigma DP2, Lumix LX3, Ricoh GRD III, Canon G11 and then the likes of the Olympus PEN and Lumix G1.

I'm told that the Sigma is the best compact camera you can buy. As a professional photographer, I can't afford to spend that sort of cash on a compact camera really and perhaps this goes back to the fact that serious amateurs tend to have better gear than pros, because they can afford it. I won't be buying in to any of the latest compact camera models any time soon, but was wondering if any of you guys have used or have thoughts on them, or compact digital cameras in general?

Friends often ask me, what camera should I buy for my holiday? They usually have a budget of up to £200 maximum. I never really know what to say, other than I always seem to hear positive things about Lumix. Anyone have any suggestions?

I used to have a Canon A95 and I reckon that was one of the best compacts I've had. I'd seriously like to take a look at the new Canon G11, purely because I was always so impressed with the A95. I realise that the G11 as a hefty price tag but it seems they might have gone the right route with this camera, staying (relatively) low on megapixels (10MP) and concentrating on high ISO capability and quality. I'd like to see some results from this camera for sure.

Anyway, here's my few pics from the DMC-LX2.