My stable of cameras includes a pocket-sized camera, a couple of digital single-lens reflex and a “super-zoom.” As it turns out, my least expensive camera is the one I use the most because it’s also the smallest.

A few months ago I spent about $150 for a 10 megapixel Canon Powershot A1000IS which has recently been replaced by the almost identical (12MP) A1100 IS. It’s small enough to easily fit into a pocket, has a 4x optical zoom and advanced features such as image stabilization.

The other things I like about this camera is that it uses AA batteries and has an optical view finder. The advantage of “double As” is that you’re not stuck with an expensive proprietary battery and charger. If you do get a camera with AA batteries, always use rechargeable NiMH batteries rather than disposable alkaline batteries.

Aside from being good for the environment and your budget, they actually last longer than regular alkalines.

The A1000IS is one of the few pocket-sized cameras that still has an optical viewfinder. Some consider them obsolete because digital cameras also have LCD 

screens. However, I like being able to hold the camera up to my eye. It makes for a steadier shot and, unlike an LCD, it doesn’t wash out in bright sunlight.

I’ve also been testing a relatively inexpensive digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras from Pentax. The Pentax K2000 camera I’ve been testing sells for as little as $500 with an 18-55 mm lens. It’s relatively small, very easy to use and uses AA batteries — rare for DSLRs. Pentax also builds image stabilization into the camera body. Pentax lenses are less expensive, and lenses from film cameras can be used on the digital ones.

Between the easy point-and-shoot camera and the serious DSLR is my Kodak EASYSHARE Z980. This camera, which goes for about $370, is just a bit smaller than the Pentax K2000 and doesn’t use interchangeable lenses. Instead it has a fixed 24x zoom lens that’s the equivalent of a 26 mm to 624 mm zoom. It can also take 720p video.

The zoom is operated by a button rather than twisting the lens, and the shutter is electronic, not mechanical like a DSLR. The result is slower focusing and more time between shots. Kodak brags that it has a “fast click-to-capture speed” of under 0.2 seconds, which still still isn’t as quick as a DSLR.

Perhaps the biggest drawback to the EASYSHARE Z980 and similar cameras is that the sensor isn’t great for low-light conditions. The camera does have automatic and manual ISO settings which allow you to bring in more light, but the “cost” of graininess which becomes obvious in zoomed, low-light photos.