Panasonic DMCFZ18K vs Canon S5IS

[lv2xlr8]

Hi all

Well as simple as it sounds I'm interested in buying a camera and it's a toss up between these two. They both are in between a P&S and DSLR and around the same price range. I'd like to get into photography on a more serious level and I figured it'd be the best to get a simple camera with more advanced options to learn.

So what would you have? The canon from where I'd get is $40 more ($330.) If you have any other cameras to suggest, please do.

Thanks for all your help.

 

[flygning]

Read the reviews for both on dpreview.com. From their tests, the Panasonic is the best in that class (ultra-zoom compacts). I own the Panasonic and I love it.