Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I have used the Kodak Z740 for several years. It is a great camera and it was going to take a lot for me to upgrade. The Z981 has exactly the added features I wanted. It has anti-shake technology, a higher zoom than the Z 740 and still runs on AA batteries. It also takes panoramic pictures, which I really like. It is a little bigger and heaver than my old camera, but ONLY a little. So, even with the zoom lens fully extended, I have no trouble holding it steadily. It is comfortable in my hands and I like the ergonomics. The buttons are easy to press, while I am looking through the viewfinder. Through its entire range, from wide angle, to 26x zoom, its pictures are crisp. Some reviewers have said that the battery door is hard to close. It is a bit difficult, but I am a middle-aged woman and can close it with just my hands. So I do not consider this a problem. It is not hard to start taking good pictures with this camera. But it does quite a lot, so I do recommend reading the extended user manual on line. I took some shots of water drops coming from a garden hose, to test the burst mode. They came out crystal clear. I am very happy with this purchase. I can't wait to get out and do some nature photography.