I've got a waterproof, compact pentax for biking, skiing etc that lives on my rucksack strap but I'm toying with getting something for taking occasional better quality pictures.

I was thinking or getting an entry DSLR but I'm worried that it'll just get left at home or in my bag most of the time. I was thinking maybe something like an LX3 or G11 might be a better option. Any advice much appreciated.

This might be handy

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/dslr-back-to-compact-thoughts

Don't buy a dslr unless you know you NEED it. I though I needed one and regretted it as they're just so chunky especially with lenses and accesories. The compacts of today will take comprabale quality pictures unless you use the slr on manual and know exactly what ypou are doing with metering, exposure white balance etc. The compacts have the same processors as there dslr brethren just inferior optics.
My recomendation would be a powershot s90 or g11. I have an s80 which is about 4 years old and I don't know any compact camera I've used since that takes better pictures. My 20d did take some nicer ones but was so dependant on which lens was used.
try dpreview.com for some exhasutive reviews from experts not some ill-informed consumer magazine.

unless you use the slr on manual and know exactly what ypou are doing with metering, exposure white balance etc.

untrue, manual is a crock of shite unless the lighting is really awkard

The three things that make an SLR worthwhile for me…

Proper manual focus – With an SLR you can take the photo you want to take, though it might take a bit more fiddling to get really into it.

Proper telephoto zoom lenses – I went on safari in October and my photos would have been crap if I hadn't had a 200mm lens.

Very fast accurate autofocus and fast capture – compacts always seemed to focus and fire way way after I needed them to.

I have a very entry level Nikon D40x, I've never really played with the manual exposure settings much, and it still takes way better photos, and is a lot better to use than my previous 4 digital compacts (Nikon/Sony). Yes it's a lot bigger, but as SLRs go it's not too bad.

The compacts have the same processors as there dslr brethren just inferior optics.

…and smaller sensors. I use my D80 all the time, even for biking stuff now.

Panasonic GF1, looks the bee's knees, read here: http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=176358

You might find this interesting $40,000 medium format camera vs $500 G10.

Unless you want to cope with fast action or low light you don't need more than a P&S for image quality. A dslr is easier to get good results with in challenging conditions though. The penalty being size and weight.

That GF1 does look rather tasty – some great example pics in that thread.

Micro 4/3rds is great but the price is prohibitive for me. It would have to be with a pancake lens and that's over £600 at cheapest.
I do have an olympus e420 with pancake which I need to use more. Even that I find a little too heavy and large to lug about.

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=176358

quite interesting, but then he undermines his credibility by suggesting that it's better than proper DSLRs due to the format of its sensor and claiming spurious tilt and shift properties 🙁

simonfbarnes wrote – quite interesting, but then he undermines his credibility

🙂 but can you see the irony?

but can you see the irony?

sadly it seems lost on me 🙁

If you're planning on just using it for biking and you're not sure if you're keen then chances are you'll leave the DSLR at home and a compact(ish) such as the G11 may well be a better bet. (Certainly it's extremely rare I can be bothered to drag the DSLR out on a ride, although I can't say I find mountain biking a photogenic activity.)

On the other hand, a DSLR will open up a lot more possibilities on the occasions when the extra bulk isn't so much an issue, particularly if you want to work in lower light or with shallow depth of field.

There's even some bikey pics taken with the GF1 on that thread – they do look pretty damn good.

:want: