thanks peter. your reply is appreciated. my gear is-
konica ft-1 w/50mm konica 1.8 lense
tamron 80-200mm 3.8 zoom
tokina 35-105mm 3.5-4.3 mm zoom
tamron sp 500mm 8.0 mirror lense [used very little] mostly on sunrise/sunsets.
sunpak 422d flash
yaschica t-4 super 35mm 3.5 p&s
when you talk about glass i assume you mean the "quality" of the lense glass itself? questions [always questions] -
1- does the larger amount/size of "glass" in a 50mm [and larger] lenses necessarily result in a "visually" better quality print as compared to the smaller glass/lense in a 35mm p&s [digital or non-digital]?
2- you mentioned it may be hard for me to move away from slides. why?
3- what "is" the learning curve you referred to in digital? explain.
4- you spoke of "post production". are you saying that even digital photos have to be run thru ps to "optimize" [just as slides do]?
5- do all digital p&s have shutter lag [like my yashica does]? do the dslr's have shutter lag?
6- i had always assumed since sony digital camera's had zeiss lenses that their print quality should be excellent. how does one find out which digital camera's have good enough lenses for "excellent" prints
7- will my current old 35mm lenses fit on to the current dslr"s? is a "mount' required?
8- currently i just don't know enough about all the digital p&s/dslr"s brands/models to get it narrowed to choosing "one" out of a possible half dozen.
9- my end desire [in whatever digital camera i choose} is excellent print quality.
10- please advise-

tramp