I can definitely recommend the G9!

I had intended to buy a digital SLR but the Canon PowerShot G9 Digital Camera was recommended to me as a less heavy alternative. Owned a G9 for 7 months now and still discovering the amazing flexibility of a great camera.

The Canon PowerShot G9 Digital Camera is solid, well-built (some might say `chunky') and only just qualifies (IMO) as a compact. It does have a tiny, but usable, optical viewfinder. If you have small hands, I would imagine the weight and no grip would make shooting one-handed difficult. If you have large paws like mine, the zoom dial is not easy to use.
In addition, it takes fantastic shots (especially in macro mode), and it has all the controls you will ever need in a compact.

The images that come out of the camera are fantastic. Add to that the ability to take your pictures in RAW and the therefore greater control over post processing makes this camera one of the leaders in image quality amongst compacts.
I really can’t recommend this enough.....if you are looking for something with SLR build quality, and the control normally associated with SLR`s and fantastic image quality..................then this is the camera for you.