This sounds like my shredder. It looks exactly like the one in the link, but might have had a different brand name. It does really well if you feed it one, dry, leaf at a time. Much more than that, it binds up the motor and you have to take it apart and remove all of the debris, then put it back together and feed it one leaf at a time. Well, maybe 2 leaves. I bought it about 5 years ago. It's useless. I discovered it's a lot easier to shred leaves by piling them on the driveway and running over them with the lawn mower. As for shredding prunings, which is why I wanted it, it also does OK if you insert one pruning at a time. It's even faster than chopping them with a pair of pruning shears an inch at a time. Be glad you didn't pay full price. Here is a link that might be useful: Electric-Chipper-Shredder

I tried my future dil's nikon coolpix p80...and thought it did just wonderful for what it does...and I have the dslr's...I said to dh wow...I wouldn't have spent so much money on one if I had one of these...It does a wonderful job...kinda spendy but it depends on how much you want to spend...I think any camera has it pros and cons...I had hp photosmart for my 1st, fujifinepix 2nd, and an olympus sp 550 3rd for point n shoots...best thing is get it your hand and see how it feels... I had the same thing happen to my 3 in one, not being supported with computer...when I tried to get drivers updated at hp's site it(it was from hp) said it would no longer support or have disc's to replace what I had... Hope this has been helpful...have been in your shoes...actually gardening inspired me to become an enthusiast for photography... Juanita

I'm a bit puzzled as to why this 2 1/2 year old thread has popped up again, but I do appreciate all the photography expertise that everyone has shared. PM2, there's a second thread that came after this one if you'd like more info, linked below. I ended up getting a Nikon Coolpix P600 which has a 60x zoom (a bit longer than the 50x Cannon which I also checked out) which I like for long shots of critters in the field. I followed Jane's advice to go and hold a bunch of cameras and try them out, and found both the Canon and the Nikon comfortable, though the Nikon is a bit larger. The Nikon is also slower processing images to get ready for another shot than the Cannon, I think. I am still just beginning to learn to use it, largely using it on the standard landscape setting, though I have started checking out the different options and menus. I most often use it to take photos of critters and scenes we've spotted when we were inside since that's where it's easily available, though I also take it with me when I am going outside specifically to take photos. As Steve said above, "I also use my iPhone a lot because it's in my pocket, and it is often said that the best camera is the one you have with you." It doesn't do a great job on distance or small birds, but it has good color and is great to keep in my pocket to catch some of the surprises I see in the garden. I also use it for many of my landscape shots since it's with me and available when I'm working outside. The few times I've taken the Nikon out while I work in the garden, I've either lost track of where I've set it down, or found it in the way, so I usually just stuff the phone in my pocket when I am doing more than wandering around taking photos. In the birds and mobile features #12 thread, I've posted photos taken with both cameras: Sat, Nov 22, 14 at 9:05 - iPhone Sat, Nov 22, 14 at 9:19 - Nikon Dec 3, 14 at 18:04 - Nikon Thu, Dec 4, 14 at 7:59 - Nikon In the summer, more of the photos were phone photos since I was more likely to be out working during warm weather. Here is a link that might be useful: the second camera question thread

Hello Superchick: I have an earlier model of your camera, the S2 IS. It has an abundance of adjustments and these have to be used to maximize what the camera can do. Refer to the manual, maybe its the little booklet that discusses all the settings. There should be one for lighting source. The number of adjustments is limited when in the "auto" mode. Rotate the selection dial to "M" for manual, and all the adustments become available. I shoot in this mode most of the time because of these adjustments. However, one looses the automation when in the "M" mode. Find in you manual, or drill down through the camera's menus to find the adjustment for lighting. Example are, sunlight, cloudy, incandescent, flourescent, etc. The camera probably came defaulted to sunlight for outdoor shooting. The color cast of the photo is entirely dependent on the color content of the lighting source. Without adjustment, lighing by and ordinary light bulb (incandescent) will have an orange cast, and flourescent will give a strong color cast related to the phosphor of the lamps's coating. Flourescent lighting may produce a bluish, washed out result with missing reds. Light from a flourescent lamp is strong in narrow color bands and may be missing other colors entirely. It is usually a poor source for photography. The built-in electronic flash give a blue-white light. Its effect is determined by how much of the light came from the flash and how much came from other sources. if the flash lamp was the primary source, then choosing a daylight setting may give good results. This is something that can be sorted out by making a series of test shots and becoming familar with the results. Rememeber, its a digital camera and trial shots are cheap and can be deleted when you are done with those. The default ISO setting for my camera was 80. I increased to 100 and no more. I raise it only in circumstances where I can not get the shot without more speed. The lower settings give better color saturation. I had major problem in that my outdoor shots tended to have burned-out portions. The dynamic range was disappointing. Apparently, the default setting was set toward over exposure. I found improved results by setting the exposure adjustment -1/3 to -2/3 f-stops. Some of my shots are on the dark side, but these are readily compensated with software. The burn-outs can not be fixed. Check you camera menu for the setting of the IS mode. It can be turned off! If yours is off, of course, it is inactive. The three choices are (1)off, (2)on all the time, and (3)active only when the shutter button is pressed to the first detent. I use (3) to save on battery power and yet have the function. In this mode, one must press the shutter button to its first detent and wait for the lens to focus before pressing further to make the shot. I found this requires good dexterity, sometimes more than I can muster. The first detent is so light, that I may push the button all the way down. I wish there was a greater difference in the feel for this feature. Leaving the IS feature activated all the time uses a lot of battery power since the lens is continually hunting for focus as the camera is moved.