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Anonymous
Loudness: SLR cameras have a very loud shutter. Superzooms make almost no noise. The advantage is to the latter, but it depends on what you'll be doing as to whether this actually matters.
Versatility: There's two ways to look at this. In terms of absolute versatility, the DSLR wins, hands-down. It'll take external flashes and lenses galore. If you don't plan on buying more lenses like you should, the 36-432mm equivalent range of a superzoom is more versatile.
RAW capability: This doesn't apply to every superzoom, but the S3IS does not shoot RAW and all DSLRs do. You want it to shoot RAW, otherwise it's throwing away a huge amount of image information and saving it as a compressed JPEG. There are superzooms that do shoot RAW, like the Panasonic DMC-FZ8, which is better than the S3IS in almost every regard.
And, of course, the superzoom will be cheaper. Your choice, then, is essentially between:
Image quality, ultimate versatility, and ease of getting a small depth of field (DSLR).
Size, cost, viewfinder, loudness, and economy (Superzoom).
And if you do opt for a superzoom, I would strongly advise the DMC-FZ8 I mentioned earlier. It handles better than any of the others I've handled (S3IS owning, Sony and Kodak in the store), has a great if over-hyped lens, shoots RAW, and is generally of better build than the others I've held.
http://www.adorama.com/IPCDMCFZ8K.html http://www.adorama.com/IPCDMCFZ8S.html
(Ignore the big thing on the front in the first one. That's just an accessory that they screwed on. It's the same as the silver except black.)
If you opt for a DSLR, I advise the Pentax K100D.
http://www.adorama.com/IPXK100DK.html
(Price includes lens here.)
Also, shop around. I just went to Adorama; somewhere else might have better prices. And ultimately, whichever class of camera you decide, pick the one that feels the best in your hand. That's the most important thing viz. getting good photographs.
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