Your friends will be extremely impressed by your DSLR, especially if
it is a Canon with the 18-55mm kit lens.

;-)

I'm sure there are all kinds of technical reason that some of our more
professional photog posters can give you but for me there were three reasons
which I'll list in no particular order

1) Vrtual lack of shutter lag.  This one thing used to bug me the most from
any of the P&S camera's I've used.  Great pictures but don't bother using
them for action shots.  (at least all the one's I've used)

2) Extensive lens choice and creativity possibilities.  Most P&S's have a
limited, although sometime good range from wide angle to telephoto but  I
wanted the flexibility to change lenses for my particular needs.  Right now
I have a good telephoto zoom (larger then any P&S that I know of) along with
a good mid range zoom and the kit lens for wide angle.  I want to get a much
better and much wider wide angle and even possibly a Fish Eye lens these
things along with the long telephoto you just can get on a P&S

3) SLR camera's are what I'm used to.  I got back into photography after an
almost 20 year hiatus.  My last camera was an Oly OM1 SLR so when I decided
to get back into it I simply went with what I was familiar with an SLR but
this time Digital.

and as a bonus I'll through in reason 4.

4) I think holding a very small box out at arms length and composing a shot
on a small LCD screen looks, to us a term my teenage daughter uses, gay.
;-) Anyone taking picture like this looks like a tourist where as when I
walk around with my gear I LOOK like a professional and as we all know
"Looking good is much better then being [feeling] good." ;-)

--

Rob

 Assuming you aren't just trolling...

1. Interchangable lenses...i.e. better quality optics, image  
stabilization/vibration reduction, faster lenses, ability to switch from  
ultra-wide to super-telephoto, specialized lenses (macro, tilt-shift,  
etc.) -- granted this is all provided you can afford it!

2. More ISO levels available and generally less noise at higher ISOs.

3. Potentially more control (does your P&S allow control over shutter  
speed, apeture, ability to add external flash...) These allow control of  
point of focus, depth of field, blurring effects.

4. Potentially greater size files -- depends on what you are changing from  
and too but generally a DSLR has more megapixels than the P&S cameras do,  
and better noise reduction too.

5. Generally improved hardware/software -- how many focus points does your  
P&S have? How quick does it focus? How good is it's light metering system?  
Can you select from several systems (matrix, spot, evaluative)? Does it  
allow manual focusing? Multiple focus systems (predictive, single shot,  
servo)? Ability to generate RAW files? Do you do action photos? How many  
frames per second can your P&S take?

Drawbacks:

1. Size and weight - a P&S is much smaller and lighter.

2. Cost - all that flexibility comes at a price.

3. Simplicity - to get your moneys worth from a DSLR you have to  
understand all the above features and what they can do for you (and what  
you can do with them!) With a P&S camera you just have to Point & Shoot.  
Of course with a P&S if the picture disappoints you may not have many  
options to try to better it, with a DSLR you have MANY options.

  Please note that all the above may apply, some non-DSLR digitals are  
quite robust in regards to features, and cost almost as much as a DSLR (or  
more!).

Kelly

In a nutshell:
       The flexibility of interchangeable lenses
       Vastly improved flash photography with use of external flash
       units.
       Drastically reduced shutterlag.
       Faster, more predictable, WYSIWYG focusing

Downsides:
       Cost. Sometimes signficiant.   An f/2.8 usable zoom lens on a
       digital P/S can be had for under $300.  Try that on a dSLR!
       No video movie modes on dSLRs typically
       Size/bulk.
       
--
Todd H.  
http://www.toddh.net/

   I just made the switch (Canon 300D), but I keep my point and shoot
around also.

   Some points of note:

- You will need to learn about traditional photography to take full
advantage of a dSLR.  Exposure, shutter speed, aperture, white balance, etc.
The advantage is that once you know about it, you can take better pictures.
If you don't care to learn, it's your loss.

- They are heavier, and easily dirtied by dust.  P&S cameras are basically
sealed and can handle dirty/rough environments.  I still use my P&S in the
garage and for work when I'm working in powerhouses.

- dSLRs have much better lenses, flashes, and sensors.  Taking 8MP pics with
a P&S vs. the dSLR you'll see a difference.  When you crop a pic down to web
size, you'll still see a big difference.

- Budget for lenses and memory cards.  A kit dSLR runs from $700 to $1800,
and none of them are 'complete'.  Expect a couple hundred for CF cards, and
a thousand for basic lenses, filters, and carry bag.  Also external flash
and tripod/monopod.  Budget 2/3 for lenses and 1/3 for the basic camera body
or kit.  Of course, you don't need to spend all this on day one, but IMO
within 6 months to a year you'll be ready/waiting for this balanced range of
equipment.

- dSLRs are fast.  Instant - the new models turn on almost instantly and can
rattle off several shots in a second or two.  For shooting a moving subject,
you can hold the shutter down and rattle off several shots and delete the
least impressive ones.

- dSLRs must be pressed to your face to aim them.  So you can't turn on the
screen and hold the camera above a crowd for an easy pic, for example.  (You
can do it, but you'll be aiming blind).

- dSLR batteries last a relatively long time.  My P&S (4 NiMH AA batteries)
seems to need constant recharging, while the dSLR is almost always ready to
go, and the spare doesn't lose it's juice by sitting for a month.

- dSLR cannot take video.  (However, for some things it can take a burst of
10shots in 2 seconds.)  A few hundred bucks (not big $$ in the dSLR world)
will get a digital video camera that works much better for this.

- dSLRs take big pictures (a few megabytes or more per picture) that can
fill hard drives.  While P&S cameras can take similar pictures, they are
often more compressed and lower resolution.  If you're buying a current dSLR
to replace a previous generation P&S, you'll see a huge difference.  (My 2MP
P&S created 650kB pics, my dSLR creates 4000kB .jpgs and 6000kB RAW files).
Since it's important to save the unedited orginals, plan to use a DVD-R
drive or a large hard drive to store them.

   Dave

One of the key benefits for me is the potential to utilise shallow
depth-of-field (due to much larger sensors). The success of many strong
images rely upon this
--
Simon
http://www.pbase.com/stanmore

OK, I'll tell you why I changed from a $1500 Minolta Dimage to a $1500 Nikon
DSLR.

Better pictures, more range, less problems with 'blown out highlights'..

Can focus through the lens in sunlight where you can't even see the LCD.

Better pictures, more accurate color.

Battery charge lasts 3 weeks, not 3 hours.

Better pictures, minimal noise at ISO 1600 compared to terrible noise at ISO
400.

No boot time - turn on and snap the shutter.

Fast and accurate time tested Nikon auto-focus.

Smart lenses, telephoto actually tells camera to increase shutter speed when
zoomed out.

Neat flash features like rear curtain flash sync, sync to 1/500sec. etc.

Shutter speeds from 30sec to 1/8000 sec.

Built in infrared remote.

Any lens you can dream up to use, or afford, even telescopes, even anti-shake.

Better re-sale value - my 4yo Minolta is now worth $300...

Lots of other reasons as well, but most important, I LOVE my Nikon, I love
taking pictures again, it's fun!  The Minolta was ho-hum... I took more pics
with the Nikon in 1 month then I took in 2 years with the other.

Get the DSLR!