This is a guest post by professional photographer Paul M. Bowers...

I was born and raised in the briar patch of commercial photography- view cameras and large-format transparency film. Cameras without electronics- not even a meter- and big accordion bellows.

I should have purchased stock in the Polaroid Corporation before I began.

Over the next 30 years, I watched camera technology change- internal metering systems, autoexposure, autofocus, super-fast and super sharp lenses, amazing shutter speeds. Film died and digital post-production became a standard.

Despite this provenance, I've always been enamored with the simplicity of small cameras. Point-and-shoot, "Press Here Dummy", snapshot cameras, compact- whatever you'd like to call them. My favorite was the little Olympus XA. Once digital, I started with the Coolpix 950 and on to the Canon G series, which I've been shooting ever since. I still shoot commercially and use the Canon EOS system, but when I'm not getting paid, I still prefer the small form factor cameras.