DSLR Alternative

I am delighted with my Canon 7D when used in combination with my Canon 100-400 L series lens. Great bokeh and sharp detail, great color and versatility. Of course I like being able to use my 580 Speed Lite.Again , that adds more bulk though so it is not so handy for keeping the camera with me .

I am not really using it near as often as I would like to simply because it is a heavy bulky combo. It seriously is just not a camera I can easily taie with me in my daily travels.

That said, I am thinking I need to be getting myself a camera that is more compact that offers as many of the above mentioned features as possible.

Certainly the compacts I am aware of are going to produce fairly high noise after about ISO 400. Therefore, I expect that I will not be getting very good low light performance. Maybe there is a new camera that has come along since I last investigated that could surprise me though.

I know there are some with very impressive zoom range which is a big plus. I am thinking of the Canon S40 I think it is that has like a 35 X zoom. That zoom range is great with the exception of the fact that it will not produce the nice bokeh. I am not sure about the sharp detail being there.Do any of you know about that quality ? I am not saying this camera is my choice because I am not aware of the other alternatives that might be out here. I do prefer to stick with Canon as I have had very good performance from all my Canon cameras.

I would like to hear your thoughts on some of the cameras available I might not know about. I will just add that the reason I like that long zoom is because I like shooting wildlife and birds. I also enjoy portraits.Please do share what you can. Thanks
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Thanks to you all for what you share so freely, It's my hope to be able to help
others as
well.