Close-up of mice: what's a good digital camera for a beginner?

We have pet mice and want to take "close-ups". In your opinion, what would be a good * starter * digital camera for us to use? We are really beginners. Nothing expensive, but we want good quality at an affordable price.
Thank You in advance for your answer.

In order to avoid perspective distortion i'ts better to use a telephoto lens.
I would also suggest a book or some on-line site on basic photography.

My suggestion is any good major brand: Canon, Kodak, Nikon, Panasonic, Sony.

(Unfortunately, quality and affordable are mutually excusive properties.)

Well canon cameras are awesome! I have one right now. Mine is the sd800 you can put it on a micro position so you can take pictures of close up things also. It is 300 so it is a bit expensive but try other cannon cameras. They all work great!

good luck

I don't really know what to tell you without a price budget, as the digital camera market is so overpopulated with cameras. Check out dpreview.com... it has really good reviews of most cameras that are on teh market with in depth analysis of things like close ups etc. You can also view 2 different cameras side by side (including sample images from both) to see the differences in the two. It was a very helpful website I used when purchasing my Canon Rebel XT.

Which ever camera you end up getting, be sure to get a tripod. Then use the cable release or the self timer mode. Otherwise you will get crappy results. When you set up on the tripod, have the focus, aperature, and lighting all set so all you have to do is click, (or clack) depending on your camera. Good luck, it sounds like fun.