I have a point-and-shoot camera, and I have noticed that I get perspective distortion in many of the shots. I can make adjustments using my photo-editing program, but I am wondering what causes this in the first place. Can I eliminate this distortion when I take the picture?Harvey Whitmire, Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania

What you're describing, Harvey, is a distortion effect that is inevitable and unavoidable with most cameras. It's just a matter of geometry: When you photograph a tall building, vertical lines (such as the opposing walls) appear to converge off in the distance, which makes the building look somewhat askew. The closer you are to the building when you take the photo, the more pronounced the effect will be.

Consider this photo that Harvey provided:

It doesn't look bad, but if you inspect it closely, you'll see that the walls of the building are not parallel. That isn't because Harvey's camera is malfunctioning; all cameras do this. Compare it with the photo below, which Corel Paint Shop Pro's perspective correction tool digitally adjusted:

Notice that the walls are now parallel, and that the building looks correct.