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Great Choice for Picky Snapshooter
- Reviewd on:
2008-07-06
By: Lloyd Northgate
Are you looking for a quality digital camera that takes great high-resolution snapshots? One that easily slides into your pocket? One that is reasonably priced? Well, there are lots to choose from, these days. Give the Nikon Coolpix S51 or S52 consideration.
I am a bit picky and I was looking for something more than simple point and shoot for a recent sightseeing trip to Italy. My days of film cameras are over, but the versatility of an interchangeable-lens 35-mm SLR was on my mind. I loved the Nikon FS2S I used for over 30 years. Yet, the bulk of camera and several lenses—and the cost—was of major concern. What if I dropped an $800 camera or worst, it was stolen? I decided to forego the advantages of a new digital SLR and try getting by with the much cheaper and smaller Coolpix S51C. The model with the "C" has Wi-Fi capability. I'm not a professional photographer, so really good "snapshots" with a bit of creativity better categorized my style this trip.
Here are the things I really like:
First, the picture quality is wonderful for such a camera. The high-resolution setting yields sharp pictures suitable for prints 8"x10" and beyond. Regrettably, there is no RAW format, but the dynamic range has pleased so far. Second, the size and weight. I can't say enough about how great it was to slip the camera into my shirt pocket—a bit heavy there—or pants pocket. Here are some more things I like about this camera:
- The settings are easy to make with the thumbwheel control and built-in settings software.
- There are a variety of pre-set modes: landscapes, sunsets, museums, etc.
- Vibration reduction works surprisingly well.
- Almost always, exposures are right on. I did find that manually increasing or decreasing exposure helped in a few unusual lighting situations. This is quick and easy to set.
- The pre-set mode I really like, one you won't find in most other cameras, is panorama assist. This is really neat. Set it and take the first picture. Then one-third edge of that picture appears in the LCD screen, transparent so that you can line up and overlap the next picture. By taking a series of pictures this way you can later create an ultra-wide panorama photo, or if you go all the way around, a 360-degree panorama. Software is provided for stitching pictures together to create the panorama from the individual shots. Traditionally, such pics require a better camera, tripod, and patience. I made several panoramas, even handheld. Works great!
- Battery life is pretty good. I bought two extras so I would never run out. Since I shot mostly without flash, one fresh battery charge would last much of the day, maybe 100 or more pictures. I'd recommend carrying at least one extra battery and recharging at night. I got a cheap, compact recharger and extra batteries before my trip.
Some so-so features:
- The lens is of fairly typical zoom range. It works well for most shots. There were a few times I wished the telephoto was longer. The digital zoom that goes beyond optical zoom adds lots of pixel noise and is unsatisfactory. I won't use it again unless I see Big Foot or a UFO. As for the wide end, it is just okay; not wide enough for great interiors. I just love really a true wide-angle lens, something comparable to a 21mm on a 35mm film camera, but that is unavailable in this type of camera. Again, the zoom range is average, but the quality is very good—it's a Nikon lens.
- Memory card. The memory card that comes with the camera is just too small unless you want to shoot just a few pictures at a time or only shoot medium- or low-resolution. I bought a 4 GB high-speed card and am glad I did. It stored almost a thousand hi-res pictures. I did swap out to a second 2 GB card after two weeks and came home with over 1400 photos, never having to offload images to a computer.
And here are a few dislikes:
- The polished metal case is slippery. Use the hand strap or risk dropping it.
- The lens is in the corner. If you are not careful, you can get your finger in the field when shooting. You will learn how to hold the camera after a number of fumbles.
- Even when selecting one of the pre-set modes like landscape, the auto-focus takes a moment to adjust itself. The lag between pressing the shutter and taking the picture might be a fraction of a second, but a fraction too late for that great shot. I wish I could turn off auto-focus and have several presets from which to choose.
- Wireless Wi-Fi. I thought I would be able to transfer pics through my home wireless network to my desktop computer. Not so, or at least I haven't gotten that to work and can't find anything in any manual. I was able to send several pics to the Nikon server called Picturetown. But, that transfer choked because the wireless is just too slow to handle hi-res pictures. Don't count on sending anything but a few low-resolution pictures to grandma via the direct wireless feature. If you don't absolutely need the Wi-Fi feature, save the money and get the cheaper S51 or S52 model that has everything else and is a tad smaller and lighter.
Now, one day, perhaps soon, I'm going to buy a digital SLR—a Nikon, of course. I like looking through a viewfinder and setting focus myself. Most of all I want a great wide-angle lens. But I am very happy with my Coolpix S51C and will continue to use it on many occasions.
Seeing Italy? I know you will be happy. I think you will be happy carrying along a Nikon Coolpix S51 or S52 too.
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beautiful
- Reviewd on:
2008-06-16
By: Adam Baumgartner
a great camera ... beautiful still photos and nice video as well.
the screen is amazing and looks great. It would be nice if wifi was easier to work but once you get the hang of it, uploading wirelessly is pretty awesome!
overall a great camera ... highly recommended.
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Unhappy after 4 months of use
- Reviewd on:
2008-05-23
By: Sheldon Oppenheim
We have now had this camera for four months and it replaced our Kodak V530. I can honestly say that the Kodak was better. Here's why:
1. The Nikon (compared to the Kodak) produced pictures that were grainy,dark, had poor color saturation, and caused people to blink. The outdoor pictures were flat but otherwise okay.
2. The movie mode is at best terrible. Even on low resolution, there were frame skips, and poor sound. The Kodak never had this problem.
3. The shutter release is very slow. Even if pre-focused, it is slow. Do not use this camera for taking pictures and children's birthday parties.
4. The controls (for a point and shoot) are poorly laid out, and complicated.
I have always thought highly of Nikon but this is a clear miss on their part. Look elsewhere for a point and shoot camera.
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"cool"pix
- Reviewd on:
2008-03-25
By: Christine Daher
The camera arrived sooner than I expected, in perfect condition. It is one of the easiest camera's that I have ever used and has features that are great. The screen is large making the images easier to see in most any light and the camera adjusts itself to make picture quality better. It can be hooked up to a TV and view the pictures there and of course they can be e-mailed and downloaded quickly. Great buy. Good price.
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One BIG design flaw that makes this camera terrible
- Reviewd on:
2008-03-24
By: R. Calabro
We got this camera about 3 months ago. We really like the features and quality - both of the camera and images. But here is the problem. Take 20 pictures of someone (especially children) and guarenteed 19 of them will be with the subjects eyes closed! This is because the camera has NO flash mode where there is not an INCREDIBLY ANNOYING "pre" flash. Call it red eye reduction, call it background fill-flash, whatever you want to call it, 99% of your subjects will blink. Then when the real flash comes, their eyes are closed. The only option without this is to turn the flash off.
The 2nd problem with the camera is it is slow. Slow to focus, slow to snap. Just annoying.
The 3rd problem is the cameras tendancy to get "orbs" in the pictures. Some people think these are ghosts, they are not, they are dust, pollen, dirt, bugs - whatever - lit up by the flash and appear as orbs in the picture. This is especially prevelant with cameras where the flash is close to the lense; it could not be any closer on this camera!
A lot of digitals have these problems so check them all out and return them until you find one that you are happy with!
If it was not too late to return this camera, I would.
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