Nikon Coolpix Deal

 I recently had my birthday and was surprised with a wonderful gift from my hubby and parents - a new digital camera!  Our old camera no longer zoomed.  Hubby gave me my budget and set me free to shop!

I had a few wishes:

• Quick shutter speed
• Quick refresh (ability to take a picture again quickly)
• Vibrant natural light
• Decent video
• Burst/sports mode (a plus)
• Lots of manual control

I first purchased a Fuji 2700.  I wasn't able to try it in the store since it was brand new and had no display.  It seemed to have everything I was looking for, had good reviews, and even came with a case and SD card for $199.  I took it home and wasn't impressed with the results.  The pictures were grainy, color was just ok, and it was hard to get shots in focus.  The menu was cumbersome and hard to navigate.  We took it back and exchanged it for my Nikon!  I wish I had seen this Amazon deal as we spent $279 at Best Buy.

This camera is so easy to use.  I was getting great shots right out of the box.  Shutter speed and refresh is good on the auto mode and can be improved by using different settings (scenes) and can be improved even more with manual controls.  This camera has a sports mode that takes 15 shots consecutively so I can capture that perfect shot even with a crazy toddler!  One other plus is connectivity.  This camera can connect directly to our TV via HDMI.

Now for the downsides.  I wish it had a viewfinder for sunny days as the LCD is somewhat hard to see.  In most situations, the LCD is just fine since it is quite bright.  I wish the flash had an auto mode.  Currently it must be lifted manually and the user must know when the flash is needed.  I wish the lens cap was part of the camera rather than separate.

Here are a few examples from the first few days with this camera.

Action shot:

Full zoom without tripod:

Close-ups:

With flash in completely dark room:

Here are some other great cameras that made my short list:


Canon PowerShot SX120IS




Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H55







Sony DSC-W330