Category: Nikon

Nikon's new batch of CoolPix P300, P500, L120

Tomorrow Nikon will be releasing a bunch of new CoolPix digital cameras.

Nikon CoolPix P300

Nikon has added a small but mighty camera to its popular P series with the P300. This is Nikon’s first compact camera to feature a 4.2x Zoom-Nikkor lens and has the widest aperture of any other CoolPix at f/1.8. The P300 has a 12.2 megapixels CMOS sensor and ISO up to 3200.

If you have become accustomed to the great image quality in low-light settings of the other Nikon P series then you should not be disappointed with the P300. The camera has the ability to go into full manual mode and features a EXPEED C2 processing engine which will ensure you pictures look as close to reality as it can get. It has become more and more common to include vibration reduction in pocket cameras and the P300 does not disappoint.

Filter effects have also been improved, including the additions of fisheye lens and cross screen, as well as Nikon’s new in-camera panorama generator. Completing the package the P300 has a full HD 1080p video mode. You should be able to pick up the Nikon CoolPix P300 in March 2011 for only $329.95.

We are hoping the P300 will come with a 1/1.7” sensor similar to the Canon Powershot S95, Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 and the recently announced Olympus XZ-1.

Just in case you were wondering here are some comparisons:

CoolPix P500

Some of the most popular cameras on Snapsort are the super zooms, the P500 is a worthy successor to the Nikon CoolPix P100. Featuring a 36x zoom which is the longest of any CoolPix cameras. Similar to the P300 it has a EXPEED C2 processor but this one is a dual processor. This should make it good in low light, Its also features a hybrid vibration reduction stabilization also gives it a better ability to avoid camera shake over other pocket cameras.

The P300 has a three inch LCD with a great night mode which should not wreck your night vision (much) when you take photos at night. Like the P300 it can record in full HD 1080p and has Nikon’s new panorama mode. The Nikon CoolPix P500 is expected to be released in March for only $399.95.

Read our comparison with Canon PowerShot SX30 IS


CoolPix L120

The L120 will not break your wallet at only $279.95. This camera has a 21x Wide-Angle Zoom lens and 14.1 megapixel resolution. With a hybrid image stabilization and able to shoot up to ISO 6400.

The CoolPix L120 is a entry-level point and shoot, that will replace the Nikon CoolPix L110 and should be available in late February.

A quick comparison:

Top 5 most popular Nikon Lenses

Following on yesterdays post of the top 5 most popular Canon Lenses of 2010, we present the most popular Nikon Lenses of 2010. This list is based on our users’ searches from the past year.
What do you think, are we missing any lenses?

Following on yesterdays post of the top 5 most popular Canon Lenses of 2010, we present the most popular Nikon Lenses of 2010. This list is based on our users’ searches from the past year.What do you think, are we missing any lenses?

Nikon AF-S 35mm f/1.8G DX

The auto focus on the Nikkor AF-s 35mm f/1.8G DX lens is very fast and the lens weighs next to nothing. It is great for indoors and low light conditions.

Looks like you guys really like prime lenses, well you have picked a good one here. Great for low light and allows you to tightly control the depth of field.

This is one of my favourite lenses in my camera bag. It perfectly balances performance and price. Great for portraits or parties.
A fantastic macro lens with built in image stabilization and a focus motor. This is a durable lens that I would not be afraid to use, it also would make a great portraits lens. Only down side is it is heavy.
Take a look at some other great Macro Lenses for your Nikon.

Nikon D3100 autofocus movie sample (HD)

The rumored Nikon D3100 was announced last month, but has not yet been released. Slowly however, sample images, and videos, and hands on reviews are starting to trickle in. Here’s the first video I’ve seen recorded by the D3100, demonstrating use of the continuous autofocus.

I think the quiet ticking noise you’re hearing is the camera focusing the lens. The author comments that he has the camera in spot focus mode, so presumably its trying to focus on whatever is in the center of the frame, and you can see it have some trouble once in a while trying to find focus, or shifting focus from one subject to another. The autofocus looks similar to camcorders to me. Continuous autofocus is probably what you want if you just shooting casual video and don’t want to worry about focus. The video is shot using the new Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5 – f/5.6 lens. The video has a nice fairly shallow depth of field, which is probably created by shooting at a long focal length such as 200mm.

Nikon is now the first DSLR manufacturer to support continuous autofocus while shooting video, and I expect we’ll see others follow shortly. However, Panasonic’s mirrorless micro four-thirds cameras (such as the Lumix GF1) already support continuous autofocus while filming, as do the newly announced Sony translucent mirror cameras, the SLT-A33 and SLT-A55. In fact, you can explore all the interchangeable lens cameras that support continuous autofocus while filming at Snapsort. Sony’s SLT cameras are rather unique though. Unlike the rest of the competition that use slow contrast detection for focusing while recording movies the Sony SLT-A33 and A55 use phase detection focusing even while recording movies, which is the fast high quality focusing normally used by DSLRs and mirrorless cameras. The reason most camera’s don’t or can’t use phase detection during movies is that they have lifted their mirror up to let light into the sensor, which means the phase detection focusing system doesn’t receive any light. Sony gets around this with their translucent mirror, which lets both the sensor and the focusing system receive light at the same time. This means the Sony SLT cameras have the potential to have the best focusing systems for recording movies of any interchangeable lens camera.

Bye-Bye from Rory Jacobs on Vimeo.

Nikon D3100 Compared

Nikon D3100

Rumor has it that Nikon will be announcing its newest DSLR in two days on August 19th: the Nikon D3100.

At Snapsort we’ve made our best guess as to the full specs, and loaded it into the site so you can start comparing it now to see how it might stackup!

Here are some links to comparisons to get you started:

How did we come up with our guessed specs? First we started with the full specs from the Nikon D3000, so for example we’re guessing the D3100 will be the same size as the D3000. Next, we updated the specs with the rumored leaked specs, including 14MP CMOS sensor, 1080p video with continuous focus capabilities etc. Next, we made some inferences/guesses. These include:

  • People have speculated that the Nikon D3100 will use the Sony manufactured sensor found in the Sony A450, so we took the native resolution of 4592×3056 pixels from it, and took the DXOMark image quality scores from it too, placing it between the D3000 and the D90 for low light image quality.
  • Next we guessed that the D3100 will get the same high resolution 920k screen that recent Nikon DSLRs including the D90 and D300s. Here we made a leap, we assumed the D3100 will have a flip-out (or articulating screen) since the D3100 is packed with video features (similar to the D5000 and rumored Canon D60).
  • The only information we’ve seen regarding the video specs is that it will record 1080p video using the AVCHD codec. We went ahead and guessed that it will record 1920×1080 video at 24fps, and also record 1280×720 video at 24fps, consistent with the other Nikon DSLRs that record HD video (the D5000, D90, D3s and D300s)
  • We also guess that the D3100 will shoot at approximately 5ps, slightly faster than other entry level DSLRs from Nikon

This is likely to be an exciting few months for DSLR fans, with Nikon set to announce the D3100 on August 19th, and speculation they will announce the D95 (D90 replacement) in September, along with Canon introducing their 60D (a 50D replacement).

We’ll update our specs as soon as we learn more. How accurate do you think Snapsort’s specs for the D3100 will turn out to be?

Specs and photo of the new Nikon D3100

The rumored Nikon D3100 entry level DSLR is set to be announced in 6 days on August 19th. More details are surfacing!

  • 14 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor – the switch from the D3000’s CCD sensor to CMOS is likely neccessary for the HD video and hopefully signs of improved low light sensitivity. Only Nikon’s lower end DSLRs use CCD sensors.
  • Live view – an upgrade from the D3000
  • 3″ screen, no information on its resolution, hopefully 920k like the recent DSLRs, would be a huge upgrade from the D3100’s 230k
  • Full 1080p video, a first for Nikon, joining the other Nikon DSLRs that shoot video (D5000, D300s, D90, D3s)
  • Continuous auto-focus while recording video, a first for any DSLR that I’m aware of, but I think the Panasonic micro-four-thirds cameras already do this
  • New EXPEED2 processor
  • Max ISO of 12,800, up from the D3000’s max of 3,200
  • Price of 650 €

My guesses:

  • It will have similar low light image quality to the Nikon D90 (see Nikon D90 vs D3000)
  • It will retail for USD $699 with a 18-55mm kit lens
  • It will have a 460k screen

First look at the Nikon D3100

Source: Nikon Rumors