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Scott Bradford photo
Austria, Vienna
1 Level
700 Review
58 Karma

Review on πŸ“· Nikon COOLPIX L830 16 MP CMOS Digital Camera: 34x Zoom NIKKOR Lens, Full 1080p HD Video & More! by Scott Bradford

Revainrating 4 out of 5

hard not to recommend. Worked as a professional photographer in .

I haven't used it much, but at $200 it's hard not to recommend. Having worked as a professional photographer for several years and owning both pocket and SLR digital cameras, I would say the following are important points to consider when buying a camera: 1. Price (uh-huh). If you don't want to spend $800 or more on a real camera (or at least something close to that), your next option is a DSLR-like model (again - this one is only $200 - a big plus). mirror and bag. To be honest, given the capabilities of most modern phones, I don't understand why they still make pocket cameras. (Although there are some that are a cross between pocket and DSLRs that have plenty of zoom and give you something to hold on to). (And I personally think having something to hold on to is a huge plus).3. Increase. With the 34x optical zoom, this is not a problem. That's more than you could get from a 400mm Doppler lens! (Try to drag someone around). It also has image stabilization (a must for long zoom shots).4. pixels/image quality. As some of you know, more pixels doesn't necessarily mean a better picture. I have an old 5MP Olympus with a 7MP interpolation mode that still takes the same or even better photos than anything I've seen since. (But it's as slow as Christmas). To my knowledge, the quality and clarity of images from this camera is comparable to other 16MP cameras on the market, but I would still leave it in the highest quality mode (least compressed/interpolated). Auto Focus Speed. This is a BIG PLUS of this camera and a key factor that no other manufacturer has. include in their specifications. The main reason we wanted a new camera is because my wife and I were tired of taking pictures of our little girl with a camera that almost never focused fast enough to take a picture. If you read the specs for "Continuous Shooting" you will see that it shoots at 6.7 fps (5 fps max) in "High Speed Continuous Shooting" mode. This doesn't really tell you how fast it will focus, but is the only comparison most manufacturers have. give. Additionally, a camera review/test site estimates the "shutter lag" in autofocus at 2/10th to 4/10th of a second. I don't think there is anything else in the same price range that comes close. batteries. It seemed odd that Nikon had chosen AA over the usual proprietary lithium, but I figured it might come in handy someday just to pop in some new AAs instead of charging. (And you can always use rechargeable AAs if you want).7. focal point. I found that you can go into the menu and choose different focus points, just like a real camera! (Despite the presence of a face detection mode [which, if it's like other cameras, you'll never use it because it increases focus time], if you're taking a lot of portraits, being able to quickly focus eyes/face, and then take a picture without lowering the camera). Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be a way to force the camera to save the point you've selected. (You need to enter and reset the menu every time you turn off the camera).8. AWB (Auto White Balance). I looked at a review comparing this camera to other cameras in its class, including examples of shots taken in different lighting conditions. So I was very disappointed to find that it's quite difficult to get the white balance right when shooting indoors. (BIG MINUS, but probably not much worse than the competition).9. User interface. The number and arrangement of dedicated function keys is almost the same as on most modern digital cameras. However, they are so close to the edge (under the "heel" of the thumb when holding the camera) that I keep clicking on one or more of them unintentionally. Maybe on the next model they will add some kind of ridge or rib to prevent this? 10. Viewfinder/Screen. The fact that the screen can be extended and rotated allows you to look at it while standing (thus allowing for a smaller camera angle). In fact, this is a huge plus for those who understand such things and often shoot from the knee. However, the lack of a viewfinder is a HUGE MINUS in my opinion. If you read other reviews you will see people complaining about trying to use the screen in bright sunlight. Basically you should resort to blind shooting and hope you get some good shots. This is true of most digital cameras, and if you already have a thousand shots on the card, it doesn't matter if you take a hundred shots and only save one. However, if Nikon only had a viewfinder, perhaps they would have a camera that would undoubtedly be a real winner. - After getting some specific questions, here is the link to the manual: http://download3.nikonimglib.com/archive1/B6sUJ00pkWTy0186hYa00PAl9y53/L830RM_%28En%2902.pdf

Pros
  • Electronics
Cons
  • Available in white only