The significant new feature of the Coolpix P7100 is the variable angle rear LCD screen. This will appeal to Point & Shoot digital camera users, but there is an optical viewfinder in the camera body for expert photographers.
“The new COOLPIX P7100 is an enthusiast compact camera that provides stellar image quality, superior mobility and operability, as well as quick response and performance during even the most challenging shooting situations,” said Lisa Osorio, General Manager of Marketing at Nikon Inc. “The COOLPIX P7100 will allow users to explore their creative freedom, yet delivers the amazing results that they have become accustomed to with their Nikon cameras.”
Full Exposure Control
The Coolpix P7100 has plenty of automatic exposure modes to help beginners, or photographers seeking something better than current compact digital cameras. As they gain experience and confidence they will appreciate the more advanced exposure ands Autofocus modes, and the professional style body mounted controls similar to Nikon DSLRs. The familiar controls make the Nikon P7100 a great camera for advanced photographers and travellers.
Digital Sensor
Instead of the smaller 1/2.23 size sensor in most compact digital cameras the Coolpix P7100 has a larger 1/1.7 size sensor for better image quality, particularly lower noise performance. In the DxOMark lab tests the P7100 is comparable with Canon’s similar G12 compact, outperforming the Canon with less image noise at high ISO settings. The P7100 did not score as well as Nikon’s new compact interchangeable lens cameras they J1 and V1. They use a larger digital sensor so the better results are expected.
The key advantage of the Coolpix P7100 is its convenient size and slim shape. Although photo quality might suffer slightly because of the compact permanently attached zoom lens, it does make the P7100 easy to carry. This makes it an ideal travel camera or a fun camera for professionals who are sick of lugging around loads of gear.
Zoom Lens
The little Nikkor lens has a 35mm equivalent focal length range of 28-200mm to cope with most situations from landscapes to getting in close for action shots. There is Nikon’s optical Vibration Reduction (VR) system built into the lens reducing the need for a tripod.
The Coolpix P7100 has a popup flash unit and a conventional hot shoe terminal on top of the camera so photographer’s can use their existing Nikon Speedlight external flash units with the P7100.
Price and Availability
The Nikon Coolpix P7100 is available from photo retailers at around $US499.
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