Jul 30, 2003 12:30 PM
6173 Views
(Updated Aug 06, 2003 11:33 AM)
The word ''Photography'' is the first word that comes to most people's mind when they are asked their hobbies. I too fall in the same category of ''armchair photographers''. I mean, I used to say vehemently that photography was my passion, though I shamelessly knew all along that neither did I have a camera nor did I know a thing about Single Lens Reflex or depth of field!
Then I decided to buy a camera.
My choice was spot on when it came to the question of going for a normal film camera or a digital one. It was digital for me, at least for the time being. Knowing myself for the past 25 long years, I knew that having an SLR in my possession would be a white elephant. So I started the hard job of running a web search on digital cameras. I came across many worthy sites like https://dpreview.com and https://jjmehta.com which provided a lot of concise information.
After a week-long search and reading through volumes of online material, I chose the Nikon Coolpix 2100 to be my digital companion, I hope for a better part of my life. My requirements for a camera were simple enough.
First and foremost, I didnt have more than Rs. 15000 to spend on a camera
Resolution (mega-pixel) was not a major criteria since taking prints were hardly a priority
Should be compact and cute looking.
Should have decent flexibility in terms of using it in varying conditions.
The coolpix 2100 suited me to the core. Here is my assessment on it..
A resolution of 2.1 mega-pixel is good enough for taking upto 6 X 8 prints, which is more than sufficient for most cases. The day I need to take a bigger print will be the day I will buy a Nikon N80 SLR!
Nikkor lenses are the best of its kind, and it takes the much more expensive Carl Zeiss from Sony to match them.
I get a 3 X optical zoom, which is fair enough at this price. Digital zoom of 4X is an added advantage
There are a total of 14 ( thats FOURTEEN, believe me ) pre-set picture modes, which you can select according the ambience. It encompasses virtually any situation you will find yourself in, while taking a snap, except perhaps... underwater!
You can even take short movies using this little dynamite using the movie mode. The maximum length of the movie depends on the size of the memory stick you are using.
It comes with a 2 inch LCD and an on-screen-menu which is as easy as 1-2-3.
An important feature is the macro mode. With this I can take extreme close-ups. In fact my object can be as near as 4 cm near the lens and the auto-focus system of the camera freezes onto it in a jiffy!
In-camera cropping of pictures is another in-thing. You can cut and crop a snap you have taken.
The camera comes with USB cords which enables me to directly transfer all my snaps to my PC at the touch of a button. All necessary software comes in the bundle.
A true value-for-money proposition indeed!
I have been having this camera with me for a couple of weeks now. I must admit that I havent put it to an acid test. But I have taken about 40 snaps with it, and, to my pleasant surprise, most of them have come out prettier than I expected! However, a word or two of caution is in order here for the uninitiated.
In my short experience with my CP2100, I noticed that my alkaline batteries run out far too soon, if I keep the LCD on. In fact I could take only about 20 snaps with a pair of Duracell alkaline cells. A more powerful Ni-MH rechargeable cell is certainly going to be required, and it would be prudent to have 2 pairs.
Red eye could be an issue sometime. But using some savvy nikon picture enhancement software available freely in nikon websites, it can be completely removed. I havent tried them out, though.
Movie mode does not come with sound recording. So you end up with having directed a silent movie!
To sum up, the positives of this excellent piece are far too many to take too much note of the negatives. If you are on a budget and want to get the best the market has to offer, then, make no mistake. The Nikon Coolpix 2100 is the one for you.
You can check out some of the snaps I took using my CP2100 at https://community.webshot.com/user/pravin_sreeprakash
