Nikon Coolpix P5100 Review

The Nikon Coolpix P5100 is one of the best digital cameras produced by Nikon on its Coolpix lineup. The P5100 is made up of solid magnesium alloy that ensures durability in almost any instance. This design of this body is coated in a glossy finish, with rubberized grip to ensure comfortable handling.

Other physical features of the P5100 features a viewfinder and a 2.5-inch LCD screen with a wide view angle of 170-degrees. This LCD monitor is composed of 230,000 pixels and finished with an anti-reflective coating that ensures a clear view even under the brightest of days. This high-performance wide-view monitor allows user to capture their subjects in stunning detail – also allows users to navigate through the various features offered by the P5100.

The Nikon Coolpix P5100 gives off 12.1 megapixel 1/1.72 CCD that gives high-quality pictures with almost every subject. The P5100’s lens is capable of a 3.5x zoom (equivalent to a range of 35-123mm), aperture size of f/2.7-5.3 varies of 7-elements in 6-groups.
With this high-performance lens power, sizes of images can be captures from 640 x 480 to 4000 x 3000; also capable of capturing images of 2992 x 2992 (1:1), 3968 x 2232 (16:9), and 3984 x 2656 (3:2). And images are converted into JPEG file formats, while videos are in Motion JPEG (AVI) audio-capable.

The Nikon Coolpix P5100 hosts a VR optical image stabilizers (or VR OIS) that reduces image blurring due to shaky hands or accidental causes. The VR OIS also provides image stability with movement either of the photographer or subjects in low lighting conditions, producing stable images without blurs.

The Mode Dial located on the upper portion of the P5100 allows the user to set up to 5 different exposures modes. These modes include Manual (M) exposure mode that allows the user to provide the settings himself for a more flexible shot, while Auto Shutter Priority (S) gives the user the capability to select shutter speed, and he aperture settings will be automatically selected by the camera itself. The Auto (P) mode will automatically select the perfect shutter and aperture setting that is perfect for your shot; and finally Auto (A) provides manual control of up to 10-steps for the aperture settings, and the camera will adjust the shutter speed automatically.

The Vibration Reduction (VR) Optical Lens Shift of the Nikon Coolpix P5100 allows interchangeable lenses that used in every Nikon SLR digital camera. This feature allows shots at slower shutter speeds without destroying the over-all quality of the image.

The P5100 is capable of shooting at a maximum ISO setting of 3200 (though this is only capable for image sizes of 5M with resolution 2592 x 1944 or below. The ISO control allows you set from a minimum value of 64 to 3200. You can also set the ISO settings at Auto which allows automatic safety adjustments of ISO from 64 to 800.

Other features of the Nikon Coolpix 5100 includes different Scene Modes to suit any environment for your shots, White Balance, a built-in flash (with red-eye reduction settings available) and a flash hot shoe for additional flash power, a Face Detection system which allows detection to a total of 12 faces, SDHC card compatibility for expandable memory, and internal memory of 52MB. Also, due to the PictBridge capability of the P5100, one-touch printing is now capable as long as the unit is attached to the printer via the PC or laptop.

Pros: The Nikon Coolpix P5100 is designed to provide easy handling and control over its various features to any users, be it amateur photo-enthusiast or a professional. The various features combined the improved graphical user interface helps you make use of the various functions of the P5100 to produce high-quality captures.

Cons: The Nikon Coolpix P5100 is as much just a modified version of the P5000. There is always plenty of room for improvements depending on the need of the market today.

Overall: The Nikon Coolpix P5100 is a high-performance camera built to produce high-quality images. The various features of this unit can easily be handled due to its improved GUI and can be accessed through the LCD.

The various settings, modes and features of the P5100 ensure a high-quality output with high-definition, and provide a variety in which most professionals crave.

Attached Images

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