Nice camera in a small package
The Nikon Coolpix L5 offers lots of features in a fairly compact size. I've already found it to take excellent pictures in a variety of situations. I've been using a DSLR (Nikon D70) for a couple of years now, and while this won't replace it, I wanted something small and lightweight for hiking and backpacking trips where the D70 system would be just too much. The headlines, of course, are the 7.2MP image size, the 5x optical zoom, and the VR vibration reduction (image stabilization). It also uses 2 standard AA batteries (alkaline or rechargeable), which is much more convenient in remote locations than a custom rechargeable battery pack.
I've found image quality to be excellent. I haven't run detailed comparisons (I'm sure plenty of other people will soon report on line pair resolution, etc.), but zooming in on the Photoshop image shows crisp images and excellent detail. The wide zoom range is also a plus, compared to the 2x-4x zoom in other cameras. You zoom by pushing either the wide angle or telephoto ends of a rocker switch. Because the lens zooms so rapidly, it's really hard to achieve precise control over the focal length. You have to learn how to briefly tap the control to achieve the desired result, but if you're used to the precise zooming of a DSLR you'll be disappointed with this.
There are several different exposure modes. In most cases you can simply use the Auto mode. In special situations you might want to use one of 15 preset modes. Exposures have usually been right on, although backlit subjects can be a little bit of a challenge in the Auto mode. The camera gives you two ways to deal with this. First is a Back Light mode, one of the 15 preset modes you can select. Second is a way to post-process the image in the camera through something called D-Lighting, which compensates for backlighting after you have made the exposure (the adjusted exposure is saved as a separate file, so your original is not altered). I've only played with these a little bit, but they did seem to improve the image somewhat.
You can also adjust exposure by dialing in compensation in 1/3-stop increments. The built-in flash is helpful for portraits, although as usual in this kind of camera, it's a bit anemic beyond about 10 feet. You can turn the flash off in auto mode, although in some of the preset modes, it gets turned back on whether you want it to or not. One of the preset modes is called Museum Mode, which turns off the flash and allows you to take pictures in situations where flash photography is prohibited. Like all compact digital cameras, you can only get JPEG files, not RAW format.
The user controls are fairly intuitive, once you get used to them. Commonly-used controls such as exposure compensation, self timer, macro mode, and flash on/off have dedicated buttons. Other controls are accessed through a menu button. The Vibration Reduction control at the top of the camera has three modes: off, normal, and Active. In normal mode, you can still pan to follow moving subjects. Active mode is for stationary scenes. It definitely works, and you can see noticeable improvement in photos with it turned on. But don't expect it to solve all your problems. It does a reasonable job of compensating for camera shake in handheld situations, but it won't be as good as using a tripod. Also, don't expect it to compensate for subject movement. I used it to shoot an indoor party in low light without a flash, and if the subjects were moving, they showed up blurred in the photo. Using the flash helps, but because of the anemic flash power the background goes dark.
The 2.5" screen is very bright and fairly sharp, although not high-definition. The camera doesn't have an optical viewfinder, so in bright sunlight you have to shield the screen to compose the shot. The screen is still bright enough to view in these situations.
You can also use it in a video mode to record both video and sound with its built-in microphone, but other than a quick experiment that seemed pretty good, I haven't used this and so can't comment on how good it is.
The other camera I looked at before buying this one was the Canon A710IS. Both are superficially similar. They are both 7MP, both have image stabilization, and both have similar zoom ranges (Canon is a little better at 6X). The Canon has the edge with an optical viewfinder and a little more capability to control the exposure. But it is also a bit larger and heavier, which was a disadvantage for me. Neither camera is exactly miniscule, but the Nikon will at least theoretically fit in my pocket. I felt the Canon was just too large. Plus the Canon was $100 more expensive, which wouldn't have stopped me if I thought it was enough better, but I didn't.
The camera comes with 2 alkaline AA batteries, but I use rechargeables. I got about 200 photos using a pair of 2500 mAH NiMH rechargeable batteries, including lots of time reviewing photos, deleting a lot of them, turning the camera on and off numerous times, and zooming regularly. The camera doesn't come with a memory card, but it does have 8MB of internal memory to store a few shots. I use a 1G high speed SD card from SanDisk. I strongly recommend a high speed card (about 10X transfer rate).
Overall, I'm happy with the camera and look forward to taking it on a lot of expeditions where the D70 would be left behind.
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Adequate but Disappointing
The industry conversion to SD cards and then more non-standard batteries had my delaying an upgrade till I saw this new camera model. I keep track of what's new with Nikon, since having 3 film Nikons, and now 3 digital Coolpix models, I am a bit biased with that brand. Aside from the latest one, yet to be determined, all proved to be rugged and high quality.
The lack of reviews prompted me to go out and test this model, with it's impressive 7.2 megapixel capacity. I have yet to try out all the features, but came up with some disappointing results, already.
Comparing the L5 with my older Coolpix 880, and then 2000, is the only experience I have in such basic point-and-shoot cameras. The L5 is not a professional camera, as tech support will freely tell you. I figured that with many industry improvements over the years, I would get a superb, modern and current, instrument.
The image quality is adequate, not much better, though, for the Web, than my 2001 camera. It still washes out with bright spots, and fails to capture all detail in darker or shadowy areas. While you can work on that with software, I thought most or all cameras, now, strive to produce highly usable images right out of the camera.
The settings are mostly all auto, with little or no manual override. There is no aperture or shutter priority, or manual focus. This almost had me shipping it back! As a full featured camera, this model does not do it.
The vibration reduction feature seems to work well, with sharp telephotos in broad daylight. I haven't tried it in dim light, but an entire afternoon shoot, for me, produced no blurred images. The 5X zoom seems worth it for sports or bringing in distant subjects. But there is no way to attach supplemental lenses, as with the screw mount on my 880, or filters. The 38 mm equivalent wide angle is then the widest angle you'll get. But, this working VR feature keeps it up a half point.
The LCD is big and bright, and easier on the eyes, with a better settings interface, but there is a major bug shooting in movie mode, and still shots. Broad purple streaks, even addressed in the manual, appear in 640 movies when pointed at a bright light source, as reflections of the sun off water. None of my earlier Coolpix cameras did this. Otherwise the movie quality is fine, satisfying most needs for a regular camcorder. It will run as long as you have memory for the shot. Nikon advises a high speed memory card may be necessary to avoid quits, bu the tech support told me they never had this quitting problem, yet, and I shot for 40 seconds (about a 60 MB file size) and it did fine. I'll test it for a longer period, but I usually don't shoot movies, and this is basically first a still camera. The movie sound isn't great, rather tinny, but a nice feature to have.
While shooting stills, the purple streaks, a bit dimmer, then, appear in the LCD, rather annoying to have for the years I expect to use this camera. Just the slightest brightness causes this to happen. These streaks do not appear in the final image, though, unlike as with the 640 movie mode.
The LCD display of captured images is much poorer, too, than what you see as you make the shot. The playback isn't very sharp or good. You really wouldn't be able to tell any blur or unsharp focus by what appears, after pressing the shutter, in the camera instant review, or later. There's no blur warning, as in other Coolpix models.
I'm using regular rechargeable AA batteries, as opposed to firm warnings in the manual about using other than Nikon-approved products. Tech support said that was O.K. My two Ray-o-Vac Ni-mh batteries are holding up fine, having been used for over 150 images and movie clips, so far, without a low battery icon popping up. The AAs usually exhausted quickly with my power draining Coolpix 2000. This is one of the big pluses for the L5, engineered to conserve juice, it looks like.
Nikon tests only a small set of memory cards, so I have to gamble with cheaper generic ones, if I should have to do that. They do say that other brands of cards just aren't tested, or do fail in use. You are limited by the manual to three brands, and the compatibility charts on many memory card manufacturers' websites don't include the newer Coolpix models, or perhaps aren't usable with most of them. I use a 512 MB San Disk card, which seems to work. Sadly, the newer 2 GB cards are not tested or supported.
These are a few bugs that I wouldn't have ever expected from Nikon, and I see they've gained mostly lukewarm or mediocre ratings, lately, if now even mentioned. My 880 was rated in the top ten, or highest, by two PC or photo magazines, so my purchase was based on that. It's pretty early to read about this new release, but I have faith in Nikon. Maybe a firmware update will correct these problems, but I would have waited a bit longer for a better model, had I known of this.
The price was the best thing about this, and I see they must have cut corners. It is a point-and-shoot camera, and I guess for real performance, you'd get a Nikon DSLR. But two of their $600 low end ones only have 6 MP capacity, and the latest 10 MP DSLR is way out of my league. I'm not a professional, and all I use these for is for the Web. The direct printing feature may be great for those on the go, but I like to edit the image, and print as I will (which I seldom do, anymore).
Maybe in another 5 years, I will opt for a more professional camera, when they are cheaper and better, but the L5 will do, for now, with these upsetting limitations.
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