Nikon’s new Coolpix 885, Best Digital-Camera Overall 2001?
Written: Nov 11 '01 (Updated Jan 15 '02)
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Pros: New 3X Nikkor Zoom, “Point’n’Shoot” simplicity, Matrix Metering, CSM mode and Quick Review mode
Cons: Slow start-up/cycle times, rechargeable battery/charger not included
The Bottom Line: The new Nikon Coolpix 885 offers digital shooters the best balance of performance and features for the cost currently available.
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| Howard_Creech's Full Review: Nikon COOLPIX 885 Digital Camera |
Nikon has been the world’s pre-eminent film based camera/optics firm for more than half a century, and since the advent of the digital photography revolution, the company has had an important and significant impact on the development of digital imaging. Factor in Nikon’s Coolscan film scanners (which have always set the quality standard in professional imaging) and you have a family of products that offer almost unlimited creative possibilities.
Combining Nikon's world famous optics, cutting edge technology, superb ergonomics, and innovative design, Coolpix digital cameras have always been among the most popular (and best selling) in the high tech electronics marketplace. The newest member of this distinguished family, the Coolpix 885, is a versatile and groundbreaking digital camera designed to appeal to both beginners and budding professionals.
The new Nikon Coolpix 885 is one of those rare beasts, an update of a popular earlier model (the Coolpix 880) that is more than cosmetic and also incorporates many of the nifty features from other models introduced in the interim like the Coolpix 995 and Coolpix 775. When Nikon introduced the Coolpix 880, digital photographers immediately started calling it the “baby 990” because it offered many of the features of Nikon’s more upscale model, in a compact, less costly package.
Here’s what I had to say about the CP885’s predecessor (November 2000 review) “Overall the Nikon Coolpix 880 is an exceptional value, you get many of the same features that Nikon offers on the more expensive Nikon Coolpix 990 for considerably less. The 880 offers a couple of neat features that the Nikon Coolpix 990 doesn’t provide like the “scene mode” and "CSM mode” Factor in manual control options, an excellent macro mode, a great playback mode, well designed user friendly controls and menu, and you may have the best over-all balance between features and cost of any digicam currently available in the marketplace”. How does the CP885 stack up when compared to its predecessor? Nikon's new Coolpix 885 combines 3 megapixel resolution and a newly designed 3X Nikkor zoom lens in a compact digital camera with superb functionality and ergonomics. Add “point’n’shoot” simplicity, lots of creative options, Quick Review, One-Touch Upload to the Web, and you have one of the best consumer level digital cameras ever.
Features:
Exposure Options
Auto, Movie, Setup, Playback, Scene, and Custom (CSM) modes. Scene mode provides 12 presets optimized for special exposure situations: Portrait, Party / Indoor, Night Portrait, Beach / Snow, Landscape, Sunset, Night Landscape, Museum, Fireworks, Close Up, Copy, and Backlight. The CSM mode provides a full array of manual/automatic exposure options including: White Balance, Metering, Advance Rate, Best-Shot Selector, Image Adjustment (Contrast and Brightness), Image Sharpening, Lens Converter settings, Image Size and Quality, ISO, Exposure Options, Focus Options, Auto Bracketing, and Noise Reduction
Viewfinder:
The 885's optical viewfinder zooms with the lens and the 1.5-inch LCD can be set to turn on automatically when the camera is powered up, or it can be turned on and off manually.
“Best Shot”
Records up to 10 continuous exposures of the same subject with one press of the Shutter button, the camera then analyzes each exposure in the series and chooses the sharpest image to record to the memory card. A particularly useful option when there is an increased potential for camera shake (macro mode, maximum telephoto range, or poor lighting) or in rapidly changing action/sports settings.
Image Adjustment:
Allows the user to control the level of image contrast and brightness compensation that is applied to each image before it's written to the memory card. The camera can be set to automatically adjust contrast and brightness, or for more or less contrast, more or less brightness, or to convert the image to black-and-white. Image Sharpening can be adjusted to control the degree of in-camera sharpening with five steps: Auto, High, Normal, Low, and Off.
Quick Review function:
Enables the user to view thumbnails of previously captured images while still observing the live action taking place on the LCD. You can scroll through stored images (just as you would in Playback mode) without having to switch the Mode dial.
Focus Confirmation:
Allows the LCD to function like a digital “ground glass” screen, by applying a sharpening mask to the LCD screen image to "highlight" the current focus point. Once you get used to it you’ll wonder how you ever got by without it.
Auto Bracketing:
With auto bracketing enabled, you can select from 3 or 5 images in steps of 0.3 0.7 or 1.0 EV. With WB (white balance) bracketing enabled the camera will bracket three shots of the same subject, one at normal white balance, one cooler (more blue) and one warmer (more red).
Direct to Web:
Allows users to upload digital photos directly from the camera to their desktop or the web (similar in function to DPOF)
Macro Focusing:
As close as 1.6 inches @wide angle setting.
Technical Specifications
Resolution: 3.34 mgpxl (3.21 million effective) 2048 x 1536
Image Compression: HI (uncompressed TIFF) FINE (JPEG 4:1) NORMAL (JPEG 8:1) BASIC (JPEG 16:1)
Lens: 3x Zoom-Nikkor f2.8-4.9/38-114mm (35mm equiv) 9 elements in 8 groups
Digital Zoom: 4X
Viewfinder: Optical (covers approx. 80% of frame) zooms with lens
LCD: 1.5-in. TFT LCD
Metering: 256-segment Matrix, Center-Weighted, Spot, Spot AF Area
Shutter: 8 seconds to 1/1000th of a second, and bulb (up to 60 sec.)
Image Storage: CF Card Type I
Sensitivity: ISO (equiv) 100, 200, 400, auto
Built-in Flash: Auto, Flash Cancel (off), Red-Eye Reduction, Anytime (fill-flash), & Slow Sync. Range 0.4 to 3.7m (1.3 to 12.1 ft.)
Movie Mode: 40 seconds of 15 fps video.
Power: Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL1, or 2CR5 (DL245) lithium battery,
Battery life (approx) 90 min. (EN-EL1) or 110 min. [2CR5 (DL245)] with moderate LCD use.
Included:
Nikon CP 885, Lens Cap, Wrist Strap, Video Cable, One 16 MB Lexar CF Card, USB Cable, Nikon View 4 CD-ROM, 2CR5 (DL245) Lithium Battery, 140 page manual, and Bundled Software.
Optional:
Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL1, Battery Charger MH-52, AC Adapter/Battery Charger EH-21, Slide Copy Adapter, wide angle, fish-eye, and telephoto lens converters (all require optional Lens Adapter UR-E4)
Street Price Range: $500-$600
In The Field/Handling and Operation
We’ve been having some absolutely beautiful weather here in Louisville for the past week or so. Classic Indian Summer, with cool frosty nights, clear blue skies, warm days, and autumn color at its seasonal peak. A good friend sells and distributes cameras and photographic equipment and he has been selling the new Nikon Coollpix 885 as fast as he can get them. I mentioned to him that I really wanted to check out Nikon’s newest Coolpix, but he said that it was unlikely that he would be able to spare a camera for a while, since he has people on a waiting list to buy them.
My friend turned up one recent morning with a brand new Nikon Coolpix 885 in hand and said, “ lets go see what this little beauty can do”. He is still trying to get over the trauma of his recent territorial encounter with an aggressive old groundhog on one of our camera testing adventures. A couple of his employees have started to refer to him as the “groundhog man” which he feels is undignified in light of his position and accomplishments. He only agreed to allow me to test the CP885 on the condition that we spend the entire afternoon in the city and go nowhere near the woods.
We started at Hadley Pottery, 1570 Story Ave. (502) 584-2171 (http://www.hadleypottery.com/index.html) where my friend planned to do some Christmas shopping. Mary Alice Hadley, a very talented local artist and potter whose colorful and innovative stoneware is famous worldwide founded Hadley Pottery in 1940. The salesroom and factory are located in Louisville’s old Butchertown neighborhood in a large brick building constructed in 1848. Pottery and crafts fans from around the world visit to buy beautiful pottery, seconds, and closeouts, and watch the talented artists at work. While my friend shopped I wandered around the showroom shooting close-ups of the colorful pottery displays with the Nikon CP885 and a Nikon N80 (with a Nikkor 35-80 lens) we’d brought along to shoot 35mm slides for comparison purposes.
My friend bought a couple of lovely pieces, and after leaving Hadley Pottery we drove to nearby Frankfort Avenue. This long narrow street is the heart of the Crescent Hill neighborhood, an eclectic collection of old homes, one of a kind galleries, antique shops, trendy restaurants, and coffeehouses. My friend wanted to shoot the nineteenth century firehouse, the wonderful old Victorian houses, and the miles of beautiful old hardwood trees (many still in peak fall color) that line Frankfort Avenue from Downtown Louisville to St. Mathews.
We planned to shoot until the light started to fade, and then stop at Genny’s, (2223 Frankfort Ave. (502) 893-0923) a nifty neighborhood restaurant with a castlelated roof, loads of glitzy Neon (including the only six foot neon pickle I’ve ever seen) and a classic fifties “roadside Diner” look. Genny’s is known far and wide for their Frickled Pickle Chips (breaded french-fried pickles) friendly atmosphere, and huge cheeseburgers. Diners are almost always super photographic subjects, they usually have colorful signs, art deco architecture, and lots of neon. Check out the diner scene in your area, view some classic diner photography, and investigate the fascinating history of this uniquely American Epicurean phenomenon by going to http://www.dinercity.com/
We wanted to shoot the diner at dusk so the neon would add some color and drama to the white building. Once the light was completely gone we would have a cheeseburger and discuss the CP885, and what we thought of its handling and performance. As a long time fan of American Diner food I was more than willing to make a sacrifice for art and photography and consume a half pound cheeseburger with fries and all the fixings in the interest of continued excellence in digital camera testing. The “Sweet Daddy” cheeseburger (at 1.25 pounds of ground beef) is probably the largest cheeseburger available anywhere on the planet. The quarter pound cheeseburgers served at Genny’s are regarded by local diner fans as a dainty “ladies” burger. The dessert menu at this cholesterol palace is rich and varied, and sure to provide at least one selection that will make anyone with a sweet tooth drool. The CP885 performed flawlessly, the “golden time” light was truly magical, and the cheeseburgers were excellent. All in all, a wonderful way to spend an autumn day.
We got together the following afternoon to compare the slides from the N80 (Kodak Elitechrome 100 slides) with the digital images shot with the CP885. The slides (viewed on a color corrected light table with a Schneider 6X loupe) were absolutely beautiful with superb colors and exceptional contrast. The digital images were also very good, and while they didn’t equal the slides from the N80, they were capable of excellent 8X10 enlargements. White balance was exceptional; whites, grays, and blacks were perfect, with no visible color cast. Reds were very strong, almost too saturated (my friend called them “Velvia” red) while the greens shifted just a bit toward blue. Overall colors were good and a more comprehensive test would be required to determine if the over saturated reds might eventually present a problem.
What impressed both of us was the incredible resolution of the newly designed 3X zoom Nikkor, which is actually sharper than the 4X zoom in the new Coolpix 995. Metering (one of Nikon’s strengths) was dead on, with accurate exposures in all lighting conditions and in every shooting mode. ISO 100 images were almost noise free, and the ISO 200 setting produced very good results as well. The contrast and sharpening options provide photographers with some serious input and creative control over internal image processing. The scene modes, Quick Review, and macro capabilities worked very well.
A Few Concerns
Serious photographers are likely to be unhappy with the lack of a dedicated aperture priority mode, but since the CP885 only has two (variable) lens apertures, this isn’t a really serious fault. There is some barrel distortion at the wide end of the new 3X zoom, but no pincushion distortion at the telephoto end. Chromatic aberrations (minor) and the over-saturated red/cyan range might cause minor problems (depending on subject matter.
My most serious complaint is with the slow start-up/cycle times, which are a bit slower than average and may cause some upset over the long term. Coolpix 885 purchasers should factor the cost of the optional ($50) EN-EL1 lithium-ion rechargeable battery and charger (save the included battery as a backup, Lithium batteries offer long life/stability and don’t discharge when not in use) and a larger CF card (and save the 16MB included card for a times when you need a little additional storage) into their cost calculations/price comparisons.
Conclusion:
Overall the Coolpix 885 offers some pretty impressive capabilities in a compact package at a very attractive price. The scene mode will allow even novice photographers make good photos, and the auto mode is great for people who don't want to deal with any level of photographic complexity. The CSM mode will permit serious shooters to take full control of camera operations for more creative photography. The CP885 is a very versatile digital camera with a wide range of manual features, plus multi spot AF, and contrast, and sharpening adjustment options. With Nikon’s excellent Matrix metering system almost every shot will be perfectly exposed and the new 3X Nikkor zoom provides resolution on par with the best three megapixel digital cameras available. Low light performance is well above average.
Many very small/compact digital cameras are ergonomic nightmares and users soon tire of them because they are poorly designed and difficult to use. The tiny CP885 is ergonomically superb designed to be used for extended periods without frustration or fatigue. The controls are well placed and users will quickly learn to operate the camera intuitively. The CP885’s exceptional balance of features versus cost is one of the best in the industry. The camera should settle out at around $500 within a couple of months, which is a fine price for an imaging tool that can do everything the CP885, can do. If you are considering buying a digital camera, take a close look at Nikon’s new CP885, it may be just what you’ve been looking for.
Digital Photographer Magazine says the new Nikon Coolpix 885 delivers the “Best Quality for the Price” in an article in the current issue (January 2002, page 10) entitled the “10 Best Buys in Digital Cameras”
For information on How to Choose a Digital Camera please see my review:
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-2E46-17B174E2-39A418E3-prod1
For information about specific Digital Camera models, please see my Digital Camera Reviews:
Nikon Digital Cameras
Nikon Coolpix 5000
http://www.epinions.com/content_52720406148
Nikon Coolpix 885
http://www.epinions.com/content_46290931332
Nikon Coolpix 995
http://www.epinions.com/content_40256769668
Nikon D1X
http://www.epinions.com/content_36023996036
Nikon D1
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-4868-E2433E5-38737CF8-prod2/tk_~CB003.1.78
Nikon Coolpix 880
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-2DA8-DF21E52-39E118CA-prod5
Nikon Coolpix 990
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-3B78-3C431D90-3A345313-prod3
Canon Digital Cameras
Canon Powershot G2
http://www.epinions.com/content_47646084740
Canon Powershot S10
http://www.epinions.com/content_7563808388/tk_~CB003.1.74
Canon EOS D30
http://www.epinions.com/content_11625991812/tk_~CB003.1.58
Canon Powershot PRO 90IS
http://www.epinions.com/content_30440001156/tk_~CB005.1.9
Canon Powershot G1
http://www.epinions.com/content_8768294532/tk_~CB003.1.70
Canon Powershot PRO 70
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-6496-25768DA-38C3E01A-prod9/tk_~CB003.1.70
Sony Digital Cameras
Sony DSC S85
http://www.epinions.com/content_51957567108
Sony MVC-CD 300
http://www.epinions.com/content_45591793284
Sony DSC-S50
http:http://www.epinions.com/content_15885897348
Sony Mavica MVC-CD1000
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-5F01-365BA12-3980602C-prod3/tk_~CB003.1.14
Olympus Digital Cameras
Olympus Camedia C3040
http://www.epinions.com/content_42675179140
Olympus Camedia C3000
http://www.epinions.com/content_26106105476/tk_~CB003.1.30
Olympus Camedia E10
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-59FB-183DFC73-3A17388F-prod2/tk_~CB003.1.42
Fuji Digital Cameras
Fuji Finepix S1 “PRO”
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-5591-16816C34-39047A87-prod5/tk_~CB003.1.18
Minolta Digital Cameras
Minolta Dimage 5
http://www.epinions.com/content_49104522884
Just “cut’n’paste” the URL into your browser’s address window.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 600.00
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Epinions.com ID:
Howard_Creech
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Member: Howard Creech
Location: Louisville, KY
Reviews written: 334
Trusted by: 1276 members
About Me:
Photographer/Writer fascinated by Movies, Music, Books, American Diner Food, History, "Popular Culture", and Travel.
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