CAMERA

Nikon Coolpix L320 - A Compact Camera (Part 2)

8/4/2013 10:58:28 AM

Performance

Additional sample images and product photos are available in the Equipment Database, where you are able to add your own reviews, photos and product reviews.

The sample images

The sample images

The sample images

The images are well exposed with good color. The portrait photos have perfect skin colors and do not have the red-eye phenomenon when using the flash. The last two images above were captured by using the zoom at its longest length, great for shooting wildlife.

Lens quality

Lens test images

Lens test images

Detail is OK in the center of the images, but soft in the corners, especially at the upper left, they look a bit blurry. Purple fringing is not much to affect the contrast. The lens has a minimum focusing distance of 1cm which allows the implementation of fairly good macro shots.

ISO image noise level

ISO test images

ISO test images

Images have less noise at ISO 80, 100 and 200, but at ISO 400 images are blurry. Some detail is lost at ISO 800, and lots of detail lost at ISO 1,600 and some of the colors look blurry in a few places.

Efficient white balance

White balance test images

White balance test images

Under the incandescent lights, the auto white balance (AWB) works very well, with the incandescent preset creating the shots that have orange colors. Again, the AWB works well under the fluorescent lights with fluorescent presets taking a series of images that have magenta colors.

Digital filters

Digital filters

Digital filters

The L820 has color choices to help you shoot the unique and creative pictures, with examples above.

Video

Below is a video recording clip in the 720p HD mode. You are also able to use the optical zoom while recording, an example of which can be viewed on the ePHOTOzine Youtube page.

Value

The Nikon Coolpix L320 is on the market at the price of $262.5. The camera products with a 26x optical zoom lens consist of the Fujifilm X-S1 at $ 628.5, X-Pentax at $5,240 and the Sony Cybershot DSC-H200 at $225. If you want to select a camera with a little higher zoom, the following cameras that feature 30x optical zoom include the Canon Powershot SX500 IS at $285, Sony Cybershot DSC-HX200V at $403.5 and Fujifilm FinePix S4800 at $225. Sony has just issued the Cybershot DSC-HX50, a pocket-able camera with 30x optical zoom, is priced at $525.

You will also need to purchase a memory card and a case or bag to keep your camera safe and protected - just based on our complete guide to buy camera bags.

Conclusion

The Nikon Coolpix L320 is a sufficiently good camera if you want a sample image with large optical zoom but have a limited budget. There are several problems with images like being slightly blurry at the corners; our test sample images had more blur in the upper left corner. If you mainly want to share your photos on the web then the quality is not a problem, especially color reproduction is quite good.

Pros

·         Ability to zoom well

·         Minimum focusing distance of 1cm is good for the macro modes.

·         Rubber hand grip

·         Battery life is good.

·         Images have good colors

·         Make good auto white balance

Cons

·         Only 720p HD video recording

·         The images look blurry in the upper left corner.

·         The limited features

Nikon Coolpix L320 specifications

Lens

·         Max Aperture: f/3.1 - f/5.9

·         35mm equivalent: 22.5mm - 585mm

·         Optical Zoom: 26x

Image sensor

·         CCD pixels: 16Mp (Megapixels)

·         Pixels (W): 4,608

·         Pixels (H): 3,456

·         Sensor Type: CCD

·         Sensor Size: 1/2.3 inch

·         Sensor Size (width): No Data

·         Sensor Size (height): No Data

·         Aspect Ratio: 4:3; 16:9

LCD monitor

·         LCD Monitor: 3in

·         Screen resolution: 230k dots

·         Touch Screen: No

Focusing

·         Min Focus: 1cm

·         Focusing modes: Autofocus; Face Detection; Centre

Exposure Control

·         Shutter speeds shortest: 1/1,500sec

·         Shutter speeds longest: 4sec

·         Exp modes: Scene modes

·         Metering: Centre-weighted – Average; Multi Pattern; Spot

·         ISO sensitivity: 80 – 1,600

·         White balance      

·         Exposure Comp: +/-2

Shooting Options

·         Continuous shooting: 1.2fps

Video

·         Movie mode: Yes

·         Video Resolution: 1,280x720 720p

·         Video FPS: 30fps

·         Stereo Sound: No

·         Optical Zoom with Video: Yes

Other Features

·         Image Stabilization: Yes

Interface

·         HDMI: No

·         USB: USB 2

·         Wi-Fi: No

Storage

·         Card Type: SD; SDHC; SDXC

·         File Type: JPG

Power Source

·         Battery Type: AA batteries

·         CIPA Rating: 310

Box Contents

·         Box Contents: Camera Strap, LR6/L40 (AA-size) alkaline batteries (x4), Lens Cap LC-CP25 (with cord), USB Cable UC-E16, ViewNX 2 CD-ROM, Reference Manual (CD-ROM)

Dimensions

·         Weight: 430g

·         Width: 111.1mm

·         Height: 76.3mm

·         Depth: 83.1mm

 

 

 

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