Digital Photography Opinions, Observations, Articles, Insights, and Tutorials Nikon CoolPix 700   Compact Lightweight Easy to use High quality snapshots Below: CoolPix 700 snapshot. Click to enlarge, 1024 x 768 pixels / 304 KB More Samples - Click on the thumbnail pictures below for a larger view Notes - All sample photos taken in the camera's "fine" quality and full sized resolution (1600X1200), then resized to 1024X768 pixels unless otherwise noted. The file sizes of the pictures are shown below the thumbnails in approximate kilobytes (bytes x 1000) to give you an idea of download time. Moe at Work 212 KB The Nightstalker 261 KB Chainsaw Action 321 KB Sometimes simple is better - So go ahead! Pick up the CoolPix 700 & flip the switch on - it only takes about 2 seconds to boot up. Then aim, press the shutter 1/2 way to autofocus, and shoot - it's simple & it's quick. Spontaneous: Spon*ta"ne*ous\, a. [L. spontaneus, fr. sponte of free will, voluntarily.] 1. Proceeding from natural feeling, temperament, or disposition, or from a native readiness, or tendency, without constraint. 2. Proceeding from, or acting by, internal impulse, energy; as, spontaneous reaction. What is spontaneous springs wholly from feeling, or a sudden impulse. Source: Websters Unabridged Dictionary July, 1999 Small, Quick, Simple, & Solid The CoolPix 700 is a compact and sturdy camera, shaped for a comfortable & secure grip. It will easily fit in a pocket or purse, or clip onto a belt with its included carrying case. Combine this with speed, advanced features, ease of use, and demonstrated high quality output. The result? An ideal inexpensive digital camera for casual home or everyday business use, and an ideal second camera for the more intense photographer. Although it's no longer in production, you can still find the CoolPix 700 for a bargain at online auctions, certain stores with "old stock", etc. For the casual home or business user, the CoolPix 700 takes minimal training and experience to use. This means that family, friends, or employees can effectively use the camera with just a few (simple) instructions. And with its highest resolution output (1600x1200 pixels) in the "fine" quality mode, it will produce smooth, detailed, high quality prints up to 8" x 10". Basic features include: Quick & easy selection of normal or macro (extreme closeup) autofocus; or "infinity" fixed focus (good beyond 30 feet). Auto flash (when the camera thinks it needs it), forced fill flash (every shot), no flash (no matter what), slow-sync flash (long exposure for low light conditions with a flash at the end of the exposure), and "red eye" reduction auto flash (light pulses reduce the pupils in the eyes before the real flash fires). A 3 or 10 second self-timer to take unattended pictures. Quick & easy digital zoom of 1.25x, 1.6x, 2x, or 2.5x. Useful for "framing" a subject to size, but will degrade image quality in the upper ranges. "Time Out" choices of 30 seconds, 1 minute, 5 minutes, or 30 minutes. (This is the time delay before the camera enters a 'sleep mode' to conserve battery power. Only happens if you leave the camera on and don't take a picture.) For the more intense user, the CoolPix 700 is not a toy - it makes a great second camera, because its small size and ease of use give it an important role in day to day photography. For example, there are many occasions where I'd like to take a picture now, without the burden of hauling out the bigger cameras, lenses, tripods, and accessories. As such, it's excellent for quick, candid shots. The automatically programmed shutter speeds and aperture settings are visible in the LCD screen, if you so choose. Like the LCD view itself, the shutter and aperture readouts are live and in real time. Although they are not directly settable (by exposure priority or manual settings), they are certainly informative and helpful. With this information, the experienced photographer will be able to determine the suitability of the shutter speed and aperture for the situation at hand. And with a little practice, it's quite simple to quickly change the ISO setting from the default 80, up to 100, 160, or 320 - with the resulting changes in shutter speeds and aperture combinations. (Excellent for available light shots.) And (or) quickly adjust EV in 1/3 steps (plus or minus) to bracket exposures & modify the programmed automatic exposure values. Other useful advanced features include: Spot, center weighted, or matrix metering. Preset manual focus distance settings of 4", 8", 12", 18", 2', 3', 5', 10', or 30'. Image brightness or contrast enhancement in the onboard processing. (I like the look of Contrast + because it seems a bit more film-like.) White balance preset options. More - see complete specifications below.   Nikon CoolPix 700 specifications - Type of camera Digital Camera E700 CCD 1/2-inch high-density CCD; Total number of pixels: 2.11 million Image Size Choice of 2 pixel sizes: 1) 1,600 x 1,200 (UXGA), 2) 640 x 480 (VGA) Lens Nikkor lens; Multicoated, 5 elements in 4 groups, aspherical glass lens, f = 6.8 mm with macro; (35mm format equivalent: 38), F 2.6; Fisheye and Wide-angle adapter can be attached (optional); Optional step-up ring required for adapter lenses Digital zoom 4-step digital zoom: 1.25x / 1.6x / 2x / 2.5x Autofocus Contrast-detect TTL autofocus, 127-step autofocus control Focus mode Selectable by menu on LCD : 1) Continuous AF mode, 2) Single AF mode, 3) Manual Shooting distance 12 inches (30cm) to infinity, 3.5 inches (9cm) to infinity in macro mode Exposure metering 3-mode TTL metering, 256-element Matrix, Spot and Center-Weighted Shutter Mechanical and charge-coupled electronic shutter 1/750 to 1 sec. Aperture Electromagnetic drive rounded diaphragm opening; 3 steps at F2.6/F3.8/F8.0 Exposure control Programmed Auto Exposure (AE), Manual exposure compensation (±2EV in 1/3 EV steps) Exposure range EV-2~15.5 ISO 100 equivalent Sensitivity Approx. ISO 80 equivalent Gain increase available 1) Default (approx. 80), 2) 100 (approx. 100), 3) +1 (approx. 160), 4) +2 (approx. 320) White balance Automatic TTL homing system, can be set manually for 1) sunny, 2) cloudy, 3) incandescent, 4) fluorescent, and 5) flash conditions. Preset white balance available, which allows users to set white balance using a white subject, such as a white card or sheet of white paper, prior to actual shooting Tone curve selection 5 User selectable image tone curve settings; 1) Standard, 2) Contrast+, 3) Contrast-, 4) Brightness+, 5)Brightness- Self-timer Selectable 10-second or 3-second duration Viewfinder Real image optical viewfinder; Magnification: 0.45x; Frame coverage approx. 85%; LED indication for Speedlight Ready and Focus Ready LCD monitor 1.8-inch, 112,000-dot, TFT LCD Adjustable back light; Update rate: 30 frames/sec.; Frame coverage: approx. 97% Auto power save Factory default 30 seconds auto shutoff; can be changed to 1, 5, or 30 minutes Image recording File Format - TIFF RGB (Uncompressed) or JPEG (Exif 2.1); 24 bit RGB color Multiple folders supported - Folders except for the default folder can be renamed Mode - Hi = Uncompressed RGB TIFF, Fine = 1:4 JPEG, Normal = 1:8 JPEG, Basic = 1:16 JPEG (Approx.) Storage Media - Removable CompactFlash™ card Capacity* - Hi = 1 img., Fine = 8 imgs., Normal = 16 imgs., Basic = 32 imgs. (8MB) * Number of images may vary depending on the image captured and the resolution selected. Shooting mode Fully automatic mode (A-REC) Programmable manual mode (M-REC); allows choice of 3 custom settings from among shooting menu Shooting menu 1) Metering, 2) Capture mode, 3) Sensitivity, 4) White balance, 5) Tone compensation, 6) Best-shot selector, 7) Monochrome, 8) Digital zoom, 9) Converters (for adapter lenses), 10) Auto file numbering Best-shot selector Camera takes 10 shots automatically (within approx. 1.5 fps) and records the most detailed image of the shots using anti-jitter logic, which is effective for telephoto shooting and macro shooting. Not available when the Speedlight is on. Capture mode 1) Single, 2) Continuous, 3) High-speed continuous, 4) Multiple continuous Capture Speed 1) Single mode: Approx. 1 fps for full-size or smaller size images. Users need to release the shutter button after every shot. 2) Continuous mode: Approx. 1.5 fps for full size or smaller size images up to 10 images. Camera captures 1 frame every 0.8 sec. when the shutter button is depressed. 3) High-speed continuous mode: Approx 2 fps for VGA size images up to 60 images. Camera captures 1 VGA size image every 0.5 sec. when the shutter button is depressed. Image size is fixed in VGA in this mode. 4) Multiple continuous: Approx. 2 fps. Camera captures 16 continuous images and puts all 16 into 1 full-size image frame. Built-in Speedlight Guide number - 23 feet (at ISO 100) Flash modes - 1) Auto-flash, 2) Flash-off, 3) Force-fill flash, 4) Slow-sync and 5) Red-eye reduction Flashes for 0.8 sec. before main flash Playback function 1) 1 Frame, 2) Thumbnails, 3) Slide show, 4) 2x or 3x zoom playback with panning capability. Hide and protect attributes can be set for each image Delete function Deletes all frames or selected frames Platform Windows® 95/98, NT4.0 or later, Macintosh® OS 7.6.1 or later Interface Serial interface (Windows: 115 kbps, Macintosh: 230 kbps) Video output NTSC video signal output for image display on standard TV set Return to top of page