Darrell Young - Mastering the Nikon Coolpix

Darrell Young

Darrell Young (DigitalDarrell) is a professional nature and event photographer and an active member of Nikon Professional Services (NPS), Professional Photographers of America (PPA), and the North American Nature Photography Association (NANPA). Hes been an avid photographer since 1968 when his mother gave him a Brownie Hawkeye camera.

Darrell has used Nikon cameras and Nikkor lenses since 1980. He has an incurable case of Nikon Acquisition Syndrome (NAS) and delights in working with Nikons newest digital cameras.

Living near Great Smoky Mountains National Park has given him a real concern for the natural environment and a deep interest in nature photography.

He loves to write, as you can see in the Resources area of the Nikonians Online community (www.Nikonians.org). He joined the community in the year 2000, and his literary contributions led to his invitation to become the Founding Member of the Nikonians Writers Guild.

Darrell Young (aka Digital Darrell)

Editor (Rocky Nook): Gerhard Rossbach

Editor (Nikonians): Tom Bon

Production Editor: Jocelyn Howell

Copyeditor: Jeanne Hansen

Layout: Darrell Young

Cover Design: Helmut Kraus, www.exclam.de

Cover photo: Nikon USA

ISBN: 978-1-457181-97-9

1st Edition 2014

2014 Darrell Young

Rocky Nook, Inc.

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www.rockynook.com

Distributed by OReilly Media

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All rights reserved. No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized in any form, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission of the publisher.

Many of the designations in this book used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks of their respective companies. Where those designations appear in this book, and Rocky Nook was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed in caps or initial caps. All product names and services identified throughout this book are used in editorial fashion only and for the benefit of such companies with no intention of infringement of the trademark. They are not intended to convey endorsement or other affiliation with this book. Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Lightroom are registered trademarks of Adobe Systems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

While reasonable care has been exercised in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author(s) assume no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein or from the use of the discs or programs that may accompany it.

This book is dedicated to:

My wife of many years, Brenda; the love of my life and best friend ...

My children, Autumn, David, Emily, Hannah, and Ethan, five priceless gifts ...

My mother and father, Barbara and Vaughn, who brought me into this world and guided my early life, teaching me sound principles to live by ...

My Nikonians editor, Tom Bon, without whose assistance I could not possibly write books ...

My friends J. Ramon Palacios and Bo Stahlbrandt, who make it possible to belong to Nikonians.org, the worlds best Nikon Users Community ...

The wonderful staff of Rocky Nook, including Gerhard Rossbach, Joan Dixon, Jocelyn Howell, and Matthias Rossmanith ...

My copyeditor, Jeanne Hansen (www.hansenedits.com), whose eye for detail and knowledge of the English language made this book much nicer for its readers ...

And, finally, to Nikon, who makes the worlds best cameras and lenses.

Special Thanks to:

Brad Berger of www.Berger-Bros.com (800-542-8811) for helping me obtain a Nikon COOLPIX A early in its production cycle so that I could write this book. I personally buy from and recommend Berger-Bros.com for Nikon cameras, lenses, and accessories. They offer old-time service and educational classes for your photographic needs.

Will Thompson of www.atomos.com (503-388-3236) for allowing me to use the powerful Atomos Ninja-2 (HDMI) and Samurai Blade (HD-SDI) external video recorders. These revolutionary recorders are the go-to Smart Production Weapons for Nikon camera owners who want to record the highest quality, uncompressed video their camera can output.

Michael Tapes of mtapesdesign.com (321-752-9700) for providing samples of their excellent products: WhiBal for white balance ambient light (PRE) readings and accurate white balance control; LensAlign and FocusTune for calibrating and fine-tuning autofocus in Nikon DSLRs.

Congratulations on your purchase of the exciting new Nikon COOLPIX A, the premium-quality, compact digital camera in Nikons brand new genre of small cameras.

The Nikon COOLPIX A (also known as the A) comes with a large DX (APS-C) sensor normally found only in digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras. Additionally, it has no anti-aliasing (AA) filter in front of the sensor, so the camera is capable of extreme sharpness. The permanently attached lens on the A is an amazingly sharp 18.5mm f/2.8 Nikkor (28mm equivalent in the FX world), which is highly optimized for the sensor and provides image quality that is normally available only when you use professional lenses on a DSLR.

Figure 1.1: Nikon COOLPIX A, front view

The A has all the controlsboth automatic and manualthat are expected in a true enthusiasts camera. It has the potential to be used as a point-and-shoot camera for good times with friends and family, and with the turn of the Mode dial it becomes a serious imaging device for creative photography. The 16.2 megapixel DX sensor is vastly larger than consumer-level COOLPIX cameras, making the COOLPIX A unique in Nikons lineup of fine compact cameras. It has virtually all the controls you need to take complete control of your photography, just like a DSLR camera. However, the tiny size of the A means you can carry it with you everywhere you go for instant capture of unique images and life events.

The Nikon COOLPIX A is in a class of cameras that appeared only recently. Although it is not strictly a mirrorless interchangeable lens compact (MILC) or an electronic viewfinder interchangeable lens (EVIL) compact, the COOLPIX A follows the mirrorless idea, with similar specifications to MILC and EVIL cameras, except it has a noninterchangeable prime lens. I propose a new camera category called the mirrorless prime lens compact (MPLC) camera. That classification best describes the COOLPIX A.