Nikon Coolpix 8800

Opinion: I have >30 years of photography experience mainly with 35mm Pentax SLR's but got into digital in 2003 when I was loaned a 4mp Sony DSC-S85 P&S with Carl Zeiss optics. In 2005 I bought a refurbished Nikon Coolpix 5400, in 2006 I added A used 8700 and sold them recently to upgrade to 8800 & D40 Dslr. I missed the wider angle of the 5400 so I added a used Olympus C8080 as a replacement. This review is based on a comparison of the 8800 with the other digitals I have owned.

Thanks to the excellent advise in DP Review and those contributions in its forums (or is it fora?) I had been made well aware of the pros and cons of the 8800. I won a used on on ebay for £200 (UK) in July 07 which turned up in as new condition and I've been absolutely delighted.

I thought the 5400 was wonderful when I first bought it in 2005 but now I've seen the comparisons with the slightly larger sensors of the 8700 8800 and C8080 I stopped using it.

The button heavy operation of my previous 8700 was my main reason for off-loading it, but it had a big advantage in its lightness of weight.

I take mainly outdoor photos and have no issue with the slower operation compared with a Dslr. I like most of all
its image quality, ergonomic layout, VR and flip/twist LCD.

Compared to my D40 the 8800 has better metering (D40 matrix metering over exposes easily) and the D40's lens gives much more purple fringing than the 8800.

Compared to my Olympus C8080 the 8800 can give harsher greens and slower startup but benefits from a much longer lens reach with VR and a fully articulated LCD.

Of my 3 cameras if I could keep only 1 it would have to be the 8800.

A useful tip is to buy a converter to allow use of SD memory cards. A 4GB SD card can now be bought for £10 and gives approx 1000 jpegs at Extra quality.

The time lapse function is a good feature rarely provided now. I have set the AF to use only the centre brackets and this speeds up operation.

Opinion: Lots of pros and cons - but VERY SLOW! I have been using this camera for
professional design work and magazine editorial for 3 years now. Image quality is
great in certain environments, but some issues with achieving proper white balance,
though sometimes custom measure works great. Problems focusing - even "manual"
is inconsistent, failing for no reason. Once it fails, hard to get proper focus back.
Noise isnt too bad in really low light. Macros capabilities are fantastic - will be
keeping this camera specifically for that, even though stepping up to a canon 5D.
Biggest problem with this camera is shutter lag and write speed - ridiculously slow,
even for portrait work and other things were time isnt always an issue. Dont even
consider this camera for weddings, sports, action etc. But a good price and nice
option for advanced amatuers, anyone wanting great macro and lots of nature/
landscape work. Option add on lenses and great - really recommend wide angle for
just $80, well worth it. Telephoto is more costly, about $250, but a great lens.
Battery life doesnt seem to bother me, though some complain, but I have 2
backups. Lastly - construction is great, my camera attached to my tripod fully
extended at about 7 feet, tipped over and hit a tile floor, HARD, and the only non
cosmetic problem is it broke the shutter release, which is easily fixed - few knicks
and dings and a broken piece of plastic, doesnt look pretty anymore, but it really
took a lickin and kept on tickin.

Opinion: I have owned this camera fro 2 years, upgraded from the 8700 after a few weeks of owning the 8700. Great Camera, Great...amazing photo quality, Easy to use and fun to learn on. VR and 10X zoom is amazing.

Opinion: Owned this model for over a year. This camera is not without its faults, but has one hell of a lens; certainly to rival some of Nikon's prosumer gear. I have achieved some fantastic images with this camera, and it is built to a high quality with a great screen and good viewfinder. Nice aperture range. Works brilliantly with Nikon SB600 Speedlight. Good auto focus on macro... but in normal mode, pretty awkward. Luckily this camera has a manual focus, which takes some getting used to but DOES work. Would suggest investing in a D70s however, since my needs have far surpassed what this camera has to offer. What this model DOES offer over the D70 is lots of megapixels. You will be greatful for 8 when it comes to a situation where you really need to crop. This camera is compact, and brilliant to carry around. Zoom performs well when Macro focus is used even when approaching 89mm (camera's maximum length). The VR really shows, and is a great asset. I am now using a Nikon D200 with a Sigma f/2.8 70-200 and the Nikon kit 18-70 (absolutely gorgeous camera) but obviously this is appealing to a different market.

Opinion: A good all rounder - x10 zoon, 8MP sensor, vibration reducation, built in flash. A bit too big to carry around but purchased as an attempt to go beyond my 4MP Canon S40.
I was very impressed by the Nikon panorma stitchingmode which left a ' ghost' of the previous shot fon the viewfinder for you to align to.

Opinion: One of the best digital cameras among those in 8 megapixels.

Opinion: I've used this camera for a year and from nearly the beginning I've been irritated by its poor performance and shoddy construction. I *was* a LONG time Nikon enthusiast up until very recently. I started out with 35mm using the 8008, then went to an N90s, then to the F4e. For years I took my N90 and F4 with me everywhere I went, all through Central and South America. Loved those cameras. I started playing digital when the Coolpix 990 came out, and upgraded streadily, always with Nikon, until I bought a D1x shortly after they came out. Loved that camera for the first couple years I had it, and shot thousands of images... but then it began to peter out. Sent in for service several times, and was never the same. I was frustrated to see how slowly Nikon was improving its digital SLR offerings in comparison to other companies, such as Canon. Last year I bought the Nikon Coolpix 8800 as a "back-up" and lightweight alternative while my D1x was off for service yet again. What a mistake... the Coolpix 8800 can capture a decent image now and then, but it really makes you struggle for it. Now this camera has died on me after only a few thousand images... went to turn it on yesterday and the lens wouldn't extend. Sounds like the lens motor or its gears are dead. This camera hasn't been abused or jostled much... it has had a very mellow life, yet it died at a young age. I'm disgusted. In fact, I'm so frustrated with the poor construction and lack of innovation from Nikon lately that I'm pretty certain I'll be switching to another brand as a result of this. I've been reticent to do so because I'm so heavily invested in Nikon lenses, but I'm just sick of all the poor quality I've seen in Nikon products lately.

Opinion: I've been for a long time a Nikon user, film and digital.
my first CP was the 5700, then the CP5400 and the CP8800 when it was first released.

All of them have almost the same lack of speed in shutter release and writting to memory.
Shooting in Raw give beautiful results but you definitely need lots of patience.

Focus is really slow, especially in low light condition.
using with a SB50DX flash gun just burn any object within the 3 metres from the lens.
Hardly can handle the SB800.
I when to a formula one grand prix and none of the picx taken withg the CP8800 one can see a car :(
So I turned to d-SLR with Canon, a few years ago.
Just got back to Nikon with a D200 and a few lenses from my film time.

Opinion: After one year of using this camera and try other camera with the same features, I came to a conclusion that this is one of the best cameras from Nikon.
The quality of the pictures are amazing, outstanding and very full of details.