The other day I dropped my little Nikon Cool Pix 5600 handing it of to one of the artists at work. It was my fault. It landed on the lens as it was extended. I was sure it was done for. The second section of the lens was bent at an extreme angle. It wouldn't turn off and it said lens error on the display. So I grabbed it and tried to straighten it back out. It looked to be clearly screwed up and no doubt beyond repair. But I tried to straighten it anyway, and I really forced it. I had given up hope. But then it snapped back into position and then I was able to turn the camera off and it retracted and the lens cover shut. It was fine. I took a few photos and it worked. Then I downloaded the photos to see if they were in focus and they were. Thank goodness. I honestly can't believe I fixed it.
I love this little camera. Nikon quit making it. One of the things I like about it is the optical viewfinder. It zooms in combination with the lens. Many of the new little digital cameras don't have a viewfinder anymore. They are too complicated. But in bright light situations it is often hard to see the screen and compose. I'd rather use the viewfinder except for macro photography. That's the only time I use the display due to the parallax, or the difference of the angle of the lens to the view finder. Something that doesn't happen when you look through the lens.
I've been thinking that this camera might konk out soon anyway as I use it so much. So I've been thinking about finding another one before you can't get them. Not something I would have ever thought about in the past with digital cameras. But the new ones are starting to be not as good even though they have more mps. Nikon is making a new little camera P5000 that looks like it would be great. It has a hot shoe for a flash and a few advanced features. If it takes as good of pictures as the 5600 does then it will be with the extra controls and resolution. But it is kind of spendy at $400. You can get a D40 for just a couple hundred more. But the SLRs are just too big for most of the time.
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4 comments:
I once dropped a point-and-shoot 35mm camera into the ray pool at Sea World. I'm not sure how long it took to dry out to working condition, but years later we tried taking photos with it and they came out all right.
Good job fixing your camera! Maybe it will be more sturdy than you think, and will last for years.
Hot shoes on cameras is always an excellent idea.
I like my current 35mm camera, but as I take a lot of self-photography I'd like to get one that I can attach a "remote shutter button" to. My camera is capable of handling almost every accessory. . . but that.
I wish I knew more about cameras. After reading your post I think I might have bought the wrong camera. Oh well.
We used the new camera to take the photos for a friends recent wedding and they all came out good.
Mr. T just realized he lost his digital camera this winter. So we will be shopping for another camera in the near future. Might be asking your advice.
Diane, I know that the Nikon D70 has a remote shutter button but the D70 and also the D50 have been dropped from the Nikon site. The new little digital SLR that would be cool to have is the D40 and they just came out with a D40x. I suspect it is much the same camera as the D40 with a 10 mp sensor. Not sure if it has a remote.
Megan, I remember you writing about your new camera. I want to say it was a Kodak. It's hard to know what to get as there are so many choices. It's hard to find one camera that does everything well. I like small cameras for outdoors because they are easy to carry around, but for a wedding or something inside usually big cameras with large lenses work much better. If you get two cameras, then probably one big one and one small one. I actually use my small camera the most, just because it's so handy and I'm usually outside.
Online reviews like the ones on the Circuit City website are helpful.
Thanks for the head's up! I'll have to look into getting a Nikon!
Actually, I think the point-and-shoot I dropped into the ray pool is a Nikon!
My digital is an Olympus, and my big 35mm is a Canon SLR.
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