I use this camera on my job and it takes great photos, and in a variety of lighting/scene situations. It is not, however, the best in low light situations without using the flash.
You can read the manual, but I find the best way to learn to use any camera like this is to play with all the settings.
Are your images grainy? Press the "Menu" button and select "Scene," then image mode, then select a higher quality image mode. I use normal, but you could bump it up to High if you wish. The higher the quality image the larger the photo file size, meaning you'll have less space on the SD card for a lot of photos.
Do you find that the LCD screen is too dark or too bright? You can adjust it. Press Menu again and select the tool that looks like a wrench. You'll find all sorts of controls that you can adjust to your preferences. And of course this is where you'll find the "format" card command... Every time you delete your photos from the camera's memory it's wise to format the card.
Now for the "Scene" command button, which is just to the upper left of the four-way command control. You can leave it on Auto, or... use the four-way command control to select "Scene." Then cycle through the many choices, including portrait, sports (fast action shots) landscape, beach, snow, museum, Subway, Pizza Hut, etc..:)
If you and your subject are standing in the shade, and sunlight is behind your subject, you may want to experiment with "Forced Flash" mode. This will cause the camera flash to turn on no matter what and will properly illuminate your subject's face so it doesn't end up looking dark with a bright background. Press the four-way command button, the up button with the image of a lighting bolt. Cycle down to the lighting bolt and you'll be in forced flash mode. Check out the other flash modes while your there.
Wanna make a video? the "Scene" button and cycle down to "Movie" and your camera becomes a video camera... (You can also use the camera as a voice recorder!).
Have you been disappointed about the quality of indoor photos of friends/family etc. because the flash illuminated their faces way way way too much? Here's a photo trick I often use indoors: Step back three or four or five or six feet from where you had planned to take the photo. Then zoom in just to the point where you would have been standing, and then take the photo! You'll get a more evenly balanced facial tone and even capture more of the background that would tend to have be washed out when standing too close to your subjects. (You can also try the "party" mode - using the Scene button to access all of the special selections)
If you'd like to take really really close-up photos, of say Abe Lincoln's face on a penny.. Select "Macro" mode. There are two ways to activate it. One is by pressing the Scene button then cycling down to "scene" then cycle to the right and select the icon of the two tulips...
Or, you can leave the setting on "auto" and using the down command button, which shows the image of those tulips again, press and select "on" for macro close-up mode.
As with all cameras of their ilk, when you don't have a viewfinder to look through on a sunny day, you have to rely on the LCD screen, which can be impossible to see in bright light.
That's about it... other than it uses a special Mini B to USB cable. I got one on Amazon for a couple of bucks.
(35 customers reviews )Customers Rating=2.5 / 5.0
More Detail For
Nikon Coolpix S220 10MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom and 2.5 inch LCD Graphite Black - 10.0-megapixel resolution for photo-quality prints up to 16 x 20 inches
- 3x optical Zoom-Nikkor glass lens; 4-way VR image stabilization
- 2.5-inch high-resolution LCD screen
- Nikon's Smart Portrait System; Red-eye Fix, Face Priority AE and more
- Capture images to SD/SDHC memory cards (not included)
Interesting Products
Canon i850 Photo PrinterCanon i850 Photo PrinterKodak EasyShare C180 Digital Camera Silver HP PhotoSmart 7450 Inkjet PrinterFujifilm FinePix Z30 10 MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom and 2.7 inch LCD Whirl White Canon BJC 5100 Printer color ink jet A3 1440 dpi x 720 dpi up to 10 ppm mono up to 4 ppm color capacity 130 sheets Parallel AC 230 VCabela s Big Game HunterOlympus FE 46 12MP Digital Camera with 5x Optical Zoom and 2.7 inch LCD Pearl Black Horse Life AdventuresHP Jetdirect 635N Internal Printer Server. Up To 1000MBPS Through Put. Eio CompMiele Delphi S2120 Canister Vacuum CleanerCanon i9100 Photo PrinterWii 15 in 1 Family Pack White
