The Nikon Coolpix P7100’s Business End

The back panel of the P7100 is dominated by the tilting LCD screen, but the camera’s designers also managed to find room for about a dozen different controls in the form of buttons and two dials, including the multi selector dial whose top, bottom, left, and right side are also four distinct buttons. That might seem like a lot of controls to learn, especially when you also consider the others on the camera top, discussed later. Still, as I noted earlier, it’s usually a good deal easier to press a dedicated button or spin a dial than to navigate through a menu system every time you want to change a setting.

You can see the controls that reside on the back of the P7100 in Figure 3.6. For the sake of convenience, I’ve divided them into two illustrations. First, let’s take a look at the controls on the upper half of the camera, as shown in Figure 3.7. The key controls and components and their functions are as follows:

Viewfinder eyepiece. You can frame your composition by peering into the viewfinder. If you wear eyeglasses when shooting as I do, you’ll appreciate the rubber eyecup that protects the lens from scratches. This small circular window allows you to peer into the scene being viewed by your lens, at the current zoom factor. Unlike with the typical dSLR camera, you get absolutely no information in the viewfinder other than a glimpse as to what the camera is pointing at. It shows you only 80% of the area that will be included in a photo, as well.

But you should be fairly happy with that view; the vast majority of cameras with a built-in lens have no optical viewfinder at all. They force you to compose photos by holding the camera out at arm’s length, even in low-light situations where pressing the camera against your forehead might provide a more stable view and reduce the risk of blurring from camera shake. Or, without recourse to an optical viewfinder, you might be frustrated in bright sunlight trying to preview an image on an LCD whose display is mostly obliterated by glare. The viewfinder on the P7100 is not fancy, but it provides a very useful capability and is a familiar and comfortable feature for photographers who grew up with compact film cameras.

Figure 3.6

Figure 3.7

Flash pop-up button. Located at the far left, this button (labeled with a lightning bolt and something that looks to me like a Pac-Man game icon) will pop up the built-in flash when you press it. (To get the flash tube back into place simply press it down with a finger.)

Diopter adjustment dial. The little wheel just to the left of the viewfinder lets you adjust the viewfinder to correct for your eyesight, as described in Chapter 1.

Upper indicator lamp. The P7100 is equipped with a set of two indicator lights just to the left of the viewfinder window. They’re in that location so you can see them out of the corner of your eye when you’re using the optical viewfinder. This upper LED (marked with a lightning bolt) will light up in solid red only when the flash is elevated and charged for the next shot. (Surprisingly, it is not the LED that will provide an indication when the flash is not ready.)

Lower indicator lamp. This LED (labeled with AF) is called the AF/access lamp, but it actually provides a signal in several different circumstances.

Solid Green. The lamp, accompanied by a single beep (if sound is activated), signals focus confirmation. After you touch the shutter release button, the lamp lights up to indicate that the autofocus system has set focus and the camera is ready to shoot. Ignore the lamp and the beep when using manual focus since both will always come on when you touch the shutter release button even if the subject is totally out of focus.

Blinking green. When this LED is flashing, it provides one of four distinct indications:

Unable to focus. After touching the shutter release button while you’re trying to take a photo using autofocus, blinking means that the system is unable to confirm focus. (This can occur if you’re too close to the subject or in very dark conditions at night, for example.)

Flash not ready. If the flash is in the up position, and it will fire for the next shot, the blinking indicates that it has not yet recycled so the camera is not ready.

Memory card access. After you have taken one or more shots or a video clip, blinking indicates that recording is under way. While that is happening, be careful not to remove the memory card since that would interrupt the process of writing to the memory card. If you do, some of your images or videos will be lost and the card could become corrupted.

USB transfer underway. When you’re transferring images or videos from your P7100 to a computer via the USB cable, the blinking is a reminder that the process is underway. Do not remove the memory card or the camera’s battery or the optional AC adapter while this LED is blinking; if you do, some data will probably be lost and the card could become corrupted. Fortunately, though, if you try to turn off the camera while it is saving to the memory card, it will wait until the images are stored before powering down.

Monitor button. When pressed repeatedly while the camera is in shooting mode, this control changes the information shown on the LCD display. By default, it shows a preview image with information including battery status, aperture, and shutter speed but pressing the monitor button provides a display with only the preview and the battery status. (The data you get is slightly different in Movie mode.) If you are using the P7100 in one of the “creative” modes such as P, S, A, or M, another press of the button turns off the LCD display to save battery power.

Press the Monitor button and keep it depressed for a few seconds and the image preview display will get brighter; a + symbol will appear in the top-left corner of the LCD to confirm the monitor brightness boost. This monitor brightness boost function also works in Playback mode, providing a brighter view of images that are displayed. When you want to return to normal display brightness, depress the button again for a few seconds. I don’t recommend boosting monitor brightness when composing photos or when viewing the ones you have already taken. It may be nice to see them in a brighter display, but they will be artificially bright making it impossible to evaluate the actual exposure.

While you’re viewing a previously taken photo in Playback mode, pressing the Monitor button cycles among the LCD display options as I’ll discuss in the Playback section later in this chapter. One of the display options includes a brightness histogram graph. I’ll discuss this valuable feature for judging the exposure in Chapter 5.

Main command dial. Finally we come to this dial that’s used for changing the f/stop when you’re shooting in the camera’s Aperture-priority or Manual mode. (The role of this dial and the sub-command dial can be switched with an item in the Setup menu as discussed in Chapter 4.) It also allows for scrolling up and down when you’re viewing a menu screen or for scrolling left/right among images in Playback mode. As mentioned earlier, I recommend using the multi selector’s four buttons for all scrolling. That’s because the main command dial (and the sub-command dial on the camera’s front, discussed earlier) provides limited scrolling options, while the multi selector buttons provide full versatility. As well, they are very close to the OK button that you’ll need to press to confirm the selection of any menu option that you want to set.

If you have activated the Playback screen that displays an image with a histogram and a great deal of data (discussed later), you must use this main command dial—or the sub-command dial on the camera’s front—to scroll among the images. Neither the multi selector dial nor its buttons will allow for scrolling when that Playback screen is visible.

The right half of the camera back, beside the LCD screen, is dominated by buttons and a multi selector dial whose top, bottom, left, and right sides are also direct access buttons to certain functions; they’re marked accordingly. The multi selector dial and its four buttons can also be used for scrolling while navigating menu screens. The key controls and features in this area, shown in Figure 3.8 are as follows:

LCD. This is the 3-inch tilting display, shown earlier in Figure 3.6, that provides a preview of the scene before you snap a shot. You can also review your images immediately after the picture is taken or in Playback mode. When you press the quick menu dial or the MENU button it will display screens, items, and options.

AEL/AFL (Autoexposure/Autofocus) Lock and List by Date button. You’ll note from the markings that this button, near the top-right corner of the LCD, has more than one function. Its primary role—and the default setting—is in Shooting mode, where it can lock both the focus and the exposure after you have focused on a subject. Keep it depressed and the focus and exposure will not change as you reframe the scene for a more effective composition. (Autofocus lock alone is also available by maintaining light pressure on the shutter release button after focus is confirmed.) You can change the function of the AEL/AFL button by selecting AE Lock Only or AF Lock Only in the Setup menu. I’ll discuss the value of AE Lock for exposure control in Chapter 5 and the focus lock aspect in Chapter 6.

Figure 3.8

When you are using Playback mode, this button has a different function. Press it and it will list images you took on various dates. Select a date, press the OK button, and you can scroll through only those photos and videos. I find this very useful after shooting for several days using the same memory card (while traveling, for example).

Playback button. Pressing this button (the triangle) displays the last picture or video that was taken. Thereafter, you can move back and forth among the available images with the multi selector. To quit playback, press this button again. The P7100 also exits Playback mode automatically when you press the shutter release button (so you’ll never be prevented from taking a picture on the spur of the moment because you happened to be viewing an image).

MENU button. This button summons/exits the full menu that can be displayed on the LCD of the P7100. When you have scrolled to the various options within a menu item (as discussed in the next section), pressing this button twice quickly returns the display to the full menu screen listing the available items. And if you have been using the submenu in some camera function, pressing this button once will cause the camera to display a main menu screen instead.

Multi selector dial/buttons. This ridged rotary dial on the camera back surrounding the OK button is most often used for scrolling to the left or right through items in the full menu and the submenus. Occasionally, as in the submenu for focus mode, it provides only up/down scrolling; then, rotating this dial won’t let you scroll to the right to select an option. I’ll show you how to use the multi selector in the next section.

Delete button. As the trash can icon hints, this button is used to erase an individual image or video. Press the button once when an image is displayed in Playback mode, and the image will be erased if you confirm the operation by scrolling up to Yes and pressing the OK button.

Using the Multi Selector Buttons

When you’re shooting with the P7100, each of the four multi selector buttons activates a specific camera function. They’re all marked as to their purpose with icons. I’ll discuss those functions in the next sections.

In Playback mode: When an image is magnified, rotating the multi selector dial moves the area of the photo that is displayed. Pressing the OK button returns the image to non-magnified display so you can scroll to the left or right to view the previous image or the next image. When you have activated the Playback screen that shows a smaller image with additional data and a histogram (using the monitor button discussed earlier), you must use the sub-command dial or the main command dial to scroll left/right among the images.

In Shooting mode: Rotating the multi selector can change the shutter speed in either Shutter-priority or Manual mode or the f/stop in Aperture-priority. In other words, the multi selector can be used instead of the main command dial or sub-command dial, but I don’t recommend this alternative; the multi selector is not as conveniently located as the two command dials, which easily fall under the fingers as you hold the camera to shoot.

The secondary functions of the multi selector buttons are:

Self-timer button/Left cursor. Press the left button of the multi selector to activate the camera’s versatile self-timer capability. Then navigate through the items and options using the directional buttons and the front dial to make your desired settings for timer delay and number of shots.

Flash button/Up cursor. This button gives you access to various functions associated with the built-in flash unit; the items that appear will depend on the shooting mode that you’re using. (This button will not reveal any items unless the built-in flash is popped up or an external SB Speedlight is attached and turned on.) Scroll up/down among the items and then scroll to the right to select one of the available options. In creative shooting modes like P, S, A, or M, you can choose from five items, some with various options, all discussed fully in Chapter 9.

Focus mode button/Down cursor. Press this button and scroll to select one of the various autofocus modes (conventional, macro, and infinity focus) or to set the camera for manual focus (MF). In the latter mode, you will be able to adjust the focused distance by scrolling up/down. I’ll supply more information about manual focusing in Chapter 6.

AF area mode/Right cursor. By default, the Coolpix P7100 is set to focus using Automatic focus point selection. It activates all of its focus detection points, automatically selects a suitable subject in the scene, and focuses on that with one of the points. That’s fine for quick snap shooting, but you can also select another AF Area mode. These include Face Priority AF (for people pictures), Manual focus point selection (where you select any focus point as the one that will be active), Central focus point only (with options as to the size of the detection area from Small to Large), or Subject Tracking. When you activate Subject Tracking, the camera will identify a likely subject, focus on it, and then retain focus by tracking the subject as its position in the frame changes. I’ll discuss all of these in Chapter 6 and provide advice as to when each might be the most suitable and useful.

Using the Self-Timer

The Coolpix P7100, like virtually all modern digital cameras, has a self-timer mechanism that adds considerably to the camera’s usefulness in more than one situation. The obvious application of the self-timer is when you are taking a group photograph and you, the photographer, need to be in the picture as part of the group. Following the standard drill, you set the camera firmly on a tripod, and compose the group photo nicely using the viewfinder or LCD screen, leaving a gap in the assembled group that you can slip into quickly. Then you activate the self-timer, setting it for ten seconds. A red light on the front of the camera starts flashing and you race around the tripod to insert yourself into the group. You manage to plant your feet firmly in place and smile just before the flashing stops and the camera takes the picture.

Another possible use for the self-timer is when you need to make sure the camera is not jiggled, as it can be when you press the shutter, even if it’s on a tripod. This can be important when you’re taking long exposures at night, or inside a castle, or for macro photography, when any camera movement is magnified. If you don’t have a remote release switch available, the self-timer can be a workable substitute. Because you won’t be touching the camera when the shutter is pressed, the risk of camera shake is greatly reduced.

The Coolpix P7100 is quite capable of handling either scenario. Here is the basic method for taking a picture using the self-timer:

Select a shooting mode. Turn on the camera and set it to an appropriate shooting mode. For a group photo using the self-timer, I suggest using the Auto mode, since you won’t be behind the camera to tweak any settings; you may as well let the automation earn its keep. If it’s likely that flash will be useful, be sure to pop it up. Choose another mode if it’s called for, such as Aperture-priority if the group is several rows deep and you need a small aperture (large f/number) to achieve great depth-of-field (an extensive range of acceptably sharp focus).

Press the Self-timer button. Press it once to summon up a submenu on the left side of the screen, as shown in Figure 3.9. Scroll up to the 10s item and press the camera’s OK button. An icon will appear in the top-left corner of the LCD confirming that the self-timer is on.

Set the time delay. You won’t need a 10-second delay if you’re only using the self-timer to alleviate camera shake. Start with the previous steps but scroll to the right from the 10s item and scroll down to the 2s option, as shown in Figure 3.9. Then press the OK button to confirm your selection.

Figure 3.9

Press the shutter button. Take one last look at the LCD screen or through the viewfinder, then get a bead on the space you’re going to occupy in the group photo if that’s the plan. Press the shutter button, and run like the dickens to get into place! Just as you get settled, the flashing and beeping on the camera will speed up, then the shutter will fire, the flash will go off (if needed), and the historical record of your membership in that group will be a bit more complete. Of course, no physical exercise will be necessary if you’re using the 2-second self-timer to make sure that your photo won’t be affected by camera shake.