Sony ACC-DVDH Accessory Kit For DVD Camcorder [Contains H-Series Battery, 1 x DVD+RW]
Accessory Kit - NPFH50/Case/DVD+RW

-

Sony HDR-SR7E 60GB High Definition Camcorder
The ultra-compact, stylishly-designed HDR-SR7 Handycam comes with ClearVid CMOS Sensor, x.v.Colour and a Carl Zeiss? Vario-Sonnar?T* lens. Also featuring 60GB HDD that allows you to record 1080i HD movie for up to 22 hours.
Amazon Price: ?704.99
Used Price: ?681.99
Customer Review: Superb for amateur/home footage, not for the pro though.
Despite my title, this is a great little camera. If you want superb picture quality for your home movies and have a HD TV (or are switching to HD) and you like lots of recording time without faffing about with tapes, then this is the camera to go for. However, for the pro (and by pro I mean you need high-quality images for films/documentaries), the high compression values of these consumer hard-disk-based-storage camcorders is a serious compromise. Given that a pro/semi-pro HDV camcorder such as the Sony V1 or Canon XH-A1 store around 16GB of information per hour on DV tapes, and this camera even at it’s highest quality setting only does 7.5GB per hour, you can clearly see that significant picture information is being discarded to achieve these storage ratio’s. At the lowest quality setting, you are only getting 2.6GB per hour, which is very marginal and image quality will undoubtdely suffer. This really defeats the object of having a high-definition camera. For pro use, tape based storage or uncompressed professional hard disk storage are the only option. Additionally, editing the files generated with these camcorders can be tricky, sometimes requiring access to pro-grade advanced editing software, or limiting you to the software provided with the camcorder (which can be very basic). But if you are not into the detail and just want to be able to take good holiday/family shots, then buy this camera. And use the highest quality setting…. you wanted it for the High Definition capability anyway, didn’t you?
Customer Review: I didn’t think I would buy a SONY
I just bought the camcorder from Amazon for my honeymoon trip next august and it’s so cool….I love it even though its expensive but worth it because it will live longer with you due to its new technology … usually I am not satisfied with Sony products because of its lack of features but I liked this one … you should buy a big battery with this one if you want to have more free time and what I did is bought a charger coz if you charge it in the camcorder it will take all day but with the charger it will take 4 hours or less depending on the size of the battery…also try to get the wide angel lens and the tele lens if you want to take nice shots … Upsides: small, elegant, manual focus, high quality still images, HD or SD recording modes, HDMI output ready for hd TVs Downsides: price, batteries is 90 mins only, lack of mini HDMI cable, in HD recording mode you only can see the clips in the camera, PC, and a blue-ray hd dvd players

Panasonic - NV-GS60 - Mini DV Camcorder
Amazon Price: ?134.99
Customer Review: Panasonic NV-GS60EB Great budget camcorder
When buying this Camcorder I looked at the JVC GR-D728EK and the Sony DCR-HC27E. I discarded the JVC as it had very poor white balance, meaning the colures it produced were not faithful to the image being shot, the tape noise was picked up by the microphone in such a way that it was very distracting when watching the recorded video, and in-doors/low light the images lost their colure definition and became very grainy with the auto focus not working particularly effectively. When I handled the Sony and the Panasonic in store they both appeared NOT to suffer from the above foibles of the JVC. I purchased the Panasonic so I cannot comment further than on the Sony but can comment as follows on the Panasonic. The lens on the Panasonic is a 30 X Optical zoom (which is very good for camcorder standards) with an electronic image stabilising function which does contribute to reducing camera shake but will not, understandably, eradicate it. There is a however a fitting on the base of the camera to allow you to mount it on a tripod should you wish to. The main differentiator with the focal length on this camera in relation to the JVC & Sony above is that it has a very wide angle lens meaning that more will fit in to the shot, ideal for filming indoors where it may be hard to move far enough away from the subject matter to fit it all in or when filming scenery where you want to fit in a wider vista. In low light the images are still very good, the auto focus is still effective and the white balance is faithful. The camera comes equipped with a low light function (activated manually) to take filming down to 2 LUX (as much light generated by 2 candles at 1 meter) giving the ability to film in near darkness. Whilst there is a photo feature for taking stills, this simply records seven seconds of still footage on to the tape as opposed recording to a jpeg image on to a SD card, or such like, as would be done on a stills camera. The camera has a full auto setting and also manual over rides to cover focus, exposure compensation, and pre-programmed scene (sport, snow, beach, portrait etc), white balance, backlight compensation, plus others. I found the camera a little larger than the Sony & JVC (still very small), which for me made it more comfortable to handle, with not too many buttons and all in the right place. The Panasonic felt well made with a colour viewfinder (with dioptre) and a 2.5-inch LCD flip out screen (will swivel through 180 degrees for filming yourself etc) both are of perfectly good quality and deliver clear images. A sturdy/stubby joystick on the rear of the camera handles navigation for the menu & play functions. I actually found this very effective in use. You can out put the audiovisual signal by way of a DV Out (No In), Mini USB and composite jack plug (Video, Audio left & right) but there is no S-Video. There are also no DV or USB leads supplied with the camera only Jack Plug. There is also no editing software supplied for your PC. To see a thorough over view of the product you van down load the user manual from the Panasonic web site, www.panasonic.co.uk. I have thoroughly enjoyed using this camera. It has excellent image quality and low light handling for a budget camcorder. It starts up quickly and is simple to operate as well as reproducing images faithfully. For the money I would be happy to give this product 5 stars.
Customer Review: Panasonic NV-GS60EB
Excellent little camcorder. Picture quality is superb directly to the television via the AV cable, it is easy to use and is small and light. Great value for money. Just a shame it doesn’t come with any editing software or cable to connect to the computer.

Aiptek T300LE Camcorder (MPEG 4 Recording (720*480 pixels), 5 MP CMOS sensor, 2.4″ LCD display, 4* digital zoom, SD card format)
Amazon Price: ?87.83

Sony DCR-SR290 Hard Disc Drive Camcorder With 2.7” LCD Screen
HDD HANDYCAM 40GB H/DR 1/3 CLEARVID 6.1 M/PXL STL REC NS
Amazon Price: ?510.00
Used Price: ?420.00
Customer Review: Excellent camera but only in daylight
When I read the review by Phil Latham below I couldn’t believe the coincidence, I am also replacing an old Sony TRV65 which has served me well for 10 years. I bought the Sony DCR-SR290 camcorder based on the specifications and the other reviews here but I am sorry to say that after owning it for less than 24 hours I have sent it back, due to absolutely dreadful performance in artificial light e.g. in the house with all the lights on, I am not referring just to low light. The only way to get a focussed picture is to leave the camcorder completely still pointing at something that isn’t moving. If you point at a moving target e.g. a person walking across the frame, or pan the camcorder horizontally or vertically at anything more than a snail’s pace there is just so much jitter and picture instability I could not believe my eyes. The problem isn’t noticeable on the LCD screen, it’s only when you plug the camcorder into a TV to monitor the shots live or to play-back a recording that it becomes obvious (my Grundig CRT TV is not at fault - I plugged-in my old Hi-8 TRV65 and the images from this in the same room and light levels are perfect - it’s no contest). Outside in natural light the SR290 is truly outstanding and the auto focus is very quick indeed. Thinking that there must be some sort of fault with it I got a demo of another identical unit in a Sony Centre shop, only to discover that this had the same problem. The salesman was also very surprised. In addition to the picture problem there is an issue with connecting to the PC via USB2. With the enclosed software installed, my PC will recognise the camcorder as a USB mass storage device, and I can browse the SR290’s internal drive and copy short video files across or use the Sony application software to do the same. But the camcorder does not recognise that it has successfully connected to the PC and will time-out and disconnect after a few minutes, meaning that it would not be possible to copy larger video files across which take more time. My PC is not at fault here, I experienced the same when trying it with my laptop. You must also not touch (or even breathe near) the camcorder when it is on the docking station as the gravity-reliant connection between the two items is very ’slight’. If you touch the camcorder even lightly this will interrupt the connection, this could possibly corrupt the drive if a file is transferring at the time. I am so disappointed as there is no other camcorder on the market with similar specifications at this price. If you only intend to use it in daylight then I would recommend it for it’s picture quality, image stabiliser, comfortable weight, handling and ease of use, though the docking station and USB issues could prove very frustrating. Try again Sony….
Customer Review: Sony have produced another brilliant product!
Last month I decided to buy a camcorder and in order to make my life easier I went for an HDD model to avoid the need of using tapes/discs. I do have to admit here that I am a big Sony fan! Hence, I didn’t have to spend too much time before I narrowed down my choices to 3-4 models. Important criteria for me included: 1) disk space, 2) good image quality and stabilisation and 3) functionality. Finally, it was down to the DCR-SR190 and DCR-SR290 models. One major difference between them was the type of image stabiliser (digital for the 190 and optical for the 290). And because the optical image stabiliser is better than the digital one (according to the experts!) meant that in the end I opted to invest a bit more money and go for the DCR-SR290. What a great decision I made! All the previous reviews on this camera posted on the site are spot-on when it comes to the positive points. Personally, I cannot see anything wrong with the camcorder at all! So easy to use, small, light, fantastic LCD screen with great touch-screen menus, plenty of intuitive menus and choices of formats and shooting modes etc. The videos are of excellent clarity and quality, even indoors and under low light conditions, and the night shot is really good, too. The image stabilisation is great and that is so useful when you zoom in a lot. As for the sound… now that is as amazing as the image quality! Surround sound you’re promised, surround sound you get! The microphone is really good and sensitive. When you play your videos with your home cinema speakers on you can appreciate how good it is! The battery seems to last for a good length of time - as promised by the manufacturer. I also bought a case, my suggestions is don’t go for the recommended case, it looks too big and my guess is one would end up carrying a big case for a small camera! I bought the LSC-VAC Compact Camcorder Soft Carrying Case and it fits nicely, I would definitely recommend it. Finally, the only fear I had before I bought the camera was whether the software that came with it would be good or not, one of the (few admittedly!) Sony weaknesses sometimes. The software is actually quite good, easy to edit videos and burn them to DVD (you can create menus, thumbnails etc and make some nice compilations…). The camera connected to my laptop (Windows XP) very easily, down-loading the videos is straight forward - I didn’t bother spending too much time reading the manual on this, it’s really easy to do. And speaking of the manual, the full pdf version is 132 pages, but don’t let that scare you! You really don’t need to read much of it, you get the hang of using the camera really quickly. Overall impression, just three words: well done Sony!!!

Sony DCR-HC45 Handycam Mini Dv Camcorder with 2.5” LCD screen
MINIDV CARL ZEISS 2.5 LCD INA 40X OPT. ZM 2000X DIG. ZM NS

Customer Review: Compact and good value
A great little standard definition dv camcorder which fits comfortably in the palm of the hand and produces good quality footage for general home&family use.

The supplied software from Sony will only allow capture to PC via Firewire/iLink which means you have purchase an extra cable because its not included in the box. However you can capture video to PC via USB (cable included), just turn on the USB Streaming option through the onboard menu (set off by default) and then use a suitable third party program which can detect it (I suggest Virtualdub, its free and fully featured).

I definitely recommend this camcorder to anyone on a sub ?200 budget - from my own research, I could not find another model that could beat it for value in this price bracket.

Customer Review: Sony Software does not support USB Streaming
The Picture Motion Browser software that comes with this doesn’t have tool to download video using USB streaming. The only option that comes with it is iLink . So, if your PC doesn’t have iLink then this handycam is useless. Even the iLink cable is not supplied by Sony.

I was really surprised to see that USB streaming is not supported. Sony used to supply Picture Package software previously, which had USB streaming and it was really good and now their latest handycams with latest software doesn’t have this feature.

So don’t go this if you rely on only USB2.

-

Amazon Price: ?41.13
Read more..

Used Price: ?249.99
Customer Review: Good for the money
Got this camcorder today and I have been impressed with its performance so far. Picture is far superior to my old Sony handicam 8mm. The size is excellent, like all HDD camcorders, but the best thing is the price, ?250 for a HDD camcorder! The only thing I can identify as a negative point is that the lens cap is not part of the camcorder body, instead it is tethered to the camcorder and needs to be fitted each time it is not in use. An integral lens cap would be much better, but I think JVC have identified this on their newer versions. All in all excellent value for money, Sony and Panasonic cannot touch this on price.
Customer Review: great cam
This is my first camera so can’t really compare, this is a tiny camera, looks great and feels solid. The recording time is really good and the quality is great, really easy to use and there are loads of features to mess around with, only downside is the connection to Mac, i have a Apple iBook, and it can be quite annoying trying to export movies into iMovie/iDvd, it can be done, just takes a bit of messing around… would highly reccomend camera though.
Read more..

Amazon Price: ?75.06
Read more..

Optimize Your Photos for the Web

It doesn’t matter if your emailing photos of your grandson or putting images of your latest product on your online store. Too many people don’t consider optimizing their photos for the web. We’ve all been on too many web pages where it seemed that the photos would never load, and sometimes they didn’t. So here are some steps to make sure that your photos show up on your site.

1. Always have a back up original format copy of your image. Never alter the original. Believe me you will regret it.

2. Crop to size. Make sure that you crop out any extra information that isn’t needed. Remember the larger the photo the longer it takes to load or send.

3. Resize to reduce pixels. There should be an option to resize according to pixels. You’re going to want the largest size to be no more than 250 pixels or you can reduce the dpi to no more than 96.

4.Reduce the color palette. Many images have millions of colors so the first thing that you need to do is reduce the colors to 256. You will lose some depth with this.

5. Save the file in a standard format. JPEG is the most common for photos and you can compress the image with a JPEG for further reduction in file size. It’s not unusual to see GIF or PNG as well.

Remember that with a 56k connection a 150k file will take 20 seconds to load. If you’re creating a web page every photo that you add will add to the time it takes to download all of the images. If you keep the images small in size the smaller resolution will not be as obvious.

About The Author

Copyright 2004 Kelly Paal

Kelly Paal is a Freelance Nature and Landscape Photographer, exhibiting nationally and internationally. Recently she started her own business Kelly Paal Photography (www.kellypaalphotography.com). She has an educational background in photography, business, and commercial art. She enjoys applying graphic design and photography principles to her web design.

-

Li-Ion1650mAh/7.4V
List Price: $34.99
Amazon Price: $26.49
Read more..

A real, tough, easy-to-use digital camera for kids with dual handles for stability and 2 eye viewing. The 1.6″ colour LCD screen allows kids to instantly see the pictures they have taken and view or delete previous shots!
Read more..

The D40x’s high-resolution image quality 10.2 effective Megapixel Nikon DX format CCD imaging sensor and exclusive Nikon image-processing engine assures stunning sharpness and color. You’ll be amazed at the power packed into a camera that you can start shooting with right out of the box. High resolution provides room for creative cropping. A fast 0.18 second startup combined with split-second shutter response and rapid-action shooting at up to 3 frames per second makes it easy to freeze special moments instantly. 2.5-inch, 230K Color LCD Monitor with 170-Degree Wide-Angle Viewing Playback images are easy to see and function menus are easier to use with a larger and brighter color LCD monitor. The large 2.5-inch LCD monitor enables image preview at up to 19 times magnification and has large type fonts with easy-to-view menus. The D40x’s Image Optimize setting lets photographers adjust color, contrast and sharpening, as well as other image settings, according to the type of scene or output desired. The supplied EN-EL9 rechargeable battery will allow for shooting up to 520 images per charged based on CIPA battery testing standards. White Balance - Auto (TTL white balance with 420-pixel RGB sensor), six manual modes with fine-tuning and preset white balance LCD Monitor - 2.5-inch, 230K, TFT LCD with 170-degree wide-angle viewing Other Compatible Lenses - Nikon F mount with AF coupling and AF contacts Type G or D AF Nikkor Exposure Compensation - plus or minus 5 EV in increments of 1/3 EV Exposure Lock - Exposure locked at detected value with AE-L/AF-L button Self-Timer - 2, 5, 10 or 20 seconds Unit Dimensions (Body Only) - Width 5.0 x Depth 2.5 x Height 3.7 inches / Weight - 1 pound, 1 ounces
Price: $949.95
Customer Review: D40X - the camera that’s almost perfect
This camera is the perfect camera for the savy consumer that wants to have most all the discernible features of an expensive SLR digital camera without the enormous price. I have always been a Nikon fan and if you try out this camera you will see why. I’ve been putting it to task for about a week now and see almost no weaknesses in its functionality. The only thing I would like to have is maybe a few more preset programs for different conditions but that’s just because I’m lazy and want the camera to do the all the work for me. I believe any of you making this purchase will have no regrets afterwards.
Customer Review: Should have done this sooner
This review is for anyone (like me) who has SLR vs. anything less. — Get the SLR. While you may not think the extra price, all those features & controls, and lens choices would be worth it - they are. You may not think you’ll use it to it’s full potential — in the begining , you won’t - later you might. At the very least, this camera will make you better at photography, even if you do not move off auto for the first month. Consider the following: With lightning quick response and 3 frames per second & - you get the frame you want. No more tracking in low light, praying your subject stays still long enough to capture that killer shot you saw when you pressed the shutter release. No more cringes when you press the button & an even better shot presents itself while your camera recovers. (my daugther is 2 - you can imagine). It’s just - frame up - click, you got it, and repeat as fast as you can or want to….. you can delete them as fast as you take them so relax and focus on content. Picture quality — no contest. This camera is outstanding. In Auto, it has enough smarts to get a frame which includes color and depth far exceeding any expetations. I am also having fun with the 10.2 MP - zooming and cropping so-so shots into great ones, without losing anything. In other modes, you can easily get more impact (depth of field, exposure, yada, yada), and I have found this camera compensates far better for poor choices by the user than anything I’ve experienced previously. Ease of use - beyond auto. I am certianly new to this, but I’m finding that this camera is incredibly intuitive for all those features you feared on an SLR. Nikon has done a great job making this camera feel like a small accordian - all functions you need are next to a finger or thumb & useable, so there is no interuption while your playing. It just fits… and the light wieght plus solid grips just inspire confidence. If there was one negative - well - my niece couldn’t figure out how to make the zoom work (couldn’t find the thumb switch). She also wanted to use the LCD to frame up the picture. What can I say, I’m hoping it’s a generational thing, but that was a bit scary considering she is legally an adult. Conclusion - I love it. I have already expanded. I got the SB 400 flashNikon SB-400 AF Speedlight for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras, which is a great add. The pop up did well & the i TTL keeps the light as right as it can. However, when you add the ability to bounce, you get great indoor shots, and you’ll wonder why you didn’t have this before. Next - I’ll get a longer lens. The 18-55 has been flawless & the 10.2 MP allows me to zoom after it’s been downloaded - but I can already see I need more reach. Read the others for more technical analysis, but I can say you will not be disappointed by anything with this camera. Maybe this time next year, I’ll sound like them - the D40X will certainlyhelp me get there.
Read more..

Getting Your Photos Ready for Sharing

One of the main reasons people buy digital cameras is so they can share their photos with others. Even if you are just going to print your photos for yourself, you will want them to look their best. Here are some tips on getting your images ready for sharing or printing.

1. ORGANIZE YOUR PHOTOS

Delete the ones you don’t like or those that are near duplicates of others. No sense in clogging up your hard drive or CDs with junk. Use a good photo management software program like ACDSEE 7, Adobe Photoshop Album 2.0 or Jasc Paint Shop Photo Album 5 to view, organize and name your images. These programs also let you batch rename so you can give more descriptive file names to a group of photos at the same time. You can add key words and tags to make finding your photos easier. Be detailed in your photo descriptions, not just “John and Laurie.” You’ll probably have hundreds of photos of your kids and it will be harder to find the one you’re looking for. Better to say “John and Laurie waterskiing on Lake Powell, May 2004.”

2. BACK UP YOUR ORIGINALS

Mistakes can happen. It is a good idea to back up all your images to a CD before you start editing or changing them. That way you always have the original to go back to if you accidentally save over an image or made changes to a photo that you later decide you don’t like. CDs hold lots of photos, making it cheap insurance.

3. ROTATE IMAGES

Trying to look at a sideways photo is annoying. Use your photo management or editing software to rotate photos as needed. And if you have any images that are a little crooked, you can fix that using your editing software. Most photo editors have an automatic “straighten” function, or you can manually rotate the image a few degrees to straighten the horizon line.

4. REMOVE RED-EYE

Even with your digital camera’s auto red-eye reduction function, your subject’s eyes may still have red-eye. Use your photo editing software to remove it. Zoom in on the eyes and it will be easier for you to correct the red-eye. I’ve tried a number of red-eye correction tools and find that the one that comes with ACDSEE 7’s photo editor is among the best. It zeros in just on the red eye and doesn’t darken the surrounding eye area like some other software does.

5. CROP YOUR PHOTOS

Crop out unnecessary or distracting backgrounds and focus in on your subject. Most photo editing programs will keep the aspect ratio, so when you draw a box around the area you want to focus on it will crop it as 4×6 or whatever you have specified. That way you won’t end up with an odd size photo. Kodak EasyShare Gallery also has a very good cropping tool for maintaining the proper print size. It comes with its free photo editor.

6. ADJUST LIGHTING AND CONTRAST

Some of your photos may have come out washed out or too dark. You can automatically adjust the color, brightness and contrast of your photos. The better programs like Photoshop Album 2.0, Jasc and ACDSEE also have tools for making manual adjustments for fine-tuning. Be careful not to overdo it, though, or your picture could come out grainy.

7. PREPARE TO SHARE

There are a number of ways to share your images. Several programs, like Roxio Photo Suite 7, ACDSEE7, Photoshop Album and Paint Shop Photo Album allow you to create digital photo albums or slide shows, complete with music, transitions and captions. You can burn them to CD or resize and optimize for emailing directly from the program.

Online photo services such as PhotoWorks, Shutterfly, Snapfish and Kodak EasyShare Gallery also let you share your photos on line, for free. You simply upload your images to their server into your own photo albums and add captions if you wish. Then email your friends with a link to your albums. With most of the online services your photos stay on their servers as long as you have an account with them, for free. Signing up for an account is free, you only pay for photos you choose to purchase.

For hardcore photo sharers, there are also dedicated photo sharing applications such as PiXPO v1.5.0, which lets you share photos right off your hard drive. This is a peer to peer software application that allows you to connect directly with your friends and family to share and view pictures online with no uploads. Unlike traditional photo sharing services, you have unlimited storage and you don’t have to upload your photos to a distant server or wait for friends to log onto some photo sharing site. The application is easy to install and use and it’s inexpensive, around $30. PC Magazine rated it an Editor’s Choice in their January 3, 2005 issue.

Valerie Goettsch publishes the digital photography website http://www.digitalphotos101.com featuring reviews of photo editing and album software and digital photo printing services.
-

BatteryValues.com is your one-stop-shop online for replacement batteries, home and car chargers, home and car AC/DC adapters, and all your battery accessories requirements.
List Price: $12.95
Amazon Price: $5.57
Continue …

The NIKON N75 is a lightweight AF SLR camera loaded with advanced features and innovations to make photography simple for beginners and experienced photographers alike. The N75 is an excellent choice for portraits, sports action, nature photography and many other applications. Exposure Bracketing and Exposure Compensation modes Built-in Speedlight and Advanced Flash System Diopter adjustment Up to 1.5 fps in Continuous mode Power - (2) 3V CR2 lithium batteries Size - 3.6H x 5.2W x 2.6D; weighs about 13.4 ounces
Used Price: $150.00
Customer Review: Value for money
Hello?!!! Why would anyone bother to buy a film camera, in these days of raging digital slr fever? In fact, why bother with an auto-focus film SLR at all, when you can buy manual focus Nikon SLRs and go fully retro if you’re really nostalgic for those “good-ole” noisy, fiddly, bulky SLR days? Let me tell you why. It makes sense. At least from a serious hobby photographer like myself. I have a digital slr and a couple of manual focus Nikon cameras. My dslr is my main camera. But I still love to shoot film. I still love to make a fuss just to create one picture, wait for it to be developed and printed. I like shopping for various film ISOs, load film, hear the whir of the film advance mechanism. I am one of those nuts who love to unroll a developed negative and still be fascinated with the organic, almost magical nature of it all! Now I choose the Nikon F75/N75 because I wanted the convenience of automation while still shooting film. F100s, even F80s are still very expensive for me, not to mention F5s and F6s. The other choices were N55, N60, N65 but going through their individual reviews, I know I wont be satisfied with them. I therefore got myself an N75 with databack and MB-18 battery grip. This is a fantastic combination! Reviews about it correctly state that this is a beginner’s camera with option for more advanced photographers. When you know nothing of photography principles but savvy enough to know that an SLR is superior to a point and shoot, this is for you. Once you gain some skills in photography, this camera will open up options that will test your knowledge. Here are the things I like about the N75: 1. CenterWeighted (CW) metering in Manual Mode. Some reviews mention this as a disadvantage, prefering CW metering as an option available in any mode. What is CW metering anyway? Does the intended target of this camera care? If you dont know what the heck it is, you’ll thank Nikon for putting CW in Manual Mode only! Because you will only use Manual mode anyway when you want to be creative about your exposure- overriding the meter, using off-camera flash, etc-which means you know your photography. In all other modes the camera uses the reliable Matrix meter. With a little insight you can even override that using the easy-to-use exposure compensation! 2. Spot meter available only in AutoExposure lock button and must be customized. Again, there are reviews that diss this method, preferring to have spotmeter freely available in all modes. Let me ask you. Do you know what is spot meter? Do you know how to use it? Do you know the zone system? If you don’t and chances are you are one of the intended target of this camera, you will also thank Nikon for putting spot meter this way. You cannot accidentally switch it. You must intentionally and deliberately customize it to use it which means you must know how to use it. If it were freely available in all options and you dont know what it does, you may very well be in for the shock of your life to see severely overblown and under-exposed photos come from your negatives when you shot using spot meter under very common lighting situations. And then you will blame Nikon for making such a crappy camera! 3. Film prewind. People have mixed reaction to this facility. It takes getting used to. Personally I like it. When you use the battery pack and grip MB-18 like I do, it only takes 10 seconds flat to prewind a 36 exposure film. That’s plenty fast enough for me. What’s more, if you accidentally opened the back midroll you would have saved your previous shots since they are already inside the film canister. 4. The camera has a dedicated optional MB-18 battery grip which has its own vertical shutter release and power on switch! I guess there will be no argument here. The convenience of using AA batteries over exhorbitantly priced, one-use lithiums is obvious. You will be pleased with the ease with which to take pictures when holding the camera vertically. 5. It has 12 custom functions. For that time when you know a bit more than a beginner and want a taste of a little adventure in your photography. Go to spot meter, CW meter, multiple exposures. Heck go and bracket your exposures! You already know these stuff, right? When you feel you need instant access to these advanced options then perhaps you can invest in more expensive cameras. 6. It comes with a model which have data back. Here is another much maligned facility. Some folks say those tiny date imprints are unprofessional and distract from the subject. I dont know about you. But I am not shooting for museum galleries or for national geographic magazine or any news agency. I am shooting pictures for much more special clients: my family and friends. I am really pleased to be able to imprint dates in pictures since for me they add points of interest when we later look at them in our favorite chair or pillow. 7. The sound of shutter release is subdued. Motor whir which advances film is also quiet. I just love it. Now some of the things I consider areas for improvement- bearing in mind this is just a beginner-to-serious amateur camera: 1. A brighter viewfinder screen. 2. Option to switch on grid lines (like that in the N80.) 3. Ability to meter with manual focus lenses. then again, what beginner has them? A little faster continuous mode would be really nice like 2-3 frames per second instead of 1.5 fps and a slightly stronger builtin flash would be good. Although this is a plastic camera, it is very well built and beautiful to look at. I heartilly recommend the N75/F75 to all amateurs and beginners who are on a tight budget for an AF film SLR yet want the option of more advanced features when knowledge grows. I also recommend getting the MB-18 battery grip. It is not much of an added weight or price. But the convenience and economy it provides is big. There is unique joy in shooting film that digital has not yet replaced and probably never will. The F75/N75 delivers the goods! If you are already adept in photography, have a formidable collection of manual focus lenses and wanted a film AF SLR, go for the F100 and higher. As for me, I am very happy with my N75.
Customer Review: nikon f75
i have had this camera for over 3 years and it ahsnt failed me once. It is light and easy to use, and its “–” speed feature allows me to shoot star trails-thing which I love to do.
Continue …