the nikon p80 is junk

The Nikon Coolpix P80 camera is junk. At least, judging from boatloads of comments they’re making online, that’s the conclusion many new users are reaching. But if — based on their words — you’re tempted to adopt that belief yourself, you’d be wrong. Here’s why…

Most of those comments come from users who bought the wrong camera. They thought the Nikon P80 is a glorified point-and-shoot with a humongous zoom lens thrown in. Something that’ll be nice for everyday shots, plus pix of those hard-to-see backyard hummingbirds and close-up action shots of Suzie’s soccer games, too.

Wrong.

The P80 is nothing like that. And even though it’s not a DSLR, there’s nothing “basic” about it.

The Nikon Coolpix P80 is not designed for casual shooters who only want to photograph the kids’ birthday parties and soccer games, family gatherings, the July 4th picnic, Thanksgiving dinner and all the pretty presents under the tree.

There’s nothing at all wrong with that. But if that describes you, buy something else. The Canon PowerShot S5 IS would be a good choice. It has almost everything the P80’s got and it’s a lot easier to use. Even has a 12x zoom lens with built-in image stabilization. And it’s cheaper than a Nikon P80, too.

So Who’ll Be Happy with the P80?

Impatient casual photographers will hate it. But if you’re serious about graduating from the point-and-shoot stage to something that’ll help you make truly stunning photos, the Nikon Coolpix P80 could be just what you want.

The P80 is a big step away from your point-and-shoot zoom camera. It’s much lighter and smaller than a DSLR and far less expensive. It doesn’t have all the features, bells and whistles you’ll find on most DSLRs. Yet it offers a much wider-range zoom than you’ll find available for any DSLR at any price.

The downside is: the P80 is not a DSLR. So don’t buy a P80 if you really crave a DSLR because you won’t be happy.

Instead, save your pennies another month or so, then invest in one of the more affordable entry-level DSLRs. You can get a pretty sweet deal on a Nikon D40 right now, priced only slightly higher than the Coolpix P80.

Nikon’s pushing their D60 and D80 DSLRs these days, so D40 prices are sinking. Even with “only” 6 megapixels, the D40 is still a terrific camera. And it accepts a huge range of the superb-quality lenses that helped make Nikon famous.

Is the Coolpix P80 for You?

Maybe. The point of this blog is to help you decide. And if you do go for the P80, I’ll show you how to get the most out of it.

As a point-and-shoot the Nikon Coolpix P80 does okay. It’s not perfect, but as point-and-shoots go, it’s among the top of the heap for quality photos. And in the right hands it excels. The P80 is really an advanced “bridge camera” that spans the gap between casual users and advancing amateurs in a very satisfying way.

With the little bit of camera knowledge almost anyone can gain in just a few hours of study and fooling around with it, the P80 can help you make truly stunning pictures. And if you own a P80, I’ll help you prove it.

That’s what this blog is all about, so set a bookmark and come back often. Or subscribe to the RSS feed and get word about each new post as soon as it’s published. In future posts I’ll chronicle my own experiences learning and using the P80. I hope you’ll find these articles helpful.