Nikon P510 - good or bad?

[2dogmom]

My fiance is looking to get a new camera before our trip next week and he was looking at the Nikon P510. He has an old SLR (uses film) and would like to eventually upgrade from point and shoot (my preference ) I want to make sure this would be good for Disney (parades, fireworks, etc) as well as sports like my daughter's soccer games. I was hoping someone here would be able to give a review. (To clarify, yes, I know this is still a point and shoot ) TIA

 

[photo_chick]

I'm just a little confused... you said you want to upgrade from a point and shoot, but the Nikon Coolpix P510 is a point and shoot. So are you just looking for a new p&s, or something more along the mirrorless or DSLR lines?

 

[2dogmom]

I'm just a little confused... you said you want to upgrade from a point and shoot, but the Nikon Coolpix P510 is a point and shoot. So are you just looking for a new p&s, or something more along the mirrorless or DSLR lines?

Sorry for the confusion. He wants to upgrade from my 5yo sony cybershot to something better, eventually an SLR, but the price of one of those is not in the budget now. So I guess I am just looking for reviews on this Nikon that he was looking at.

 

[JeRmS]

I'm just a little confused... you said you want to upgrade from a point and shoot, but the Nikon Coolpix P510 is a point and shoot. So are you just looking for a new p&s, or something more along the mirrorless or DSLR lines?

in my opinion the Nikon P510 is more closer to a "bridge" camera than it is a P&S, it gives more options than your standard P&S but not as many as a DSLR.

It seems to get good reviews for the most part, but CNET has this to say about it

The good: The Nikon Coolpix P510 is a fun camera to shoot with, overflowing with photo and movie features, and backed by very fast shooting performance and excellent low-ISO photo quality.

The bad: The P510 has trouble focusing at the telephoto end and its low-light/high-ISO photo quality has room for improvement. Also, the camera feels cheaply constructed.

The bottom line: The Nikon Coolpix P510 is easy to recommend for its features, photos, and performance, but the usefulness of a 42x zoom lens is debatable

I can't say much about the P510 because I don't own it, but I did just buy the Nikon L810, and while it doesn't have as many "features" as the P510 ... so far I like it.

 

[JeRmS]

Here are some shots I took with my L810

High light outside macro shot - Rose

Low-Light shot, using auto setting, taken from about 20 feet away with zoom - My 12 year old beast

Not bad at all for a $199 P&S Mega Zoom!!

 

[photo_chick]

Not that it's really that important, but bridge cameras are technically point and shoots. A lot of people call them advanced point and shoots. Nikon puts them all in their "compact digital camera" category which is probably a better way of grouping them. But if you shop B&h you'll find them in the point and shoot department.

Anyway, for like $50-$100 more than what the Nikon P510 costs you can get an entry level DSLR. Or for about the same price you can get into a mirrorless. If that's your eventual goal, why not go for it now? I'm not saying the P510 isn't a good camera, or not to get it, but an entry level DSLR is in the same ball park price wise.

 

[nettekay]

I have also been looking at the nikon p510. Can you explain the difference?? What does mirrorless mean??

thanks

 

[photo_chick]

Mirrorless cameras, also called EVIL cameras, have interchangeable lenses like DSLR's commonly do but they don't have the mirror that makes the SLR part of DSLR. They use electronic viewfinders (Electronic Vierfinder Interchangeable Lens). They give you a lot of the advantages of a DSLR, and in some cases the same performance of a crop DSLR, but in a smaller package.

Panasonic and Olympus both have mirrorless cameras that you can get into for less than the Nikon P510. The Pentax Q and the Nikon 1 start at just a little more. And the Sony Nex cameras start at around $500. It's a great option if you want more than a point and shoot but don't want the size of a DSLR.

 

[2dogmom]

Here are some shots I took with my L810

High light outside macro shot - Rose

Low-Light shot, using auto setting, taken from about 20 feet away with zoom - My 12 year old beast

Not bad at all for a $199 P&S Mega Zoom!!

Those are nice pics. What a beautiful pup!

Not that it's really that important, but bridge cameras are technically point and shoots. A lot of people call them advanced point and shoots. Nikon puts them all in their "compact digital camera" category which is probably a better way of grouping them. But if you shop B&h you'll find them in the point and shoot department.

Anyway, for like $50-$100 more than what the Nikon P510 costs you can get an entry level DSLR. Or for about the same price you can get into a mirrorless. If that's your eventual goal, why not go for it now? I'm not saying the P510 isn't a good camera, or not to get it, but an entry level DSLR is in the same ball park price wise.

Even though the SLR is where he wants to go, he also wants the zoom and a camera and a separate lens isn't in the budget at this time.

Mirrorless cameras, also called EVIL cameras, have interchangeable lenses like DSLR's commonly do but they don't have the mirror that makes the SLR part of DSLR. They use electronic viewfinders (Electronic Vierfinder Interchangeable Lens). They give you a lot of the advantages of a DSLR, and in some cases the same performance of a crop DSLR, but in a smaller package.

Panasonic and Olympus both have mirrorless cameras that you can get into for less than the Nikon P510. The Pentax Q and the Nikon 1 start at just a little more. And the Sony Nex cameras start at around $500. It's a great option if you want more than a point and shoot but don't want the size of a DSLR.

Thanks for the info. I will pass on the mirrorless info to him. That may be the way for him to go.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

FWIW, I ended up going to the Mall of FL last week while I Was there and bought a Canon 40SX. Same camera, I'm just a Canon guy and not a Nikon guy but the cameras are basically tit for tat.

At the end of the day, I'll be returning the SX to my local BB. It's a nice little novelty camera (for MY purposes as I wanted mainly the super-zoom feature) but it's not the be-all/end-all they make them out to be. Not to me. Focus is horible at long zoom ranges and the dynamic range just ain't on par with my DSLRs. I knew it wouldn't be but thought it would be closer than it is.

I also have a NEX 5n (original). Love it, but I'm going to sell it and take the proceeds from that and combine it with what I spent on the 40SX and buy a the new NEX 7 to replace the 5.

In the interest of full disclosure, I have several PnSs and three DSLRs and two EVIL cameras, so I confess it's a hobby to a certain extent.

Maybe the next generation bridges will finally hit a hot spot with features for price but this last gen just ain't quite there. Not in my humble opinion.

 

[2dogmom]

Thanks you everyone for your help. My DF ended up getting an Olympus EPL1 with a lens for less than the Nikon. I think he is happy to get this step up from the point and shoot. Now hopefully he has it all figured out before we arrive in Disney on Wednesday. I guess the long drive will come in handy for that.

 

[zackiedawg]

Congrats on moving into the mirrorless world! I think in the long run he'll be much happier with the results especially in low light with a mirrorless camera over a P&S. And the good thing is, he now has a kit that can grow with him - when you have the budget room for it, add a longer zoom lens. Sometime down the road, maybe add a good low light prime lens. Maybe further down the road, you spend the money to upgrade the body to a newer one with better performance, that can use the lenses you've built up. And so on! Future expenditures can be incremental and improve the kit, or you can go full L.A.S. (lens acquisition syndrome) and start spending the kids' college money and next month's house payment to buy as many lenses as you can get your hands on!

 

[2dogmom]

Congrats on moving into the mirrorless world! I think in the long run he'll be much happier with the results especially in low light with a mirrorless camera over a P&S. And the good thing is, he now has a kit that can grow with him - when you have the budget room for it, add a longer zoom lens. Sometime down the road, maybe add a good low light prime lens. Maybe further down the road, you spend the money to upgrade the body to a newer one with better performance, that can use the lenses you've built up. And so on! Future expenditures can be incremental and improve the kit, or you can go full L.A.S. (lens acquisition syndrome) and start spending the kids' college money and next month's house payment to buy as many lenses as you can get your hands on!

I think you described exactly how it will go down the road