Best Point & Shoot: Nikon Coolpix 4500?

coolpix 4500

I love this camera! You can get very close to your subject and the swivel feature lets you get the light and the angle just right. Have a look at this dew covered aphid and others:

http://photo.net/photos/LindaMurphy

… Linda Murphy, 6 June, 2008 - 7:26am

Coolpix

I've used a number of Coolpix pivoting cameras, the 950, 995 (still in use with a dissecting microscope) the 5700 (still functional, having just been rebuilt by Nikon for free, but little used) and now the S10. My son has an S4.
(BTW, I'd sell the 5700 if I got a reasonable, safe offer.)

They're all good, and some of the manual controls on the earlier models are very useful in certain circumstances. But the bottom line is that that S10 is the best of the lot. It's small, easy to carry and easy to hold with one hand. (I use a minicarabiner instead of a wrist strap and hook my pinky through it). Its closeups are very good, and I can get very close. I'm even impressed with the telephoto pictures at full optical zoom.
Here's a page with some home-made accessories.
Here's a page with the S4 and S10 in use (photo 6).

… Stephen Hart, 5 June, 2008 - 3:46pm

Powershot A630 Full size samples

Since you can't see full size versions of my bugguide images, here are links to the full size images at my personal gallery (images taken handheld so there is some slight motion blur due to the high magnification, and no post-processing as far as i remember)

Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar

Monarch Butterfly Caterpillar

Bumblebees

Ambush Bug

Flower Spider

I don't think you can go wrong with any of the suggested P&S cameras,
8 or 10 megapixels, all depends on what you want to do and pricetag, IMO.

… bugguy91, 24 March, 2008 - 12:47pm

Paul -

I just got my A630 yesterday, and hope to improve the quality of my images on BG... Have you had success using just the macro mode on autofocus/autopilot, or have you been using some of the "fancier" modes to get your images? Any advice on how to get good images of small bugs with this camera would be greatly appreciated - you can email me offline if you'd like...

Ken

… Ken Schneider, 24 April, 2008 - 5:56pm

From what i recall... not hav

From what i recall... not having the A630 in front of me, I used the A630 in Manual mode on the dial, and used the Manual Focus option on the back, not the Macro auto focus. It was sunny on the 2 days I used it. I will see if I have the iso/shutter speed & arperture settings from the original photos that I still have.

Hope you like it! Look forward to your pics.

… bugguy91, 25 April, 2008 - 2:40pm

Are you using any special len

Are you using any special lenses or lighting with those pictures, or just the base camera?

… Elliotte Rusty Harold, 4 April, 2008 - 10:05pm

Just the camera and the natur

Just the camera and the natural light of the day.

… bugguy91, 7 April, 2008 - 9:55am

I really like the Nikon Coolpix 8700

I'd actually reccomend any of the Nikon Coolpix line; I really like their image stabilizer and their macro modes are unequalled. The macro on my camera lets me pull focus manually once I've got the subject in my sights. Personally I use the Nikon 8700 because I like to blow my photos up into posters and the 8 mpx sensor lets me take huge RAWs.

Here's a fly that I caught with the macro mode, to give you an idea....

… lorax, 24 March, 2008 - 10:17am

Coolpix 8700

Have you ever tried shooting with this camera in macro mode at night?

Hugh

… Hugh McGuinness, 30 March, 2008 - 4:25pm

CoolPix 8700

I sure have, and I've never had a problem with it - I simply make sure I've got the speedlight engaged. Here's a Giant Katydid I shot in Macro at midnight.

big version at the following URL
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh196/HabloPorArboles/Bugs%20etc/RSCN6410.jpg

(it's too big to post the full size one directly; I don't want to frass the forum.)

I should add that I can focus down to 2cm in the Macro setting with my CoolPix 8700, which lets me get amazing closeups provided I don't spook the bug. It's also virtually silent when zooming, and you can set it to be silent when it takes the pic as well. If you're going to do a lot of shooting, I'd get the SanDisk Xtreme II or Xtreme III memory for it - very fast saves!

… lorax, 25 April, 2008 - 5:44pm

Canon Powershot A630 photos

http://bugguide.net/node/view/173428

http://bugguide.net/node/view/173426

http://bugguide.net/node/view/173427

http://bugguide.net/node/view/173431

These were taken in manual mode, hand held, which takes getting used to. I bought this camera after selling my dedicated Canon macro gear (100mm macro, mp-e, etc.) and planned to use this camera for the birth of our first child and every day photos. One summer day I had the bug itch and thought of how well it would take macro shots. The above are a few samples.

In bright sunlight highlights can get overexposed with the camera.I never compensated for it as again I was just trying to see what the camera could do for me.

… bugguy91, 17 March, 2008 - 8:04pm

Thanks Paul

I am in the market for a better p&s. I looked at these photos and they are quite nice. For some reason, the date is 1969 for all of them??

… Ken Schneider, 19 March, 2008 - 5:36pm

I didn't realise that only my

I didn't realise that only myself and the bugguide editors can see the larger versions of the images, so i am going to have to re-upload crops to show the details better.

Strange why it would put 1969 in there! Going to have to change that ASAP, thanks!

… bugguy91, 20 March, 2008 - 11:09am

Why not A640?

From what I understand, the A640 and A630 are "twins", but with 10 versus 8 megapixels? Do folks feel that the extra 2 MP are not worth it?

… Ken Schneider, 21 March, 2008 - 5:42pm

I purchased the Canon Powersh

I purchased the Canon Powershot A630 and it has remarkable macro capabilities! I will upload some photos tonight to attest to the fact.

… bugguy91, 17 March, 2008 - 12:12pm

Best point & Shoot: Coolpix P5100

I'm also interested in getting a point and shoot for night-time moth work, and I was wondering if others at Bugguide might chime in on the successes they have had with various models. I also wonder if anyone has used the Coolpix p5100, which has 12+ megapixels, aperture priority mode, and only seems to lack the swivel screen that made the original Coolpix cameras so ideal for night-time moth work. It looks like it should be a great camera, but I'd like confirmation of that before I lay out several hundred dollars. (This summer I will also be using a Canon 20D with a 100mm macro lens, but when I am in the field doing professional work and lugging black-light traps, it's nice not to have to carry that big camera.)

Hugh McGuinness

… Hugh McGuinness, 13 March, 2008 - 5:54pm

Canon S51S

I am not a photographer, but with this camera even I can get some great shots. You might want to check it out. It has Macro and Super Macro. Video with sound -- an in-camera editing which is great. The lens is 6.0 - 72mm. You can do continuous shooting, and can manually change f-stops and shutter speeds. I'm still learning how to use it, and just figured out how to open the aperature manually to get better Super Macro shots. For an example of the zoom function, see the photo I submitted of the Tussock Moth cocoon with eggs. It was 6 feet above my head when I took the shot without a tripod. (All the other shots were with my old Fuji camera --- I hope to replace them all this summer with much better shots!)

… Wisconsin Oecanthinancy, 13 March, 2008 - 10:20pm

How do you open the aperture

How do you open the aperture for shooting moths at night and what settings do you use for moths at a porch light? I've been shooting in P mode with the S5IS, without a flash (!), but maybe I should try Av mode? Any tips will be appreciated, as I am still learning how to use this great camera.

… Christopher Adam, 24 July, 2008 - 8:36am

Canon S3 IS

is what I use with a lensmate 52mm adapter and a Nikon 4T close up filter. I am very happy with it and it doesn't weigh much

… Brighid Gale, 13 March, 2008 - 7:23pm

Look into Canon A-series

When I started looking for a p&s camera this last spring, one of my friends turned me onto the Canon A-series. He has an A520 and told me it was very good for macro. So I purchased an A630 and spent the summer having fun learning how to use it. I am very happy with the cameras performance and its ease of use. I am a relative beginner and know that I probably am not fully utilizing all the features of my camera. That will come with time and experimentation.

Please be aware that you will have to have a lot of patience and you'll have to become adept at sneaking up on your subject to get as close as you can.

Note: Only my nature images were taken with the A630. The collection specimen images were taken with an automontage system.

… Jeff Gruber, 29 October, 2007 - 11:07pm

Examples

Just wanted to provide some of what I think are my better examples of what the A630 can do. FYI - I currently do not possess much photography knowledge (started in Spring 2007).

… Jeff Gruber, 20 March, 2008 - 10:04am

Good, but dated

I started out with a 4500, and still use it at times, though now I use mostly an SLR. The close-focus is excellent, as good as it gets in a point-and-shoot. However the sensor is noisy, and the flash connector is odd--not a standard hot shoe. I would look through the reviews at http://dpreview.com/ and pay attention to the close focus. The Nikon Coolpix line has been consistently good on that feature--I see that the new Nikon Coolpix P5100 focuses to 4 cm, which is very close, though not as close as the 2 cm of the 4500. (I don't see figures on magnification--they might be comparable, depending on focal length at which you get the close focus.)

So, paying attention to that feature, you should be able to find several newer cameras, with warranties, that will do well. Others here may chime in...

… Cotinis, 23 October, 2007 - 10:03pm

Nikon coolpix 4500

I use the Nikon Coolpix 4500. It is very convenient, being light and easy to carry. I like it a lot, but the negative aspects should be considered. First, it is often difficult to get good focus on the insect you are photographing, and it may just as well focus on the underlying leaf or whatever. I find the screen small and difficult to see easily, especially in bright light. Another other problem is its slowness. Often, having centered the insect, and got the focus, I take the photo, but by the time the camera responds the subject has moved or flown away. That said, it is an excellent point-and-shoot camera and I've been very pleased with many of the pictures I've got from it. I would recommend it for someone like myself who is interested in recording insect/spider life by photography, but is not a technically very sophisticated photographer

… andrewbateman, 9 June, 2008 - 7:24pm