Nikon Coolpix P90 Review
Posted on 04/06/2009
The Nikon Coolpix P90 comes on strong with a 24x optical zoom lens, but can't cut it when it comes to consistent performance. By Michael Patrick Brady
Nikon P90 Cons
- Inconsistent image quality
- Sluggish image processing
- Poor low-light performance
Nikon P90 Pros
- Large, vari-angle 3.0-inch LCD
- Lightweight body
Roughly one year ago, Nikon release their first substantial entry into the extended zoom camera market with the Coolpix P80. [Read our full review of the P80 here]. Intended to compete with similar offerings from Canon, Panasonic, and Olympus, the Nikon P80 was, although a fine camera, a little behind the times. The P80 boasted a long-range 18x optical zoom lens, which is excellent. It's just that other cameras had reached 20x zoom, and in comparison, 18x wasn't much to get excited about. This time Nikon swung for the bleachers, and equipped the Coolpix P90 with a 24x optical zoom. It's still not the longest zoom out there (that would be the 26x lens found on the Olympus SP-590 UZ), but it's at least a more timely release.
Overall, however, the P90 was a disappointing follow-up to the P80. Photos taken with the P90 lacked any real verve, and were plagued by graininess and noise, and blurriness was a frequent problem.
The Specifications
While the 24x zoom is the marquee feature on the Coolpix P90, the camera has a number of other appealing improvements over its predecessor. The most obvious involves the 3.0-inch LCD display. Nikon has constructed the display so it can be swiveled along the Y-axis. A photographer can pull the LCD panel outward, and position the display perpendicular to the body of the camera. The LCD cannot swivel left to right, only up and down, back and forth, along an articulating arm. It's a handy feature for photographers concerned about glare on the LCD or who'd like to position their camera in ways that would preclude them from viewing the display if it were affixed to the back of the camera. It does add a little bulk to the body, but less than the enormous lens does. If you're looking for a compact camera, the P90 isn't it, though compared to other extended zoom cameras it's a good, comfortable size. The P90 also has a digital viewfinder.
The P90's lens is not just long-range, it's also wide angle, (26mm), meaning shooters have plenty of depth and scope at their disposal when using this camera. It shoots photos at 12.1-megapixels (3MP for shots utilizing ISO 3200 or 6400), and uses a proprietary rechargeable lithium-ion battery.
Design
The design of the Coolpix P90 is fairly standard. No great innovations but a solid layout that's easy to navigate and simple to use. The zoom control, whose importance is obvious on a camera like this, is a motor-driven lever, like the ones found on point-and-shoot cameras. Though I tend to prefer the manual zoom ring controls (like the one found on the Olympus SP-570 UZ), they don't seem to be popular on current extended zoom models (even the SP-590 UZ doesn't have one). In any case, the P90's zoom control is fast and responsive, and does not suffer from the sluggishness I would have expected using a lever control.
From the front, the camera looks like a giant lens. There's hardly any body to it at all; Nikon has taken great pains to slim down the camera's body, knowing that a 24x lens is going to require a lot of space. The camera body is about the size of a point-and-shoot camera, with a slightly exaggerated grip handle, and the big lens barrel slapped on. The P90 is easy to hold, comfortable, and lightweight. You may wish to use a neck strap, however, simply for stability's sake. It's not nearly as weighty as Canon's 20x SX10 IS, which practically requires a neck strap because it's heavy as a brick.
Performance
Unfortunately, the generally positive experience I had with the Coolpix P80 did not carry over to the P90 model. While photos taken under normal circumstances were fine looking, attempts made with the zoom in use were spotty. Some shots came out clear, others not so clear. Nikon's "vibration reduction" image stabilization didn't seem able to handle the extra work required to smooth out images taken at 24x. Blurs were common.
Also, the EXPEED image processor Nikon trumpets in their press releases was somewhat slow. Occasionally, the camera would hang for a second, and even the audio cue for the shutter click would stutter. The first 'chk' would sound, and then there would be an awkward pause for a few seconds before the final 'chk' was heard and the camera finished processing the image.
Shots taken at high ISO ratings of 1600 and 3200 (at 3 megapixels) were of poor quality, marred by image noise and distorted. ISO 800 (at 12MP) showed cleaner, more satisfying results.
The 3.0-inch LCD is big and vivid, but similar to the LCD on the Nikon S60, shows a lot of speckled image noise, making it irritating to use. It's easy to see the pixels dancing when trying to frame a shot, and it's very distracting.
Conclusion
Though Nikon seems to be on the right track, the Coolpix P90 simply didn't live up to the expectations set by its forbearer, the P80. The P90 was plagued by inconsistent results and despite its high-end feature set, could not come through when it was needed.
Nikon P90 Comments & Questions (write your own!)
The D90 will be a full fledged SLR which can use 50 years of Nikon lenses and attachments. Great camera. But as a novice photographer, are you looking for snapshots or making photography a serious hobby?
1. Prefocus. Hold down the shutter half way to get a prefocus of the image you're shooting. When it changes, prefocus again. This will speed up your camera's performance during picture taking since it won't have to autofocus before it shoots the shot.
2. Use faster SD cards. Yes, there are faster cards and it does make a difference in writing the image file to the card. This is especially key if you're taking multiple or burst images.
3. Fresher batteries. Use alkalines at least. But I recommend using high energy batteries designed for digital photography. Varta is a good brand. They are usually sold in camera shops, are long lasting (because they are sold in small quantities) put out alot of energy.
4. Pan with the action. You can create some pretty cool shots by panning with your shot, focusing on your subject. This will create the effect of your subject in sharp contrast to the blurry background.
6. Stick with 100-400 ISO. Going higher will cause more noise/grain in your shots, particularly in darker settings.
Doing these, particularly prefocusing and panning with the action will cut your shutter lag by as much as 80%.
Specifically for the P90, It's not due to be shipping until next month, so look for reviews to hit within the next week or two.
I may check out the P90 for that extra reach. If the shutter lag is not too bad, she'll purchase the P90 for those extra long shots and sell her 300mm.
I'm 66 years old and have been with Nikon most of my life starting with a Nikormat EL way back in time. I've owned just about every camera that they manafactured including the most recent ones such as the D70, D80, D100, D200, D2H, D3 and currently own the D300. There was one point in time that I purchased the Canon 40D with the 85MM 1.2L, the Sigma 50-150 2.8 and a canon Macro however, I jumped back to Nikon after about a 1/2 years usage.
Do you plan on looking at the P90?
Rudy
As for me looking at the P90. I'd love to test it out.
I'm giving my 50mm f/1.4 AFS to my daughter as a gift.
There is very little shutter lag and the picture quality is great. I'm showing my daughter my P90 this weekend so she can test it out and decide if she wants to purchase it in place of her 300mm.
I want to be very clear. You cannot compare a 400.00 Coolpix to a 1700.00 D300 however, I'm a casual shooter now a days and the P90 will do for me. I'm very happy with it in the short period of time that I had it.
I would strongly recommend that you try one out first before purchasing it.
How disappointing with RAW this would be a camera that I couldn’t do without.
from Amazon. It cost $300 and HAS RAW FORMAT. It's a point and shoot camera with a lot of features. But I looked all over for a camera that shot movies and RAW and this was the best and cheapest I could find in 2009
Better to try getting your camcorder to perform that function.
Thanks again to everyone for the help,
Jay
Thanks,
Satya
But I'm betting you're simply not compensating for the shutter delay. It's the delay which happens between triggering the shutter and when the photograph is actually recorded. And what's interesting is, that DSLRs dont' have a lag issue at all. Or, it's nearly non existent. It's a common problem with point and shoot cameras. But there are ways to combat it ...
1. Prefocus. Hold down the shutter half way to get a prefocus of the image you're shooting. When it changes, prefocus again. This will speed up your camera's performance during picture taking since it won't have to autofocus before it shoots the shot.
2. Use faster SD cards. Yes, there are faster cards and it does make a difference in writing the image file to the card. This is especially key if you're taking multiple or burst images.
3. Fresher batteries. Use alkalines at least. But I recommend using high energy batteries designed for digital photography. Varta is a good brand. They are usually sold in camera shops, are long lasting (because they are sold in small quantities) put out alot of energy.
4. Pan with the action. You can create some pretty cool shots by panning with your shot, focusing on your subject. This will create the effect of your subject in sharp contrast to the blurry background.
6. Stick with 100-400 ISO. Going higher will cause more noise/grain in your shots, particularly in darker settings.
Doing these, habitually, particularly prefocusing and panning with the action will cut your shutter lag by as much as 80%.
Also, have you tried the ceiling fan shot with the flash on and see if that freezes the blades. 'Cause if they are still blurred with the flash then something is wrong with the camera.
Here's a few things to try ...
Prefocus with your subject right dead in the middle by pressing the shutter half way down. Then, while keeping it down, recompose the image using the rule of thirds. This is there you imagine a tic-tac-toe grid and placing your subject where any two lines intersect. If there's motion, pan with the action. And if you must refocus, then allow yourself to re-prefocus. And when you're ready, press the shutter the rest of the way. This will not only help you to compse your images, but cut any shutter lag by up tp 80%.
I have 8 year experience in digital cameras.
Either even don't look at this one in the store or refund immediately !
It's extremely frustrating! I still have my Konika-Minolta SLR camera that takes incredible pictures, and this only has 6 megapixels! I really would like to know what I'm doing wrong! Like the "Frustrated Mother", I've been into photography for about 10years now. I am NOT an expert but I do know how to work cameras, and like another writer had mentioned. When you read the manual it does refer you to other pages in the book!
When I go home tonight. I will reset everything back to the default settings and go from there.
Yes I read the manual. Yes I've used a tri-pod, yes I've set my white balance manually...and yes I've gone back to factory defaults...
Auto mode is the worst, and I bought a point & shoot because I thought I would get good pics with a $400 camera. Now I'm going to buy a $100 canon that will fit in my pocket, and take better pics!
Now, I would love to hear from some people who kept it too long to return, like me.
I am now playing more with using U1 and U2 settings.
setting them up for use indoors when you need a flash, because this is the most problematic area.
What have people been using for better results?
Here is what I am trying next for people,indoor incandescent lighting with a flash, user setting U1 or U2:
Image Quality=fine
Image size=8
Optimize image=portrait
white balance-auto (better than incandescent, or anything else I've tried.)
ISO=100
AF area =face pri
auto focus=full time
flash comp = -.3
noise reductoon=on
active d lighting=normal
The little coffee creamer cups over the flash didn't help either :) I've been doing a lot of reading....and do not want to give up on it completely.
after purchase of camera and checking information and watching cd i realized i had a problem when they offer schooling at considerable cost in NY- there were several types of classes - somewhere on box information should have stated the complxity of this camera and that no where would you be able to get help online phone etc. - my inside pics biggest problem also my best results come on party / indoor with flash on in lower lighting but usually if there are any lights on they create flash backs - i try to tunn them off take enough different angles you might get a few decent pics - during day indoors i just jump around practice shots till i finf the best - it never seems to be consistant under same conditions - very frustrating - outdoors different lighting i try multiple settings like indoors day - i used to write down all settings under certain conditions and would duplicate another time and complete difference - anyway have a Merry XMAS take lots of pictures and hope for a few decnt ones
I am most sorry I listened to all the people that said I didn't know what I was doing - or that I should have gotten a dslr.....
Do you know anyone who has had it repaired, with good results? I was hoping it was a firmware issue - but no upgrades available...
Maybe a local camera shop will help me out.
I've used 3 different P&S cameras costing under $100 in the past 2 weeks, and have gotten superior pictures on Auto, in comparison to the P90.
In the end, no matter the camera, there will always be some that hate it, some that look to a blind eye over shortcomings, and then those who read the manual, experiment beyond the automatic settings, and get the most out of the camera they buy.
But most often, the one's who don't like it, either haven't given it enough time, or have overly high expectations. But there are some models, like the P80 before it, which had their issues.
One point and shoot option I would recommend for a cruise is the one that professionals tend to choose as their backup camera of choice and that's the Canon G9 or G10. 10x optical zoom and the added benefit of manual controls. And it's small enough to fit in a handbook, fanny bag or jacket pocket. And with an additional hot shoe, you can add a stronger zoomable flash for shots where you need to shed light in farther off places.
Now the difference between a DSLR and the G10 ... now that's a dramatic size difference and you still get the performance boost.
I chose the Canon SX10is over the P90 for the following reasons:
- I have no brand loyalties - simply put Canon makes better point and shoot cameras than anyone else
- P90 has no hotshoe
- CHDK can be downloaded so the SX10is can record in RAW
- Nikon's LCD didn't swivel enough
- AA batteries can be bought anywhere
- In all the review sites I've surfed, the Canon was more favorably reviewed than the P90
Image quality concerns - in general, Nikons have warmer tones especially for portraits. This wasn't too important cuz I do portraits w/ my DSLR.
I Liked the P90 for the smaller package and the higher ISO range. The Nikon ergonomics were nice too. But these features weren't enough to close the deal.
I shot w/ both cameras and the Canon produces better results
Thanks
J. Paul
But the Nikon P series is notorious for poor low light performance, although it has improved a bit with the P90.
Anyone facing similar problem ?
But understand this. As a digital point and shoot camera, you will have issues with shutter lag. This is the time the camera takes to autofocus, determine proper exposure settings, take the picture, image process and writing to the card itself. It's slower in point and shoots than Digital SLRs, which have no issues.
But if you prefocus, you can cut the lag by as much as 80%.
Check out the Pansonic Lumix TZ3. Excellent picture quality.
Pansonic's FZ35 is a good option if you're looking at a superzoom, as is the Canon SX200IS. Both outperform the P90 by a wide margin.
As for your budget amount, I would need you to translate that into US dollars equivalent please.