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Nikon Coolpix 5400 5.1 MP Digital Camera w/ 4x Optical Zoom

Nikon Coolpix 5400 5.1 MP Digital Camera w/ 4x Optical Zoom

List Price:
Your Price: $499.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Nikon
Review: I decided to try the Nikon 5400. It has delivered consistent, fine images and allows many pre-set modes to shoot as well as manual control. A top piece of equipment with Nikon know-how.



Rating: 3 stars
Summary: I love it, it's the best thing I got for Christmas!
Review: I had a Sony 1 MP camera before I was given this one, and I'll tell you 5 MP is a big diffrence! The camera has all kinds of settings, but they aren't realy good, the indoor settings have a slow shutter speed so the pictures almost always come out blured or they don't work with the flash. If you want to take a good indoor picture you need a tripod, and your subject must not move for several seconds. I learned the best setting is M, it has a fairly quick shutter speed, and you can turn the flash on, off, or there is a good red-eye reduction setting.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great Pictures
Review: I have been looking at cameras for quite a while but was having a very difficult time deciding if a digital camera would take the type of pictures I am used to with a 35mm. I am happy to say that after about 30 minutes I had taken and printed pictures that are as good or better than my 35mm. This is a great camera for beginners. I used it for a vacation to Hawaii and the pictures were beautiful. I highly recommend this camera for the variety of features and the ease of use for beginners.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: So glad I got this camera!!!
Review: I love this camera. I am a fine artist and need to archive my work. In the past, that meant shooting everything in 35mm and then my better pieces needed to be shot again in 4x5 format as well in the event I wanted to reproduce them at a later date as large prints. I had to bracket each shot at least three ways to make sure I got the best shot. And at the end of a photo shoot, it could get pretty expensive with all the film and processing. Along with the 5400, I also purchased a 512mb flash card and a AC adapter so I wouldn't have to continually upload my images. In one session, I was able to shoot over 40 works, and only two needed to be reshot because they were soft. I shoot in bright natural light and the auto focus worked very well. I shot everything at the highest resolution setting as tif files which are pretty big. I was able to store about 35 images on the flashcard before it ran out of memory. The colors were so accurate, I hardly needed to tweak them at all in Photoshop. Needless to say, the camera paid for itself in one photo shoot and the ease and time saving qualities are priceless to me. I would highly recommend this camera, but get yourself a flash card with more memory if you want to store more images than using the card it comes with. (I think an 8). Also, I would suggest steering clear of sellers who are offering this and other similar items at a ridiculous savings. They will try to upsell you with incredibly high cost extras like extended waranty and cases and cards and lenses. If you don't agree to buy any, they will likely screw up your order, lie to you and make your life a living hell. I went through that ugly scene and then finally went through Amazon to purchase my stuff. They haven't let me down yet with anything I've purchased.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Low Light Focus?
Review: I tried and tried to get this camera to focus in low light situations in full auto mode and it just would not. Manually focusing is a pain and without some kind of light to assist with low light focusing, I can not recommend this camera and will be returning it.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Doesn't deserve to be called a Nikon
Review: In recent weeks, I put many hours into researching the pros and cons of particular prosumer cameras; finally I settled on the 5400, a camera that was to be an upgrade from my three-and-a-half-year-old Nikon Coolpix 990. The old 990 had proved to be a dependable workhorse; other than some self-inflicted problems that occurred after I spilled some sugary soda on it (I had to have it professionally cleaned to the tune of $200!), it never let me down. Still, I'm getting more serious about my photography, and wanted something with better resolution and more advanced options.

I had been really looking forward to receiving the 5400 and was predisposed to liking the camera a lot. In reality, I soured on the thing within 72 hours.

First of all, BELIEVE what camera cognoscenti say about the inability of the 5400 to autofocus in low-light conditions. What I hadn't understood until I was shooting with the camera is that 'low light' doesn't necessarily refer to broom closets or dinners by candlelight. I was snapping pics of my two-year-old in the living room today, on a sunny afternoon, with the blinds mostly open. Half the time, I couldn't get the camera to lock no matter what. Moving to the hallway, where there's only indirect light sthat streams in from the living room and dining room, effectively rendered the camera inoperable. I encountered no such problems outside, so if the great outdoors is where you do all your shooting, the 5400 may be for you.

Except for one other thing -- and this is a biggie. What absolutely DESTROYS this camera's performance is its pathetic color accuracy. Maybe I got a lemon -- I find it hard to believe that Nikon, the top-of-the heap manufacturer of pro-quality imaging equipment, would release a model that is so wildly off in how the internal chip processes color. But at least with the specimen I have, all the colors come out hyped. I photographed a still life that included some salmon-colored paper; it acquired a distinct, troublesome reddish tint in the picture I took with the 5400. This is a CRITICAL area for any camera; if it doesn't render reds and pinks accurately, it's an almost useless tool, as Caucasian faces, especially, will look ruddy and unappealing. And my 5400 has trouble with other hues, too, first turning a purplish blue shirt into a something much more like ROYAL blue, then pulling the exact same feat with a baby blue yogurt lid in another still life. It makes no sense to me either, but there it is.

I spent HOURS tweaking white balance and playing with the camera's saturation settings, all to little avail. Was the 5400's (too-small) display at fault, perhaps, as opposed to its internal color-rendering chip? I wish. After transferring the pictures to my Mac G4 and opening them in Photoshop 7, the same problems were immediately evident on the big monitor. To a degree, the 'off' colors can be corrected in Photoshop, of course. But sorry Nikon, I'm not prepared to do that kind of digital cosmetic surgery on virtually every picture I take.

My old Nikon 990 has better color accuracy by a mile; so does a more recent four-megapixel Canon A70 point-and-shoot that a friend was using to photograph the same test scenes on which I trained the 5400.

I should note that I am not a professional photographer, and that I'm probably much more forgiving of mild deviations in color and sharpness than a pro lensman would be. But the problems I mentioned are far from mild. They were, in fact, easily picked up and commented on by my wife, who is supremely uninterested in tweaky, geeky stuff, and who would presumably be happy with an old Kodak Brownie if it took halfway decent pictures.

I still give the 5400 two stars because the macro pictures it takes are nothing short of astounding (if you can forget about the patently incorrect colors for a moment). A picture of the engraving inside a ring brought out awesome detail, even specks of dust and scratches that were hard to pick up with the naked eye. A photo of a piece of transparent sticky tape I'd pulled off an envelope showed paper fibers in such detail, it seemed that by zooming in just one step further, actual atoms would appear in the image...

Still, all told, I'm sorely disappointed, and so this camera is going back to Amazon for a refund. Guess I'll be trying out the twice-as-expensive Nikon D-70 next, hopefully with much better results.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Nikon ??
Review: In response to "that guy" who said " don't listen to this guy who said it is a step backwards". This is a review of a camera not a judgement of people and their eyesight or if they knock the camera they "can't afford it or don't understand it.
As stated I have years of photographic experience and compared the camera to the Nikon Coolpix 990. I have had the 990 since the first day it came out (about 3 years ago) and it has been one of Nikons biggest selling digital for many reasons. I also campared it to the camera it's ment to replace , the Coolpix 5000.

In my review I stated many people will like this camera and it does take good pictures, but compared to the new technology that's out there and the compitition from other camera makers (Canons new G5 for instance, and I don't own any Canon products) the 5400 as a whole is a disappiontment.

People shouldn't write a review based on having a product for a week and comparing it to nothing.

I've used Nikons for over twenty years. I have always expected improvements with new models and most time they didn't disappoint. I loved (and still do) my Coolpix 990. The 5400 is a downer.

First, it's made in Korea! The smaller sensor is stretched for quality. The dull 1.5" LCD screen is also a step in the wrong direction (if you can even see the image on it). Nikon's older 5000 had a larger chip and 1.8" screen. Nikon should be making better cameras. Cameras with larger chips and a nice 2" LCD (don't be fooled when they say the smaller chip is better technology, not!) Many people will love this camera and say they get great pictures with it. With the right know-how and software you can get excellnt images with a 2-3 MP camera. It's cute and does have a great amount of features (why I gave it 3 stars). If you want better images get one of the new SLR's.For your money stay with what you have ( 2-3 MP) or spend half the money and get a 3 or 4 MP (from [Amazon.com]) and wait for a better product from Nikon or something from the competition that's more reasonably priced...

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great camera, though expensive
Review: In response to the made in Korea question, I received my camera a week ago and was terrified to see that it was made in Korea (having read the reviewer's comment). After a week of unneeded stress, I can personally say that there is absolutely nothing wrong with my camera - it works perfectly. I'm sure the reviewer had a problem with his camera and simpy assumed it was the fact that it was made in Korea. More realistically, he simply received a lemon camera - it happens. (Incidently, the "Made in Korea" is located on one side of the box in tiny print, or on the bottom of the camera.)

So far this camera has been amazing. Super wideangle that no comparable competitor can surpass, and great macro capabilities. I went for this one over the 5700 for that fact (and the price difference - plus having to deal with rebates). I haven't yet had any reason to worry about the buffer speed as some reviews have nailed it on. How many times do I need to take 30 continous low res shots in a row (as in, holding down the shutter release) and then turn around and take more shots? Really, the only major drawbacks to this camera in my opinion, are the optical viewer and the price. The viewer doesn't cover the entire actual shot taken which can cause you to get a shot you hadn't intended. So I basically rely on the LCD screen usually. But isn't that what most people do anyway? The price is high basically because its a Nikon and built out of good materials.

There will be tradeoffs in any camera that you buy, and this one covered most of what I needed. You really have to look at what you want personally, rather than what a camera review is looking for.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One thing is more important
Review: Make sure you get one made in Japan (with fireware 1.3).
because Korea made has focus problem!!!
I had both, and return Korea's, which make me nuts.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A camera you'll want to play with every day
Review: Other reviews describe all the features, and still others tell how people feel about the camera -- many people love it. Rather than repeat that, let me just say that this camera is a lot of fun to play with. With a mode dial, a command dial to shift shutter speed or other settings, and other dials and buttons, it's easy to get at all the features here. It invites you to try things, and as you do, you'll learn alot about how to take better and better pictures.

If you just want to press the button, have a great picture and be done with it, this camera is overkill. Cheaper cameras can do that -- mabye get a Canon S50 or a Sony p10. But if you want a small camera you'll want to pick up every night and experiment with, this is your camera. You can put it in green auto mode and get great pictures if you want, but this camera can provide you a lot more fun than that.


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