Overview
The Nikon Coolpix L3 is a straightforward, point and shoot digital camera. It has five megapixels and a three times optical zoom lens. Its main attractions are its ease of use and low price. The Coolpix L3 is likely to appeal to anyone who is looking for an uncomplicated digital camera that does not break the bank.
Main Features
Megapixels:
Zoom:
LCD Screen:
Dimensions:
Weight:
5
3x
2 inches
91 x 60.5 x 26mm
120g
Macro:
HD Movies:
Manual Controls:
Batteries:
Memory Cards:
10cm
No
No
AA
SD/MMC
Image Quality
The focusing in the outdoor scenic shots is some way above normal for a digital camera in this price bracket. The images stay sharp towards the edges of the photos as well. Another plus point is how well the Coolpix L3 is able to handle the glare from the sun. Based on my test results the camera copes well with light coloured objects in general. On the whole more shady areas of a scene are good too with a decent level of detail showing in each picture. The one area where that proves too much for the camera is the darker area to the left in the second outdoor shot.
In terms of colours I found blue to be over dominant. The water in the second and third outdoor shots is much bluer then it was when the pictures were taken. Unfortunately the River Thames is not really that blue! Some people may like this effect. It certainly adds colour to skies, but I found the colours looked a little unrealistic.
The outdoor portrait shot works well. Again there is a pleasing sharpness to the picture. Also again the colour is strong. I like the skin tones and I am happy with the result. On the whole the camera works well outdoors in decent light, outperforming many similar digital cameras.
Indoors the camera struggles more. Without sufficient light it is not able to attain the anywhere near the same crisp images that it could in sunny conditions. Both the picture of beer bottles and the indoor portrait are out of focus. Although this is not the most expensive digital camera around there are other cameras available for around the same price that can handle these conditions more competently.
The macro shot went horribly wrong. I tried a number of different positions and varied the distance between the camera and the subject, but each time the result was poor. Writing this I have just checked the review of the Nikon Coolpix L2 and I have found I wrote more or less the same about that camera too. It is possible you will be able to take good macro shots if the set up you use is different to mine. For example the camera may well perform better if you are taking shots of flowers outside in natural light, but this is not something you can count on.
There is no test for using higher ISO ratings as there is no option allowing you to change the ISO settings.
Shutter Lag and Recycling Times
I found the Coolpix L3 a bit inconsistent during my tests. Unfortunately the vast majority of my test shots showed clear problems with shutter lag. Typical times for a single shot were between 1.73 and 1.90 seconds. This is very slow. I think there may be situations were the camera can work faster, but I believe you will defiantly find shutter lag a problem. I was able to take five shots in 10.28 seconds. This is a standard time.
You can compare this camera to other models by taking a look at the Shutter Lag Comparison Table.
Features
The 3x optical zoom lens has a focal length equivalent to 38 - 116mm in 35mm format. 4x digital zoom is also available. For close up shots there is a macro mode that allows you to focus from 10cm away from the subject.
For composing images there is a 2 inch LCD screen. This is made up of around 86,000 pixels. No viewfinder is available.
A number of preprogrammed scene modes have been included. These help the camera to select the optimum settings for the type of shot you are about to take. The scene modes are Portrait, Landscape, Sports, Night Portrait, Party/Indoor, Beach/Snow, Sunset, Dusk/Dawn, Night Landscape, Close Up, Museum, Fireworks Show, Copy and Back Light. There is also a panorama assist to help you stitch together panoramic type shots.
The built in flash unit has a maximum range of 3m. This falls to 1.75m when the zoom lens is in use. The flash modes available are Auto, Auto with Red-eye Reduction (In-Camera Red-Eye Fix (TM)), Flash Cancel, Anytime Flash, and Slow Sync.
When you would like to appear in the picture yourself there is a self timer. The delay on the timer is around 10 seconds. After you have taken a photo you can make a small copy of it. The copy is a suitable size for emailing or using on a computer.
Among the more advanced features are white balance (custom, daylight, incandescent, florescent, cloudy and flash), exposure compensation (+/- 2) and colour options (vivid colour, black and white, sepia and cyanotype). A best shot selector is also available. This allows you to take a number of photos and the camera selects what it considers to be the best one in terms of exposure to save. The camera can also be used as a voice recorder.
Movies can be captured at a maximum resolution of 640 x 480 pixels. The top speed is 30 frames per second. Zoom can be used while the movie is being recorded and sound can be captured as well.
Continuous shooting is also available. This has a maximum speed of 1.7 frames per second. Based on my shutter lag tests this is likely to be very hard to achieve. You can also capture 16 mini photos that are built into a single grid.
Nikon supplies all the necessary cables and software to connect the Coolpix L3 to a television set, computer and PictBridge compatible printer.
Ease of Use
Ease of use is certainly a strong point. All the key controls can be found on the back of the camera. These cover features such as flash, zoom deleting images and the self timer. The menu system is as easy to use as any you are likely to find. This is helped by the fact help text is available for different menu options.
Cost
You can pick up a Nikon Coolpix L3 for around £105. This compares to around £120 for a Canon Powershot A530, £100 for a Fuji Finepix A500 and £95 for a Panasonic DMC LS2.
Although the Nikon Coolpix L3 is price competitive I prefer the pictures I managed to take with the Canon Powershot A530 and Panasonic DMC LS2.
Style
The Coolpix L3 is pretty typical for this type of digital camera. I would say the build quality appears to be very good though for a camera costing around £100. It is a standard rectangular shape with a raised area on the front to help you take a good grip.
It weighs 120g and has dimensions of 91 x 60.5 x 26mm.
Batteries and Memory Cards
Two AA batteries are used to provide power to the camera. Nikon estimates you should be able to take around 200 shots with the supplied batteries.
Nikon have built 23mb of storage into the Coolpix L3. I was able to take 28 shots using standard settings before the memory was full. This is enough to give the camera a good test, but you will need to pick up a high capacity memory card before you can do any really serious picture taking. The camera is compatible with SD cards.
Click here to save money on SD cards..
Points I like:
Ease of use
Build quality
Where it is not so hot:
Indoor shots
Shutter lag
Summary
The Nikon Coolpix L3 scores very highly for ease of use. I was also impressed by the sharpness of the outdoor photos I was able to take. There are a couple of key weaknesses though. These are where the camera struggles in lowlight and severe shutter lag.
Nikon Coolpix L3 Front View
Nikon Coolpix L3 Back View
Nikon Coolpix L3 Top View
Sample Menus
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Related Pages
Nikon Coolpix L3 Review Nikon Coolpix L3 Specification Nikon Coolpix L3 Sample Images
Review Date
September 2006
