Hey, this is Scott of Photography Banzai.
Today we're taking a look at the Nikon CoolPix A1000.
Thanks to Camera Craft in Rockford Illinois for let me try this out at their shop.
The A1000 is a step up from the previous A900 quite a few ways, which we'll get to.
I did try the A900 out previously that you can check out that video if you
would like. The A1000 has a 16 megapixel 1/2.3 inch sensor. The same
physical size as A900 sensor, but less megapixels. So each little photo-site is
probably larger. ISO range is 100 to 6400. There is a built-in flash on the camera.
Very nice to see. It doesn't have a hot shoe. In a step up from the A900 this
camera has a built-in electronic viewfinder. Now, it's not the best ever
but it is in there. It's nice to have that viewfinder on there. So you can
have a more traditional photographic experience with this camera. The view on
the viewfinder and the screen are around 98 percent according to the spec, which
is a little unusual. The biggest feature of a camera like this considering its size is
the long zoom lens. 35x, it's 4.3 to 151 millimeters with F/3.4 to 6.9 aperture
throughout that zoom range. The equivalent focal length range in 35 millimeter
format is 24 to 840 millimeters. So you definitely get a lot of range with a
camera like this. The lens has vibration reduction in there, which is very
important for a camera like this. And in video mode you can do a mixture of lens
based VR plus electronic stabilization. Another big change for the A1000
compared to the previous model is that it has a flip down and forward screen.
And it's full touch enabled. So you can go through the menus with the touch
screen if you'd like. You can change focus points. Very nice improvement to
the interface with the A1000. The camera has two ports on it. You've got the micro
HDMI and the micro USB port. The camera uses EN-EL12 batteries. A very small
battery. Get around 250 photos or 55 minutes of video per charge. So it's
about average for a camera like this. The SD card is located very close to the
battery. That's a usual spot for a camera like
this. On the bottom of the camera where the tripod socket is, is not ideal. So if
you're doing panoramas, which did do a little test of the panorama
feature... It would be nice to have a tripod socket in-line with the lens. In
this case it's not, but considering how large the lens is I can understand why
they put the tripod socket on the side. Now, actually a good thing about that
position of the tripod socket is that you should be able to change the battery
with a quick release plate on the camera.
That's a nice benefit of this unusual placement. You have a main mode dial with the
standard program, aperture, shutter, and manual modes on there. So it is great
that with a camera like this you've got full manual control. There are a few easy
modes or creative modes on that main dial as well. As usual with Nikon
cameras like this, the bridge ones and the compact long zoom, you have two
different zoom controls. One near the shutter and one around the lens. They did
include the snap-back focus feature. So what you do is when you're fully zoomed
into something, and you have a very small view... You can hold that button down and
it'll zoom back quickly to give you a easy way to see where you are. You let
the button go and I'll zoom back. Very nice feature on the Nikon long zoom
cameras. There is an Fn button that you can customize on the front of the camera.
A little difficult to press, but it's nice that it's there. Gives you a little
more direct control when you need it. There is a dedicated button to switch
between the viewfinder and the screen, which is nice to have. However you can
also just use the standard sensor on there to switch. I did do a quick test to
see how fast it changes from the back screen to the viewfinder. It's pretty
quick. Just general build quality of the camera feels nice and rugged. It's not
really a tiny camera. It's relatively compact, but still pretty large. A nice
photographer focused benefit of this camera is you can shoot in RAW format.
Previous one, the A900 you weren't able to do that. But in this one you can. So if
you have the right software you can get a little bit more out of your photos
potentially than just standard JPEGs. There is wireless connectivity on the
camera. I did try it out. It's very quick to connect with that Snapbridge
application, but it is very limited in the features as far as I could tell. I didn't
do too much with it. But I wasn't able to change any setting while taking photos
remotely. I could just do the shutter. Not sure if it was something I was doing or
the app is just very limited. But it there and it's an option. There are
various scene modes in camera, which is nice to have. You can do time-lapse in
the camera. Or also panorama. If you're into creative modes and filters they
have quite a few in there. I did quickly scroll through those. They have manual
focus ability on the camera with peaking, which is very nice to have in a
camera like this that has an integrated lens. So if you want to do manual focus
it is an option. Some important aspects of the camera. One is with autofocus. This
is contrast based autofocus, which is not ideal in any camera these days. It's just
an older not as capable version compared to on sensor phase detect. So
with contrast detect autofocus, you sometimes will get quick autofocus
especially with nice bright light. Autofocus area modes... you got face
priority, manual spot, manual normal, wide, subject tracking, and then the default is
that target finding autofocus. There are a few autofocus modes you have pre-focus,
full time autofocus, and single autofocus. This camera has quite a few video modes.
Especially with the flip down screen that can be a nice feature on a camera.
I did not see any 24 frames per second modes on this camera. If you're into 24
frames a second this would not be a camera for you. However, it does have 4k
30 frames a second full sensor as far as I can tell. You have 1080p with 30 or 60
frames a second. And you have a slo-mo mode. Basically the 60 frames a second
slowed down in the camera. A few missing features, at least things I think this
camera should have had compared to other models of camera that are similar price
points or similar feature sets. No mic ports. In a camera like this, especially with
the flip down screen for vlogging... would be nice to have that mic port. And no hot
shoe on the camera. It is a smaller camera so I don't see it as being a huge
issue. As I was trying the camera out, of course, I don't have a lot of time...
Autofocus was a mixed bag. Some situations it felt very quick. Other
situations it was very slow if not unable to focus. Especially when you zoom
out all the way in dark situations you're getting a really small aperture
at that long zoom. And also it's contrast based autofocus. Just gonna have some
troubles with autofocus. Compared to the A900 this camea went down in
megapixels, which I think was a good idea for camera like this with a small sensor.
Trying to get better quality, and definitely a good move on their part.
Let's check out those videos samples...
I did take a few test photos. let's check those out. I'll show you a full view and
then I'll show you a cropped hundred-percent view on each photo...
For around two or three years now I've been very critical of cameras like this.
Because they have the small sensors, which was smartphones these days they're
getting larger and larger sensors. More and more cameras built-in to each phone
with different focal lengths. So with a camera like this you have that extremely
long zoom lens, which is its main feature. But with this specific one you actually
have the flip down screen. You have touch controls. I really like this one a lot
more than the A900. Because it has some quality of life features that are very
nice. So it's hard for me to give any type of recommendation for a camera like
this. Because there are a lot of other options out there. But if you're
interested definitely check it out for yourself. Get a feel for the autofocus
system, and see if it works well enough for you. And consider if it's small
enough to give you what you're looking for. And give you the amount of zoom
range you want. Think about all those features together, and see if it works for you.
That was a look at the Nikon CoolPix A1000. Again, thanks to Camera Craft in
Rockford Illinois for letting me try this out at their shop. Hope you enjoyed the
video. If you did, please consider subscribing that helps me out a lot.
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