Nikon COOLPIX L810 16.1 MP Digital Camera with 26x Zoom NIKKOR ED Glass Lens and 3-inch LCD (Black) (OLD MODEL)

I use my new camera for work (print advertising business) and it does an excellent job out on location. I have used it for studio shots as well as portraits and action shots. I bought this in June 2012 after a long search for features and value of numerous cameras. My first shots with the L810 have now printed in our magazine and they look great. I'm sure that's the 16 MP resolution quality coming through. It is easy to use and has a lot of settings. I was amazed at the resolution and quality of the pictures in low light with the flash off.This is my second Nikon camera and I debated buying a more expensive body only model so I could use the lenses I already owned. But I was looking for something fast and easy and this fit my needs without time consuming lens changes or need for a big bag to carry them in. The 26x Zoom is very good and is quick to auto focus when panning in and out. Uploading to computer is easy after quick software install. 3 inch screen is very clear and makes it simple to do a fast review of the picture I just took and make adjustments for next shot without having to wait until I load to computer and possibly need to go back for a re-shoot.I didn't buy this for the video mode since I work for a print magazine but my initial trial with video is very good. I only wish I'd waited a couple of days because Amazon dropped the price $20 just after my order date but that's just my bad luck and makes it an even better deal for others. I still can't believe you get Nikon quality and all of these features for 200 bucks.

I was simply looking for a camera to take good photographs and maybe even try my hand at some professional photography in the near future. This camera is a great product to start with. it does not shoot in RAW but the image quality is just as great to work with.The learning curve is pretty low, which is a good thing, there are many preset features for different shooting situations, from all-purpose shots to sports to fireworks/night shots. As I mentioned the fireworks mode, it would be good for me to note on this particular setting the camera's shutter speed is at its max of 4 seconds. I make mention of this because I know some folks may want to try their hands at light painting. Four seconds is more than enough to get a word or 2 in and with enough practice and experience you will be creating perfect light painted images each time. It must also be noted that for optimum performance natural daylight is the best time to take photographs with this camera, the images are shot at its best, crisp and clear.What I like the most is the ability to get just the right amount DOF needed for commercial product photography. Once you have proper lighting and a tripod or anything that will keep your camera steady, most if not all your shots will be near perfect.For what it's worth, the 720p recording works fine. My only gripe with it, is that the autofocus does not work on items that are within 1-5cm of the lens. I guess I may need to try a macro lens and see if it would make a difference. Other than that, for general video recording it works just fine.All in all, for it's price and size the COOLPIX L810 is worth the buy. It will be the perfect gift for any budding photographer.

I purchased the L810 August 2012 (about 1 year ago), so I've had quite a bit of time to try it out. This was my first upgrade camera from using basic ~$100 Nikon models like the P60 and L28 (although my very first was a Kodak easy share).Pros:~I chose the camera in Blue. The color is rich and I haven't had any major issues with it chipping.~My cameras come with me everywhere, so it's been through a lot and is holding up pretty well. I have dropped it once (only about 3 months ago) and it only sustained a corner chip (that's all that is apparent). The performance of the camera has not been affected.~When the lighting is high, especially on sunny days, photos are stunning and crisp, especially macros (the type of photos I take most often).~This camera takes SD cards, so it was an easy upgrade (although later I purchased an SD with a higher class to improve recording on card speed).~You can fit quite a bit in the shot when lense is fully zoomed out.~ (might be a con for some people)Although it isn't a DLSR, it kind of looks like one.Some people have even asked me which Nikon DLSR it was! It's my dream to own a DLSR, but I don't have the money for that yet (college is expensive). This camera feels similar to a DLSR when you hold it (as close to the dream as I can get, for now).Neutral:*Because the lense is a little too big for the camera, sometimes wider shots will have curve distortions in the corners. It's not significant enough to bother me, and I have actually used this defect to take some awesome, creative perspective shots.*Manual setting: The manual light/exposure setting is OK. The camera can be finicky.*Setting: Sometimes settings within the camera are sometimes difficult to find, such as formatting card. This is frustrating when I need to work quickly because my subjects don't always wait for me (organisms).*The lense has to be open/exposed too review pictures. I would have liked it if there was an option to "close lense" while reviewing pictures. My cheap $50 FujiFilm that I take along when fishing automatically closes its lense after you start reviewing images about 1 minute.*Darker lighting shots and extreme contrast lighting tend to be very warm. This can usually be fixed with software, but I've had instances where there was no hope.Negative:*Using the flash: Occasionally when I need the flash and pop it up (esp. for dark macro shots), the camera doesn't recognize this and I have to fight with the camera to accept the flash manually.*Lense is very easy to destroy. Only a month after owning this camera, there was already dust under the lense. I always keep the cap on, and I never exposed my lense to extreme wind or beach conditions. The dust is not visible in most shots, but I know it is there. At certain zoom levels, one of the dust specs create a blurry spot. I am pretty sure that Nikon would fix this problem if I sent the camera in, but it's probably expensive. I never looked into it, though(and I dislike paying shipping).*Dark lighting; This was my BIGGEST disappointment from this camera. It's horrible for low-light situations. My friend's cell phone camera was getting better quality low-light photos than me. Whenever I want a low-light shot, such as a picture of a moth at night, I have to wear a head light and hold a flashlight in my left hand while trying to take a picture. When I use the flash, it only works for objects close-mid distance away. Very close objects get super-exposed, and father objects are non-existent. Also, as the lighting gets darker, the fuzzies get harsher. I know, this isn't a pro-camera. But I would have liked it to handle low light a little better for the price.*Energy monster: The camera takes (4) AA batteries. No battery packs here. This thing is a battery monster that's ALWAYS hungry. I have rechargeable AA batteries for it now, but not always. Before investing in rechargables, it was a bad situation.*Focus: Like I said, I love taking macros/ close-ups. Sometimes the focus takes way too long, and very often it's challenging to get the right focus. For example, I want to get a close-up of a dragonfly. The camera will focus the face or the body, but not both. Whatever it doesn't focus is very blurry. I want a crisp, all-focus closeup. That might be asking too much for a camera like this, but I really don't know. I don't have enough experience to make such a judgement.*Speed: The camera is much faster than my previous, but still too slow for quick, action shots like animals running. These shots tend to be clearer the more you zoom out, but sometimes I want detail. I tend to get these shots indirectly. I take a video of the action, then use editing software (like Picasa) to extract photos from the video. These "photos" are not as crisp as a regular picture, but they allow me to capture things like lightning. There is a super-fast continuous mode that puts 16 photos on one frame. You can extract individual photos from this frame later, but they have to be blown up, and that sacrifices clarity.So, the L810 gets 4 stars overall because it is a nice improvement/upgrade from cheaper cameras. I do like it, but it can be frustrating when I can not capture the shots that I envision. Plus, it's dark-lighting shots are simply awful.You might have more experience with cameras than me and could probably make better judgements of my complications. Or you might have less experience and feel a little overwhelmed by all the reviews for all the cameras you are looking at.No matter who you are, the ultimate decider is YOU. This is my experience and you'll need to judge and digest it to decide if the L810 will satify you needs as a photographer.