Nikon Coolpix 5600

Viewfinder (1.5)
The optical viewfinder on the Nikon 5600 is not very accurate and is quite small. When you frame a subject in the viewfinder, you actually record a lot more space than you think. So while you won’t be cutting your subject’s head off, you will have to crop your photo later if you want that tight frame. The real image zoom viewfinder covers only 82 percent of the recorded image, but offers 0.3-0.76x zoom. This zooming function appears slightly distorted and almost looks like a fish-eye effect when viewed in the small window. The viewfinder is located on a slightly raised platform, which does help keep nose grease off the LCD screen below.

LCD Screen (3.5)
Luckily, the LCD screen applied to the Coolpix 5600 is more accurate than the viewfinder. The 1.8-inch LCD is the same amorphous silicon monitor that is on the Nikon Coolpix 4600. Both cameras’ screens have 80,000 pixels and 97 percent frame coverage. The model I reviewed arrived new and already had a dead pixel, so I was working off of 79,999. The little blue pixel put a zit on my subjects’ faces on the LCD screen, but of course this did not affect the final print. Other digital camera manufacturers are offering larger LCD screens with over two or three times the resolution; Nikon hasn’t quite caught on to this trend. 1.8 inches and 97 percent coverage are unimpressive when compared with other manufacturers’ 2.5-inch, 215,000 pixel LCD screens with 100 percent coverage.

Flash (6.0)
The 5600’s built-in Speedlight flash is powerful within its range of 16 inches to 10’10". Many inexpensive digital cameras have weak flash units that don’t evenly light a scene. However, this camera does not skimp in this regard. Nikon’s Speedlight flash works well and evenly lights subjects. With that said, it does not do that beyond its effective range, which is a bit short. Many point-and-shoot cameras offer flashes that are effective to about 12 feet or so, while the Coolpix 5600 only extends about 10 ft 10 inches when zoomed out. When the lens is zoomed all the way in, it can only reach 6 ft 7 in.

The Coolpix 5600 offers the following flash modes: Auto Flash, Auto with Red-Eye Reduction, Flash Off, Fill Flash, and Slow Sync. These modes can be easily found by pressing the top portion of the four-way navigational dial, so users won’t have to dig through menus to turn the flash off. Many of the scene modes won’t provide access to the flash modes though. For example, the Indoor scene mode automatically uses the Auto with Red-Eye Reduction mode, which looks like a disco party with its four quick flashes. Ironically, the most flash modes are available in the Auto mode.

Zoom Lens (6.5)
The Nikon Coolpix 5600 is equipped with a 35-105mm (equivalent) zoom lens constructed from seven elements in six groups. The 3x optical zoom lens lets users know it’s there; the mechanical noise it makes when zooming in and out is definitely audible. While it’s not loud enough to irritate the neighbors, I wouldn’t zoom at the silent and suspenseful climax of a play. The Nikkor lens measures 5.7-17.1 mm and has aperture openings of f/2.9 and f/4.9. When the digital camera is turned on, the lens extends from the body in two segments and the built-in lens cap snaps open. The cap itself is there to protect the glass, but the cap is not very sturdy. The little doors of the cap can be pushed open easily by a fingernail or just about anything that catches it at the right angle. Most digital camera lenses retract in the playback and setup modes; however, the Nikon Coolpix 5600’s zoom lens remains outside of the camera body and ready to shoot. This can be annoying for some photographers, who like to show off their pictures from the LCD on a flat camera. This can also be a plus for other photographers, who appreciate the decreased lag time that occurs between playback and shooting modes on cameras where the lens retracts. While I don’t recommend using the digital zoom, I must also note that 4x digital zoom is available on the Coolpix 5600.