Manual Control Options
There aren’t many manual controls on the Nikon S2. This Coolpix is made for the point-and-shooter who just wants a quick shot without having to adjust the aperture. Users can manually select exposure compensation, ISO, and white balance.

Focus
Auto (7.0)
The contrast detection auto focus system focuses from 1 inch to as far as the lens can “see.” In dim lighting, the S2 shoots out a beam of orange light to assist the AF system. There are auto focus options, but they are hidden within the nooks and crannies of menus. The Face Priority AF can be found in the Portrait scene mode menu. It doesn’t work as well as I’d wish. It takes a long time for the camera to find the face to focus on, then only holds the focus as long as the subject is completely still. There is a Continuous AF mode hidden in the movie mode menu. When selected and when the camera is moved, it sounds as if a baby grasshopper is trying to escape from the camera body.

Manual (0.0)
There is no manual focus on the Coolpix S2.

Exposure (7.5)
Elements that control exposure, such as the shutter speed and aperture, are completely automatic on the Nikon Coolpix S2. Users can adjust the exposure compensation to go as bright as +2 to as dark as -2 with steps every 1/3 of the way in between. There are live views for the exposure compensation, which makes it easy to select and take good pictures right off the bat.

Metering (5.5)
This Nikon Coolpix only has one metering mode: the 256-segment matrix metering that is included on most Nikon digital cameras. For users looking to make more precise exposures, a camera that includes a spot metering mode would be a better alternative.

White Balance (7.5)
The white balance menu is composed of text and icons and offers live views. Scrolling through the Auto, Daylight, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Cloudy, and Speedlight options gives the photographer a good idea of what colors each one will produce. Amazingly, the S2 also has a fully manual white balance mode. And even better, it’s easy to use – so perhaps some of its targeted demographic will learn to use it. Users simply must frame something white, then press the OK button to measure it. The manual white balance worked well, depicting accurate colors in a range of lighting setups.

ISO (6.5)
Users can allow the S2 to automatically select the ISO sensitivity, or they can manually select a rating of 50, 100, 200, or 400. There are no live views for this menu option, which is slightly disappointing. The ISO 400 rating is also a bit limited by today’s standards. Some point-and-shoot oriented cameras are now including 800 and 1600 ISO options to help out in low light. This would have been particularly helpful to night shooting, given the camera’s f/3.0 max aperture.

Shutter Speed (0.0)
Shutter speeds are automatically selected by this Nikon Coolpix in a stunted range of 2 seconds to 1/350th of a second. Most compact cameras have a slightly shortened automatic shutter speed range, but this is ridiculously stunted. It is very difficult to get good pictures in low light when you can only open the shutter for 2 seconds. And it’s very difficult to get action shots when the top speed is 1/350th of a second. Perhaps that’s why my three-month-old’s arms were always blurry.

Aperture (0.0)
The Nikkor zoom lens on the S2 has an aperture range starting at f/3 in the wide setting and f/5.4 to f/8.5 in the telephoto setting. Of course, the Nikon S2 automatically selects the aperture.

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