Nikon Coolpix S7c First Impressions Review

by Emily Raymond
Published on September 29, 2006

Navigation
Intro	Physical Tour
Components	Design / Layout
Modes	Control Options
Image Parameters	Connectivity / Extras
Overall Impressions	Conclusion

There is no optical viewfinder on this digital camera, but no one will miss it with the large LCD monitor. The live view can be seen at almost any angle and its 100 percent coverage is better than any optical viewfinder anyway. The screen has great resolution making for a smooth picture. In the setup menu, users can change the info displayed on the screen in the Monitor Settings option: Show Info, Auto Info, Hide Info, and Framing Grid. I wish this was a bit more accessible but it’s better than nothing at all. The information on the screen does not show the shutter speeds or apertures, but does show basic info such as how many pictures are left on the memory, what the ISO and image size are, whether the burst is activated, etc. The LCD works great as a viewfinder with one exception. After a picture is taken, there is a blackout time that lasts anywhere from a half to a full second.

 

The Nikon S7c has a 3-inch LCD monitor with ample resolution of 230,000 pixels. The resolution provides a smoother view of images whether recording or in playback mode. The LCD has a wide viewing angle too at 170 degrees. This wide view extends both horizontally and vertically, so users can shoot from the hip or above the head or at arm’s length and still be able to see what’s on the screen. I couldn’t take the camera outside of the convention obviously, so I can’t tell you what the screen is like in daylight. However, it does have a brightness adjustment in the setup menu that brightens the screen with 5 levels. The top level looks like it’d be adequate for shooting outdoors, but once again we won’t be able to tell that until we get a model for a full review. Overall, the Coolpix S7c’s LCD screen looks like a winner with its large size and great resolution.

The built-in flash looks like it’s growing outward from the tiny lens on the front of the camera. It extends to the left side of the lens when viewing from the front. The flash’s published specs claim it can reach from 1-24.6 ft in wide and 1-13.1 ft in telephoto, although the ISO was not listed in the specs. I suspect that this is the flash’s range when using the higher ISO sensitivities because using the ISO auto setting, the flash certainly did not reach that far. It hardly lit up 10 ft in front of me. I couldn’t tell what the coverage was like because there was awkward lighting over the Nikon booth, but when shooting a few portraits some foreheads and hair were bright white. There is no way to tone down the flash’s output either. Here are the flash modes that can be changed with the top of the multi-selector: Auto, Auto with Red-eye Reduction, Off, On, and Anytime Flash and Slow Sync. The designated red-eye reduction mode uses the digital red-eye reduction technology that is also included with the one-touch portrait button. When the flash was forced on, it fired a pre-flash too like a standard red-eye reduction mode. Overall, the flash doesn’t look like it reaches very far and its options aren’t fantastic but if subjects are at the right distance (about 6 ft away) they will turn out illuminated without blowing out highlights.

This Nikon has a 3x Zoom-Nikkor ED all-glass lens that remains inside the camera body at all times. When the camera is powered off, a metal plate snaps over the glass lens to keep it from getting scratched while floating in a purse or pocket. The plate snaps open quickly when starting up too. The lens itself is constructed from 12 elements in 10 groups and measures 5.8-17.4 mm. In the more familiar 35 mm format, this is equivalent to a 35-105 mm zoom. The zoom is controlled by one of the tiniest zoom switches I’ve ever seen. It is about half a centimeter at its longest measurement and hardly wider than a fingernail. It isn’t fragile – it won’t break like a fingernail. However, the switch has a peaked middle that is a bit sharp and quite uncomfortable to move. It doesn’t move far either, so fingers will have to exercise serious control on the switch. That will be hard too because the switch is not very sensitive. It stops at six focal lengths in the 3x range, so you won’t always be able to get the desired crop. When you move the switch, a horizontal bar appears on the screen that shows the ‘W’ on the left and the ‘T’ on the right. There is a live in between that shows where the optical zoom stops and where the 4x digital zoom begins; users must push the switch again to cross that line. The lens is placed in the top corner of the front, very near to where the left fingers wander. I took plenty of pictures of my ring and pinky fingers – accidentally. The Nikon Coolpix S7c has an electronic vibration reduction system that is activated with the OK button in the center of the multi-selector. It doesn’t appear to do very much; I couldn’t tell the difference between shots taken with and without it. Overall, the lens isn’t very impressive.