A New Beginning: Nikon Coolpix P5100

Let me first say that you don’t need a great camera to take a great photograph. Technically perfect images do not necessarily make for great photography. Skill, perseverance and opportunity make a better photograph than any camera. However, many photographers speak of their equipment as well as their work, and I am no different.

That said, let me introduce you to my first digital camera, and my springboard into a new era of film and digital photography. The Nikon Coolpix P5100 is a “Bridge” type 12.3 MP fixed-lens zoom digital camera with a resolution rivaling that of many DSLRs. It’s compact and goes anywhere, making it in many ways, more versatile than a DSLR. Yet, it can be outfitted with an extensive range of Nikon screw-mount secondary lenses and filters, and I have built an extremely versatile camera system around it.

Nikon Coolpix P5100 “System”

Clockwise from Left: Nikon UR-E7 28-46mm Step-Up Ring, Nikon FC-E8 Fisheye Lens, Nikon WC-E67 Wide Angle Lens, Nikon TC-E2 Telephoto Lens, Nikon UR-E20 Lens Converter, Nikon Coolpix P5100 Digital Camera, Nikon 28mm filter set (Circular Polarizer, UV ND4, ND8)

Sometimes my P5100 thinks it’s a Leica M8, and sometimes it thinks it’s a Lomo LC-A.

I find it ironic that the digital camera has rekindled my interest in film photography. Perhaps it’s because I’m now more familiar with digital’s shortcomings as well as its advantages. From now on, I will use digital photography to improve my film photography, and I will use film photography to improve my digital photography.

I’ve been living with this camera for over a year now, and I’ve learned its capabilities and its limitations. It’s taught me a lot, and because it’s delayed my original plan of purchasing a DSLR, it’s helped me to make a better choice. It’s pretty close to my birthday, so I don’t feel too guilty about treating myself to a Nikon D90. After all, it will be the first new camera I’ve bought in over 30 years. Well, that’s if you don’t count my Lomo Lubitel 166, which technically does qualify as a camera. And I mean that in a most respectful, lomographic way.

But don’t get me wrong. My work this this camera is not over by any means. It can do things that my D90 won’t be able to.