Nikon Coolpix P2

Reviewed November 2005

Interface & Software

Interface

By default the P2's menus are presented as icons, and as the cursor is moved from one to another a text description appears at the top right of the screen, helpful as the meaning of some of the icons is not obvious.

This presentation (shown at left) has the advantage of regrouping all the options on a single screen, unlike the text mode of the menus that is spread over 3 screens, and makes any one option available nearly instantly. Moreover, the menus always return to the last used option, even after the camera has been turned off.

The selection for this presentation is contained in the Setup menu, which is displayed when the Mode dial is turned to the SETUP position, and which contains a number of other primary settings for the camera:

• Menus: as explained above, decides whether camera menu options are presented as icons or text. The default presentation is icons.
• Welcome Screen: selects what will be displayed on the LCD monitor when the camera is turned on. Options are the Nikon Coolpix logo, a Coolpix animation, a photo selected from those stored in the camera, or nothing.
• Date: serves to set the time and date on the Coolpix P2. A sub-option allows setting a secondary time, such as the time in a work or pleasure destination, and the camera automatically calculates the time and date for that time zone based on the home time.
• Monitor Settings provides 3 sub-options:
  • Photo Info controls how and when information is superimposed on the monitor:
    • Show Info, displays some of the camera's current settings.
    • Auto Info, displays camera settings or the operation guide for 5 seconds.
    • Hide Info, which hides current settings and the operation guide displayed by pressing T side of the zoom control.
    • Framing Grid, displays a framing grid on the screen when the P2 is set to P or A modes. Current camera settings or the operation guide are only displayed for 5 seconds.
  • Brightness: serves to adjust the monitor brightness over 5 levels.
  • Hue: allows adjusting the hue of the monitor over 9 steps.

• Date Imprint decides whether or not the date, or date and time are permanently imprinted on the image. Options are: Off (default); Date; Date and Time; and Date Counter, which allows inputting a date such as the start date of a trip, and which will print the number of days that have elapsed from the start date to the date on which the photo is captured.
• Shot Confirmation: when On, causes the Self-timer lamp to light after a shot is captured. The light does not light if a flash photo is taken, or if the camera is set to the Ultra HS mode.
• AF Assist: selects whether or not the AF-assist lamp turns on when the subject is poorly lit.

• Sound Settings: has three sub-options to control Button Sound (sounds made by the camera when buttons are pressed); Shutter Sound; and Start-up Sound.
• Auto Off decides the delay before the monitor automatically shuts down: 30 seconds (default), 1, 5, or 30 minutes.
• Format: to format the internal memory, or a memory card if one is present.
• Language: presets the interface language. The options are English, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Spanish, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, or Korean.
• Interface has 2 sub-options:
  • USB offers either PTP (Picture Transfer Protocol), used for connecting to a PictBridge printer, or Mass Storage to connect to a computer.
  • Video Mode: decides the video output signal (NTSC or PAL).
• Auto Transfer: On or Off. When On, the default setting, all pictures are automatically marked for automatic transfer when the camera is connected to a computer. When Off, only those images that have been selected using the OK button in Playback are automatically transferred.
• Reset All: returns all camera settings to the original factory settings.
• Firmware Version: displays the version of the firmware (1.0 for the camera tested here) and its MAC address.

A printed manual is included with the Coolpix P2. The manual is well-organized, providing an introduction to the camera and its basic functions in the first section, then introducing some beginner concepts about photography and the use of the camera. The manual then gets into more detail about specific functions of the camera and each of its modes — capture, playback, movie recording — and even delves into the menus in a concise fashion.

Finally, the wireless transfer mode is explained which, in addition to the guidance offered by the software makes connecting the camera to a wireless network relatively painless for a user that has already had the experience of setting up such a network at home.

Software

(Note that the software included with any camera can vary from country to country.)

The software disc contains both Wireless Camera Setup Utility version 1.0, and Picture Project version 1.6. In addition, the disc also contains:

• PTP drivers for Coolpix cameras,
• Drivers for D1 series cameras (not installed by default),
• Arcsoft's Panorama Maker 3,
• QuickTime 6,
• Microsoft DirectX 9.

Picture Project can be used to display the properties of any image, including the basic shooting data. In addition, when the Edit button on the upper right of the program's window is selected, the image can be adjusted for brightness, colour, D-lighting, sharpening (an effect which involves changing the image to black and white or sepia), or it can be straightened.

Finally, some tools are provided to crop the image, or remove red-eye if it is a problem.

Picture Project can also be used to create slide shows, prepare photos to be used as e-mail attachments, view movies recorded with the camera, or record CDs or DVDs.

Panorama Maker 3 is a separate program from ArcSoft which takes advantage of the overlap achieved with the Coolpix P2's panoramic mode to assemble series of photos into panoramic images.

QuickTime 6 from Apple serves to view the movies captured with the camera.