What About The New Nikon D3200?

Nikon has been pleased to present the D3200 which doesn’t replace the popular D3100, but is rather a compliment to it and likely to appeal to both beginner and established photographers as it is more sophisticated that the D3100 while remaining easy to use.

The D3200 isn’t a big camera, but it is full of exciting new technology, even taking features from some more expensive cameras, such as Expeed 3, a processing engine that shortens processing times, offers a variety of frame-rates for full HD video recording and reduces noise.

Among the other improvements is the superior LCD screen and newly added buttons, but its main feature is the 24.2 million pixel sensor that is probably going to be its main attraction. This high resolution offers an optimal cropping capacity, which means that during post-production you can crop into images and have high-quality photos without losing too much pixel count.

An additional option that will attract future buyers is the WU-1A Wi-Fi adapter (not included in the package) to connect the camera to tablets and smart-phones so that you can upload your photos to sites such as Facebook and Flickr. After you have taken a photo, one of the re-touch options allows you to add art filters, or crop and straighten the image.

There are a small number of direct buttons on the camera, the most used modes are accessed by the “I” quick-menu icon, which means that you have less chance of selecting the wrong button at any given time, and also improves the camera’s overall presentation. Even though it is a relatively small camera, it has a sizable grip for good purchase and when you combine it with an 18-55mm kit lens, it has a comforting weight and can resist small scrapes and knocks.

Beginners who are used to LCD shooting will be happy to discover the Live View button. Another interesting addition is the movie record icon, which means that you won’t have to mess around with menus or dials to get into the film record mode.

The D3200’s LCD screen has been upgraded to 921 000 dots (the D3100 has 230 000 dots). The bright, clear screen gives a good view-angle from diverse shooting positions. To keep the camera body small, an articulating screen hasn’t been included. A good aspect is the changing display orientation for landscape or portrait mode, which makes life easier if you are used to using your smart phone.

The D3200 is a single lens reflex camera so it has an optical viewfinder, which is clear and easy to use even if its field of view is smaller than other, bigger models. There are 11 auto-focus points to choose from and you can leave the camera to pick one for you automatically or select one yourself. You will need to search a little to find this option in the menu, so leaving the camera to choose one of the points might be better if you don’t have time to waste.

Auto-focus is very rapid, even in bad lighting conditions, but is slower in the Live View mode, so if you are used to compact cameras which have a quicker speed, it will take you a little time to adjust to the D3200.

The camera measures the scene and produces good results when you use the “Auto white-balance” setting. Even when shooting at high sensitivities, the noise remains relatively low. Editing and retouch options include straightening the horizon and in-camera cropping.

The Guide menu has been greatly improved and you can learn useful tips about photography at the same time as taking high-quality photos. One of the features is the “Red in Sunsets” function that explains how to alter white balance, so that you will be able to eventually use your camera without having to refer to the guide each time. The guide is written in an easy to understand way and is educational as it references photographic terms.

Nikon have made a smart move towards being the leaders in the market by offering an excellent camera without replacing the popular D3100. This way they ensure that regular users will stay with them, while at the same time attracting would-be photographers by offering them a high-quality, easy to use camera at an affordable price.