Nikon CoolPix 950, VAA106E5 - Coolpix 950 Digital Camera Pocket Manual
Pocket Guide
DIGITAL CAMERA
COOLPIX 950
2
Contents
Overview ......................................................................5
Taking Photographs .................................................... 5
Composition and Focus ................................................................ 6
Lighting............................................................................................9
Metering .................................................................................... 9
White Balance ........................................................................ 11
Image Adjustment .................................................................. 13
Multi-shot Photography (CONTINUOUS).................................... 15
Best-Shot Selection (BSS) ............................................................. 17
Other Shooting Options .............................................................. 18
Playback .................................................................... 19
Photo Information ........................................................................ 19
The Playback Menu ..................................................................... 19
Other Camera Functions .......................................... 21
Camera Setup ............................................................................. 21
Saving and Clearing Settings ..................................................... 24
Using Folders ................................................................................. 25
Nikon View .................................................................
27
Nikon View
Software Manuals .................................................... 27
Connecting Your Camera to a Computer ............................... 28
3
Contents of the
COOLPIX 950 Refer-
ence Manual
(on CD)
Overview ......................................................................3
First Steps ...................................................................... 4
Putting Batteries in Your Camera ................................................. 4
Inserting and Removing Memory Cards .....................................5
Choosing a Language for the Menus ......................................... 5
Setting the Time and Date............................................................ 6
Taking Your First Photograph ......................................................... 7
Using the Buttons (A-REC, M-REC) ........................... 11
Flash Settings ................................................................................ 11
Focus Settings ............................................................................... 13
Using the Self-Timer ...................................................................... 15
Image Quality and Size ............................................................... 16
Sensitivity ....................................................................................... 17
Exposure Mode ............................................................................ 18
Using the Buttons (PLAY) ........................................... 20
The Camera Menus................................................... 22
The A-REC Menu .......................................................................... 22
Using Folders (A-REC, M-REC) ................................................ 23
LCD Brightness ......................................................................... 25
Sound Settings ......................................................................... 26
Auto Off ................................................................................... 26
Formatting Memory Cards .................................................... 27
4
The M-REC Menu ......................................................................... 28
Digital Zoom (DIG TELE) .......................................................... 30
Black-and-White Photography ............................................. 31
Lens Converter Settings (LENS) .............................................. 32
Making a Panorama—Tips (AE-LOCK) ................................. 33
User Settings ............................................................................ 34
Restoring Default Settings ...................................................... 35
LCD On/Off .............................................................................. 36
The Controls Menu (M-REC) .................................................. 37
SEQ.XFER ..................................................................................38
The Playback Menu ..................................................................... 39
Deleting Multiple Photographs ............................................. 40
Using Folders (Playback) ........................................................ 42
Slideshow .................................................................................42
Protecting Photographs from Deletion ................................ 43
Hiding Photographs During Playback ..................................44
Preparing Photographs for Printing ...................................... 44
The Controls Menu (PLAY) ...................................................... 45
Connections .............................................................. 46
Connecting to a Television or VCR ............................................ 46
Viewing Photos on a Computer................................................. 47
Caring for Your Camera............................................ 48
Cleaning .......................................................................................48
Storage ......................................................................................... 48
Accessories ............................................................... 49
What’s in the Box ......................................................................... 49
Optional Accessories .................................................................. 49
Troubleshooting .........................................................50
General Problems ........................................................................ 50
Error Messages.............................................................................. 53
Specifications ............................................................55
5
Overview
Thank you for buying a COOLPIX 950. This
Pocket Guide
offers advice
concerning the most commonly used features of your camera. It has
been designed for portability and ease of reference. The other documentation for this product includes:
•
Fast Track Guide
(printed)
basic camera operations
•
For Your Safety
(printed)
safety precautions, cautions, and notices
•
Reference Manual
(CD-ROM)
full description of camera functions
• Software manuals (CD-ROM)
detailed instructions on using your camera with Nikon software
Taking Photographs
This chapter provides information on composing photographs, using
autofocus, dealing with different lighting conditions, and on the shooting options available in M-REC mode.
COMPOSE
• Optical
zoom
• Digital
zoom
FOCUS
•
Continuous
autofocus
• Single
autofocus
• Autofocus
lock
LIGHTING
• Metering
• White
balance
• Image
adjustment
SHOOTING
• Multi-shot
mode
• Best-shot
selection
Overview
6
PRACTICE
*
Digital zoom
CONCEPT
In digital zoom, image data from the CCD are processed digitally, enlarging the
center portion of the image to fill the frame. Unlike optical zoom, digital zoom does not
increase the amount of detail visible in the photograph. Instead, details visible at
maximum zoom are enlarged, producing a slightly “grainy” image.
In addition to the automatic digital zoom described in this section, M-REC mode offers
fixed settings for digital zoom of 1.25, 1.6, 2.0, or 2.5 times. This allows you to set a
value for digital zoom and then use optical zoom to compose photos. To use, turn the
mode dial to M-REC and select DIGITAL TELE from the shooting menu, then choose
the desired magnification. This setting will take effect whenever the mode dial is set
to M-REC. To restore automatic digital zoom, choose AUTO from the DIGITAL TELE
menu (more information on menu operations may be found below).
1/301/30
P
Taking Photographs: Composition and Focus
Composition and Focus
The COOLPIX 950 is equipped with motor-driven, ×3 optical zoom
linked to the viewfinder. This feature can be used to frame photographs either in the viewfinder or the LCD monitor. Photographs can
be enlarged electronically a further 1.25, 1.6, 2.0, or 2.5 times using
digital zoom
*
.
Focus can be adjusted according to your composition. Autofocus can
be used to adjust focus automatically to match the distance to your
subject. A variety of manual focus settings are available for situations
in which autofocus may not produce the desired results, as for
example when your subject is poorly lit (see the
Fast Track Guide
).
This section describes how to compose photographs using zoom and
how to get the best results with autofocus.
Framing Photographs
Photos can be framed in the viewfinder or LCD
monitor using the zoom buttons. Press the
zoom-in button (T) to magnify the subject so
that only a portion of it fills the frame, or use the
zoom-out button (W) to expand the field-ofview so that more of the subject is visible.
While the zoom switch is pressed, an indicator
showing the amount of zoom is displayed in the
LCD monitor.
7
Tip
When framing photographs, keep your fingers and other objects away from the lens
and flash window.
Taking Photographs: Composition and Focus
Automatic Digital Zoom
At the maximum optical zoom position, hold
the T button down for two seconds to trigger
digital zoom. While digital zoom is in effect, the
zoom indicator and the green AF lamp will
blink, and the amount of magnification produced by digital zoom will be displayed to the
right of the zoom indicator. Four settings from
×1.25 to ×2.5 can be selected using the T and W buttons to increase or
decrease the magnification. To restore optical zoom, press the W
button until the digital zoom indicator disappears.
Note that digital zoom is only available when the LCD monitor is on or
the camera is connected to a television set. The effects of digital zoom
are not visible in the viewfinder.
Framing Photographs in the Monitor
When framing photographs in the LCD monitor, you can take advantage of the rotating lens
section to hold the camera at almost any angle.
You can even rotate the lens to point at yourself and frame self-portraits in the monitor (in
this case, all indicators are hidden and the
monitor shows a mirror image of what will
appear in the final photograph).
Autofocus
The focus brackets ( ) visible in the
viewfinder show the focus point for autofocus
operations. When selecting the focus point, or
when the monitor has been turned off to save
power, you can use the viewfinder to frame
photos as shown at right.
1/30
P
X2.0X2.0
8
Tips
Getting good results with autofocus
Autofocus performs best when:
• There is contrast between the subject and the background. For example,
autofocus may not perform well on subjects that are the same color as the
background.
• The objects in the focus brackets are all at the same distance from the camera.
• The subject is motionless.
• The subject is evenly lit.
• The subject is well lit (the subject should not, however, be too much brighter than
the background).
Autofocus mode
The autofocus system operates in one of two modes: continuous or single. In
continuous AF mode, the camera adjusts focus continuously so that the camera is
ready to take a photo at any time. Note however that this allows you to take pictures
even when the camera is not focused; check the AF lamp before shooting. In single
AF mode, the camera focuses only when the shutter-release button is pressed half
way. This saves battery power, but there will be a slight delay before the camera is
ready to take a picture. In A-REC mode, the autofocus mode is determined by whether
the LCD monitor is on or off: continuous AF is used when the monitor is on, single AF
when it is off. These settings can be changed in M-REC mode; see page 21 of this
manual for more information.
Taking Photographs: Composition and Focus
After framing your photograph, you can check autofocus by gently
pressing the shutter-release button half way. If the camera is able to
focus on the subject framed in the viewfinder focus brackets, the AF
lamp will glow green. Focus will remain constant as long as the shutterrelease button is held halfway down; this “focus lock” can be used to
focus on a subject that is off-center in the final composition (see the
Fast Track Guide
). Zoom can not be adjusted while focus lock is in
effect.
If the camera is unable to focus, the AF lamp will blink rapidly. In this
case, use focus lock to focus on an object at the same distance from
the camera as your subject, then recompose your photograph. Alternatively, you can use a focus setting of Infinity or one of the manual
focus settings available in M-REC mode (see the
Fast Track Guide
).
Note that if the monitor is off, you will not be able to take photographs
while the AF lamp is blinking.
9
Center-
weighted
Camera measures light
in the entire frame, but
assigns greatest weight
to center portion.
Use this setting to preserve background details while letting lighting conditions at the
center of the frame define exposure.
CONCEPT
Taking Photographs: Lighting
Spot Camera measures light
only in a small area at
the center of the frame,
shown by a square in
the LCD monitor.
Ensures that the subject will be correctly
exposed even if the
background is very
bright or very dark.
Matrix Camera measures the
brightness and contrast
of the scene in 256 areas of the frame and
adjusts exposure to a
level that captures both
bright and shaded portions of the image.
Method How it works When to use it
This setting is best for
general use. Exposure
is calculated by comparing measurements
from 256 areas of the
scene with a reference
library of typical compositions, producing
the best possible setting for the photo.
Lighting
The COOLPIX 950 offers a number of functions for dealing with
different lighting conditions. In addition to the flash, sensitivity, and
exposure compensation settings discussed in the
Fast Track Guide
,
you can use metering, white balance, and image adjustment to cope
with different lighting conditions or produce a variety of lighting effects.
Metering
The camera measures the amount of light available and adjusts
exposure accordingly using one of the three metering methods listed
below. Exposure is fixed when the shutter-release button is halfpressed (exposure lock).
Loading...