This Little Gem Will Surprise You!
I really like the V1. One big reason is that I want a viewfinder, and that in the V1 is great! Some complain about the sensor being small, but it is as big as the one in the Fuji X10, etc. and image quality is outstanding. I read that Nikon worked with an outfit called Aptina, or something like that, who specialize in high quality smaller sensors. I have been impressed! I feel retail price is too high, but it is no higher than Panasonic's G series cameras.
The camera has less dials and external controls, which some may not like. One has to make some changes via the menu, which is ok with me. It is a quite solid camera, made of good materials. One thing that is most impressive is that it has a huge buffer and also phase detection AF like DSLR's. This makes it the fastest compact I have ever seen in Continuous Mode. It is as fast as a DSLR when used that way. But after shooting there can be a small lag before you can shoot again. In Continuous I can fire off multiple shots in the blink of an eye. On the other hand, the camera is not made to compete with a DSLR. For the DSLR user who likes manual controls and manual focus it may not satisfy. It does have such controls but is not as convenient.
Unlike some of the Coolpix models, like the P510, it will shoot RAW files, which I use. It also has the Flexible Program feature, that allows one to use Program mode but still be able to change aperture or shutter speed like one can in AP and SP, which it also has. Amazingly, the Auto mode is very accurate. I have had fun with it too.
One thing I noticed, that is a bit disconcerting, is one doesn't see any change in the viewfinder when exposure compensation is used. The viewfinder is an EVF, so I expected to see a change in brightness when I dialed in EC. Of course, EC doesn't work when using Auto (it isn't needed), but works in the other modes.
All in all, I am very impressed, especially after the negative press given by some reviewers. Because it didn't fit their preconceived notions they panned it, mainly for not using a DX or Four Thirds sensor. But a bigger sensor would defeat the whole design and purpose of the CX format. Because of the sensor size, lenses can be small and compact to match the camera and give one a much smaller total outfit for photography. Four Thirds and DX lenses are big, really no smaller than the rest of our DSLR lenses. Thus, when you use a body like the Sony NEX cameras you are forced to use huge (by comparison) lenses with them, making them unwieldy and ugly for me. By contrast, the Nikon Series 1 cameras and lens combinations are truly compact, yet high quality.
So far, I have the V1 body and 10-30 kit zoom, which is like a 35mm lens of 27-81mm, a nice general purpose lens. I have since got the 30-110mm zoom, which is not much bigger. The conversion factor is 2.7x. There is also a really neat adapter, the FT-1, that allows one to use any of their F-mount DSLR lenses with the V1 or J1. And the beauty of it is that the autofocus will work with any AF-S lenses, which I have some of. So I will get the adapter too. That will probably be all that I need.
A number of the images I have posted lately were done with the V1. You can check them out at www.pbase.cm/fotabug. You can also go to Pbase and do a search for the Nikon V1. User photos will then appear from Pbase members. I think you will be impressed.Read full review
