Nikon COOLPIX L830 16 MP CMOS Digital Camera with 34x Zoom NIKKOR Lens and Full 1080p HD Video

After my first digital camera that I bought in 2006 started to have problems, I knew I needed to get a new one. I didn't want to spend a lot of money so after reading the reviews I took a chance and bought the Nikon Coolpix L830 about 2 weeks before I went on a trip to Europe. When it arrived all I had to do was pop the batteries in and point and shoot. It was fabulous and so VERY easy to use! I took over 3000 pictures on my trip (many from a moving tour bus and even a high speed train) and had only about half a dozen that were blurry and had to be deleted.This camera can use either rechargeable or regular AA batteries which make the camera a bit heavier than others, but I like the option of being able to easily pick up extra batteries whenever I'm traveling. The camera does not have a viewfinder which doesn't bother me at all because I like the large LCD screen to see what I'm shooting. But it's the zoom on this camera that is PHENOMENAL! I'm posting pictures I took of the sea lions on the rocks here in the Northwest.....the first picture was without the zoom so you have an idea of how far away they were. The second picture is with the zoom and I did not have to use a tripod to get such a clear picture, I merely leaned against a small railing and snapped away. The resulting photos were crisp and clear with no blur, so clear that you can even see the whiskers on the sea lion!! The video I took was just as vivid, both in picture and sound, as the still photos. The other picture was taken in France through the window of a moving tour bus. Even with the slight tint of the bus windows, the colors are nice and bold and there is no blur. And after seeing the great photos I had, my friend bought the exact same camera and now she is just as happy with her purchase.I have never owned a Nikon before, but I am completely sold on this camera and feel that I definitely got the best value for the money spent!

When I was getting ready to head out on a recent trip to the stunning Central America country of Belize, I knew that I would need something more to take pictures than merely the iPhone I carry in my pocket. I had some big plans to fulfill a life-long dream of traipsing through the Belizean jungle and taking pictures of the animals I found there. Since I'd had a (much) older style of Nikon COOLPIX previously, I made sure to include this version in my research pool.After a significant amount of research, I came back to the L830. It seemed like a good deal. It supposedly had the features I needed, but I was hesitant to pull the trigger on the purchase. It just looked like the price was too low. I didn't want to get snowballed by the low price into buying something I would regret as soon as I was out into the jungle. I was especially worried that the listed 34x zoom would crap out and leave me with nothing but larger, fuzzy shapes instead of the crisp, clear, high-definition pictures and videos I wanted to bring back.I needn't have worried. This camera is AMAZING. Seriously, I took pictures and video that would have been bragged about had they been taken by a professional wildlife photographer. The high-definition pictures showed every hair on the howler monkeys' bodies and every tooth protruding from the mouths of the crocodiles hiding away in the reeds at the edges of the Monkey River in south Belize. The 16MP sensor in the camera performed stunningly well in both the bright light of the pristine Belizean beach and in the dim mist surrounding the Mayan ruins at sunrise and the darkened interior of the caves we explored.Not only was the output magnificent, the controls were so very easy and intuitive, I barely had to read the instruction manual. Still, I did read that manual and found it to be clean, concise and packed with good tips on how to use the L830 up to its potential. There really was no downside to my purchase of this camera. I plan on using this for a long, long time.Definitely worth my money and yours.

This camera did everything I expected, based on the description. Many of the reviews I read before buying indicated that the viewing screen looked washed out in daylight and I found that to be true. As such, it is difficult to know if you're subject is in focus or whether the composition is ideal. Having said that, the tilting feature to the screen is very useful and unlike other cameras with a similar articulating screen, this one seems robust, unlikely to fail from overuse.The video it produces is clear and crisp, stills have good color and capture fine detail. Most of all however, the 720MM telescopic lens is fabulous, bringing distant wildlife, architectural features or geology much closer than I imagined possible with a small camera. While traveling, I witnessed many tourists with large SLR type cameras, sporting massive lenses that probably couldn't match the magnification power of mine. I must admit, I felt a little smug.Overall, I am very happy with the camera and as I said earlier, it does everything I expected and even more. But I do miss the viewfinder on my now broken SLR camera. Having to use a screen makes me feel less involved in the composition process. Additionally, my old SLR had a great host of "Manual" modes that allowed more creative photography that are missing on this unit. I hope one day, someone figures out how to combine all the features of this camera, with those of an SLR.In closing: I feel that this camera is a very good value, it's quick, light, has impressive lens qualities, uses standard AA batteries, which I view as a plus and seems rugged enough. I used it to great effect on a recent trip to Zion National Park, where I took beautiful photos and videos. If someone asked for suggestions on a great digital camera priced under $200, I would enthusiastically recommend this one.