A very good, easy-to-use camera.

Author's Rating:

Pros: Superb image quality, lots of manual power, simple to use.

Cons: Battery usage, lens cap issues, no sound with video.

The Bottom Line: 
Overall, this is a quality camera, and I'm glad I got it. It offers plenty of manual options, but it also makes a great point-and-shoot because it's simple to use.

Author's Review
I guess I should get all the dirt out of the way first. Like every product out there, this one has some flaws. First of all, it has no built-in lens protection. You are forced to use the lens cap, which is somewhat of a pain. If you forget to remove it, the camera displays a warning, and you have to turn it off and back on again before you can take any photos.

Something that is important to note is the limited battery options you'll have with this model: it will only take the Nikon EN-EL1 or a hard-to-find 2CR5 disposable. This isn't a design flaw -- the camera simply uses too much power to use standard batteries -- but it's something that should be considered, especially if you plan to take any long trips (you'll need to find some way to keep your battery charged, or buy an extra). It varies considerably depending on conditions, but I can generally take about 100 photos on a charge, which is more or less average for a 4MP camera.

Besides those downfalls, this is a very good camera, especially when its price is considered. Its image quality is very good. The images are clear in nearly every focal range, and the macro mode lets you get within an inch or two of a subject with no loss in quality. Color reproduction is excellent, even in relatively difficult situations. It handles exceptionally high contrasts with almost no image distortion, and there is basically no purple fringing. Although there is some fisheye distortion, it's relatively minimal, and I haven't needed to correct very many of my photos. There is a noticeable grain in low-light shots, but it goes away if the photo is sized down, and it can easily be removed with the camera's built-in noise-reduction feature or any decent image editor. The optical and digital zoom modes are 3x and 4x respectively, and are average in quality.

In auto mode, the camera is very easy to use. The only thing that bothers me here is that the focus mode and the self-timer are set with the same control. This forces you to press the button a number of times to enable the macro mode or to turn the self-timer off. The flash is nice and bright, and photos come out very clear with what basically amounts to the press of a button. There is a very useful focus lock feature, which allows you to take good shots even when the subject isn't in the center. Unfortunately, the camera seems to have trouble focusing in low-light situations, but this is a common problem. It can easily be fixed in manual mode.

In scene mode, you are given a number of different options. Since I usually use manual mode, I haven't had the opportunity to use all of these yet -- but the ones I have used have been very good. It offers more modes than most cameras, which gives you more flexibility when you want to capture difficult shots in a point-and-shoot mode.

In manual mode, you are given control over white balance, ISO equivalency, aperture size, shutter speed (up to 60 seconds with an optional remote shutter release), and focus. With these controls, you can compose just about any type of shot you would ever want. It's no SLR, and it certainly lacks some of the settings that a professional-level camera might have, but it offers more than enough control for any average user who wants to get a little creative. These settings are relatively easy to change once you become familiar with the menu structure. There is nothing too complex about it -- it just takes some getting used to.

One slight annoyance I've encountered in this mode is that the LCD will become grainy when manual focus is enabled, making it difficult to focus properly. I'm not sure why this happens. It took some time to get used to, but I've found that with plenty of practice and a little patience I can compose my photos without too much trouble. Still, it would be nice to have the screen display clearly like it does in auto mode, where it's much easier to see whether or not a subject is in focus.

The video feature is not something I look for in a camera, so the lack of sound in the Coolpix 4300 was not an issue for me. I have yet to even use the video mode, and I likely never will. Because of this, I don't feel that it's fair for me to comment about it.

Image reviews are made very easy by the Quick View feature, which lets you review your photos without leaving the shooting mode. It will display your photos in a thumbnail-sized box in the upper left of the screen. Although I don't use this feature that often since I usually have plenty of space on my card, I am very impressed with its simplicity.

The camera is built very well, and although it's too large to fit in a pocket (mine, anyway), it's relatively light and easy to hold on to. The case is made of plastic, but it's a very sturdy plastic, and it feels like it could take quite a bit of abuse (although I don't plan on finding out!). The viewfinder is so small that it's almost useless, but the LCD screen is bright and easy to see in most situations. It may not be large compared to some other cameras out there, but it uses less power because of that, so there is an advantage to it if you don't mind its size. Personally, I don't mind it at all.

Overall, this is a high-quality camera, and I'm very glad that I got it. It offers plenty of manual options when you want to get creative, but it also makes a great point-and-shoot because it's simple to use.

Most importantly, its image quality is very good!