• Take great snapshots with a lightweight, economical Nikon digital camera.goat image by M??nire U?¡ìak from Fotolia.com
  
  Digital and film cameras from hundreds of manufacturers flood today's marketplace. Nikon makes digital, digital SLR and film cameras with a variety of features. Nikon's Coolpix digital cameras for mass consumers range from entry-level models to high-end cameras with sophisticated features. Film cameras continue in popularity with professional photographers requiring interchangeable lenses and those doing large-format photos. Photo hobbyists who enjoy developing their own film continue to use film cameras.
  
  

Coolpix Digital

• Travelers and hobbyists look for pocket-size, value-priced cameras that produce good photos. Entry-level Coolpix cameras are easily operable for first-time camera owners. They are small, lightweight and use AA batteries. The L22 features a 3-inch LCD monitor, comes in four colors and produces 12 million pixel-count photos using a 3.6x optical zoom lens. The S4000 is a mid-range model with a 3-inch touchscreen LCD monitor giving fingertip control for most picture-taking and replay functions. Adjust the white balance with a slider control on Food Mode or add your own hand-drawn features to photos. The 2.7mm lens can zoom 4x, equivalent to a 35mm format. The S4000 has four image-stabilizing options, which function automatically. Near the top of the line is the P7000, which has a viewfinder, an option that is hard to find on compact digital cameras. This model has manual controls unavailable on most digitals, including aperture and shutter-priority modes. The 7.1x zoom lens encompasses a 28-to-200mm focal range and a built-in neutral density filter that expands the exposure selection range. The charged couple device (CCD) works Nikon's latest imaging development Exceed C2 image-processing engine for fine detail and high image quality. It can shoot full-size images (3648 x 2736).
  
  

Digital SLR

• Digital single-reflex lens (SLR) cameras are physically larger than the Coolpix line. They are capable of professional-quality picture-taking and prints. A larger investment, SLR cameras are for working photographers and serious hobbyists. Model D3100 has a 14.2 megapixel complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor, full 1080a HD cinematic video with autofocus, and an 11-point autofocus system. The 3-inch monitor features fingertip live view. The lens is a 3x18-to- 55mm. Split-second shutter response avoids the frustrating shutter delay found with some cameras. Model D7000 has a depth-of-field preview button, six frames per second in burst mode, built-in intervalometer for time lapse sequences, a compact battery, 3-inch very high density LCD monitor, and a durable, weather-sealed body. Both these models use the Expeed 2 image-processing engine.
  
  

Film Cameras

• The Japanese company has been producing film cameras and lenses since 1917. For photographers who want to work in film, Nikon currently produces two models. The FM10 is a manual-control camera that accepts a number Nikon-developed Nikkor lenses. The F6 can be used manually, but has helpful automated features, such as four film-advance speeds, autofocus, 3D color matrix metering and balanced fill flash. Shooting modes include program, flexible program, manual, aperture priority and shutter priority. Many Nikkor lenses can be used with the F6 body.