Nikon V1, ISO 800, Nikkor 10mm f2.8, 1/30 sec.
As someone who owns a perfectly good Nikon DSLR and a selection of great lenses, you might wonder why I bought a new camera. And if you’re into photography, you’re probably wondering why the V1.
The answer to the first question is simple: carrying around a 17 pound camera bag is not fun. It means that often it sits at home. My favorite lens for that camera weighs 3.5 pounds by itself. As wonderful as the images are that it captures, it’s not something that’s fun to carry around or hold up to your face for very long.
So I’ve been looking for a small, light camera system. All cameras and lenses are compromises. You can get some of the features you want but at the expense of others. Smaller cameras generally are full of too many compromises.
My non-negotiables were the following:
1. Fast power-up, fast and accurate autofocus,and no shutter lag.
2. Great image quality.
3. Excellent low-light performance.
4. Moderate to telephoto lens capability.
5. Viewfinder, so I don’t have to rely on the back-of-camera display to frame the shot, especially in bright sun.
Until recently, nothing but dslr cameras could meet all of these requirements, although several could meet the last three or four. But with active grandkids as my favorite subject, having to wait 1 or 2 or 3 seconds for a camera to respond means that the shot was missed and they’d moved on.
Thankfully, this summer three manufacturers announced smaller cameras that met all five requirements: the Olympus EP-3, the FujiFilm X10, and the Nikon V1. I read the reviews, paying particular attention to those who actually shot the cameras under real conditions for a while, like Steve Huff. All three are great cameras, but after playing with them at the camera store, I came home with the Nikon V1, with the understanding I could return it for full price within 5 days.
I knew within 24 hours that it wasn’t going back. Autofocus/exposure is extremely fast and dead on. Every time. The image quality is great. Low light (high ISO) image quality is amazingly good for the smaller sensor, in my opinion better than for my D90. And the electronic viewfinder, which shows all the shooting information, is wonderful.. With the 10mm f2.8, the 10-30mm, and the 30-110mm lenses, the whole range is well covered, although hopefully Nikon will bring out a couple of fast prime lenses soon.
Will it replace my dslr? Not completely, at least for now, though it will for 95% of my day-to-day photography. There is no built-in provision for off-camera flash, which I prefer for portrait photography. I’ll probably also generally use the dslr for wildlife photography, although Nikon has announced plans to sell an adaptor to allow use of Nikon dslr lenses with the V1, which could make an excellent wildlife rig.
Despite Nikon marketing the camera primarily to point and shoot photographers, I think it’s a great camera for photography enthusiasts like me. It’s small, it’s fun, and lets you focus on making the shot without fighting the camera, yet allows the control needed to make good images.
Below are a few more photos made with the V1.
Nikon V1, ISO 900, Nikkor 10-30 mm at 14mm, f4, 1/60 sec.
ISO 3200, Nikkor 10mm f2.8
by Jim Hughes
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