Nikon Coolpix P1100 Review : Best Bridge Camera for Bird and Wildlife Photography

This is a review of the Nikon Coolpix P1100 from the perspective of Wildlife Photography. This review will help you to know about the Specifications and qualities of a camera for Wildlife photography. The review also includes sample images, settings for wildlife photography, Videos recorded with P1100, and final recommendations.

Wildlife and bird photography is an exciting genre of photography. What makes Wildlife photography exciting is that there is always an element of surprise. You may see something unexpected in the forest, such as a Tiger hunting a deer, a Leopard lurking through the tree tops, or Elephants crossing the river.

For bird photography, you don’t have to travel far. You will find beautiful birds around you. Take a look around trees, water bodies, lakes, and grasslands around you. You will find birds.

Imagine you are taking a walk around a lake, and you will see – a Kingfisher is picking up a fish, Birds carrying grass to build a nest, Sunbirds hovering over the flowers for nectar, and an Eagle staring.

These are the beautiful moments we as wildlife photographers want to freeze with the camera.

For capturing such wild moments, you will need a camera that has a longer zoom, a handholdable and lightweight body, and it should be easy to use.

Nikon recently launched a Long zoom Bridge camera for Wildlife Photography – Nikon Coolpix P1100. In good light conditions, the Nikon Coolpix P1100 has excellent image and video quality. The flexible Wide to Tele zoom range, handholdable camera body, Good Image and video capabilities, and budget price of Nikon Coolpix P1100 make it a best value for money and a practical camera for wildlife and bird Photography.

Nikon Coolpix P1100 comes with a sensor size of 1/ 2.3 in with 16.7 MP ( Megapixels)

P1100 camera weighs around 1410 grams ( lb). Nikon Coolpix P1100 has a Built-In 125x optical zoom lens. The focal length of the lens is 4.3-539 mm, which is equivalent to 24-3000 mm in 35mm format. Lens aperture is from f/2.8 (at Wide) to f/8 ( At Tele end).

The camera comes with a vibration reduction feature, which helps to get sharp images. The ISO range is from 100 to 6400.

Handholdable camera body, wide zoom range of 24-3000 mm ( 35 mm format), adjustable screen, Accurate focus, Beautiful image, and 4K video capabilities in good light conditions make the Nikon Coolpix P1100 a perfect bridge camera for Wildlife and Bird photography and videography.

Nikon Coolpix P1100 Specifications

• Sensor – 1/ 2.3 in with a 16.7 MP resolution.
• ISO Range – ISO 100 to ISO 6400
• AF Modes – Single-shot AF, Automatic AF, Continuous AF, Manual Focus
• AF Area Modes – Target finding AF, Face Priority, Subject Tracking, Normal, Spot, and Wide
• Power and Charger – Rechargeable Li-Ion Battery EN-EL20a and AC Adapter EH-5d
• Storage cards – SD, SDHC, SDXC. I use an SD Card for the Nikon Coolpix P1100
• Dimensions and weight – Approximate weight of the body, including the Battery and card, is 1410 g (3 lb), and the dimensions are ( Length X Height X Width ) 146.3 x 118.8 x 181.3 mm
• Shutter speed range – Depending on the Camera exposure modes and settings, the shutter speed range is as follows: 30″–1/4000 ( Shutter speed can go from 30 s up to 1/4000 s ). Also, 1″–1/4000 ( 1s to 1/4000 s ) ( Mechanical and Electronic Shutter )
• Metering modes – Spot, Center-Weighted, and Matrix
• Exposure mode – Manual ( M ), Aperture Priority ( A ), Shutter Priority ( S ), Programmed Auto ( P ), and some Auto exposure modes
• White Balance – Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Incandescent, Flash, Fluorescent, Custom ( Set color temperature )
• Flash – Built-in Flash is available. A Compatible external Flash can be used
• Image format – JPEG, RAW/NEW (Nikon’s RAW format), Color Space: sRGB and Adobe RGB
• Lens – Built-in Nikkor lens with a Focal length of 4.3 – 539 mm ( 24-3000 mm on 35mm equivalent ) with an aperture of f/2.8(W) and f/8 (T).
• Price – Approximately $1099. Check the latest price on Amazon here

Controls and Ergonomics

Controls

• Exposure selection mode on the top of the camera helps to select the exposure modes: Manual (M), Aperture Priority(A), Shutter Priority(S), and Programmed Auto (P) quickly. There are also other modes such as Auto Mode.
• You can also select Auto mode, Scene, Movie, Moon, Bird, and a few other custom options.
• Focus mode selection button on the back of the camera helps you to choose between Autofocus ( AF) and Manual focus (MF). Set the camera to Autofocus (AF) mode. And then in the camera menu system, select the required AF area modes.
• Next to focus mode selection, there is a Button for exposure and focus lock (AE-L / AF-L)
• For changing white balance and ISO, you need to get into camera menu.
• You can Zoom in – out the lens using a Zoom ring on a lens or using a dial on the Top of the camera.
• Use the Manual focus ring on the lens to focus manually.
• Overall the Camera Menu system is easy to understand and use. If you explore the Camera menu system for 2 to 3 days, you will get used to it.

Build Quality

• The size and weight of the Nikon Coolpix P1100 are decent for all-day shooting. The Nikon Coolpix P1100 is easy to handhold for 2 to 3 hours, while you are traveling in a Safari vehicle or on a short hike.
• Nikon Coolpix P1100 can take up minor beatings in the Wild. While the camera is zoomed in to 3000mm – at that time it feels slightly delicate because of protruding lens elements. The build quality is decent.
• Protection against dust and water splash is ok but not great.
• I have used the camera on rainy days and in dusty weather. Its performance is consistent and satisfactory.
• After a photoshoot in the rain or dusty environment, I clean the camera. I recommend you do so.
• ( When I am not photographing and only carrying a camera) During Safari or birding sessions – I will cover the camera with a cotton cloth / plastic bag to protect it against Dust and rain. This technique will help to keep your camera clean.

Ergonomics ( and Handling )

• Ergonomically Nikon Coolpix P1100 is perfect for hand holding. Major dials and buttons for Wildlife and Bird photography are conveniently placed on the camera. Like any other new camera in hand, there is a learning curve to understand the command dials and buttons.
• You can hand-hold the camera during Safari or birding sessions for 2 to 3 hours. Nikon Coolpix P1100 gives more opportunities and freedom to photograph and capture videos of Birds and Wildlife.

Nikon Coolpix P1100 Camera Performance  from the Perspective of Bird Photography

Autofocus performance

Here is how Nikon Coolpix P1100 autofocus performs for Wildlife and Bird photography.

Nikon Coolpix P1100 is capable of focusing accurately on stationary and slow-moving objects. ( Make sure to select the appropriate focus mode and focus area mode).

For fast-moving and distant objects, the camera struggles to acquire focus. This is mainly because the object will be moving in and out of the frame ( at 3000 mm )

The Nikon Coolpix P1100 acquires focus accurately in good light. Also, if there are a few distractions between the camera and the object (Such as trees and grass), Coolpix P1100 can manage the focus accurately.

There are multiple focusing modes available however, I find focusing modes: Single or Continuous with a wide focus area useful.

Nikon Coolpix P1100 focuses accurately on the following conditions

• Daylight
• Stationary or Slow-moving objects
• Rainy and Dusty weather with Good light
• In the forest clutter with fewer distractions
• Low light and objects at a closer distance

I recommend using Manual Focus Override in the following situations

• If the forest clutter and the forest canopy is dense
• Distant Object and a Low-light condition
• Smaller birds or objects at a relatively long distance

For the lens zoom range less than 1000 mm or 2000mm, you will get better autofocus performance as compared to the lens at 3000 mm focal length.

While you record the videos, the autofocus is consistent and responsive. The Autofocus of the Nikon Coolpix P1100 helps to record sharp videos of Wildlife and Birds.

High ISO and Low Light Performance

Nikon Coolpix P1100 comes with 1 /2.3 in type image sensor. With small sensor size, you wil notice noise limitation as you increase the ISO.

As you increase ISO beyond ISO 800, you will notice image noise.

If light conditions are excellent, then I can get Good colors and details up to ISO 800 with low noise.

Under low-light conditions, I keep the ISO lower than ISO 800 for best results.

And if the Light conditions are very poor (Early morning, Late evening, and cloudy days), I keep the ISO as Minimum as possible to get a usable Shot.

The bottom line is to keep the ISO below 800 for Decent image details and Colors.

A watch out here -With high ISO and Noisy images, I do not get a usable image using post-processing as well. Hence, try to keep the ISO as low as possible to get good image quality.

Note – If I know that I am going to encounter a rare moment in the wild, then I crank up the ISO between 800 to 1600. At this time, I am ready to sacrifice the image quality to capture the Rare moment in the Wild. Hence, choose ISO as the Situation and Light conditions.

Here are some of the Images Captured at different ISO settings and varying light conditions.

Image Quality- Colors, details, and Dynamic Range

Image quality is good, and colors are accurate with the Nikon Coolpix P1100 for Birds and Wildlife Photography.

In good light conditions and ISO up to ISO 800, Nikon Coolpix P1100 produces images with good details and dynamic range.

As the light conditions start getting lower, the image quality will be reduced.
For Bird images and tricky light conditions ( with lights and shadows), Spot meter with reasonably correct exposure settings, the Coolpix P1100 produces good color and image details.

For wildlife photography and with even light conditions, Matrix metering works best in most situations.

Based on shooting experience with Nikon Coolpix P1100, I recommend that for most of the situations in the Wild keep the ISO between 100 to 800. Set the aperture greater in between f/2.8 to f/6.3 and the focal length less than 2000mm. And select the shutter speed as per image requirements and light conditions.

Note – If you have to zoom in to 3000 mm, then the lens aperture would be f/8. Make sure you have sufficient light on the object.

Due to the longer lens zoom of 3000 mm( 35 mm equivalent ) and aperture of f/8 at 3000mm, there are a few important things to keep in mind while shooting the best quality images

• You need a steady support for shooting at a 3000 mm focal length
• Keeping the object in frame is a challenge
• f/8 is a small aperture, and it can impact the image quality and autofocus performance
• Atmospheric haze and heat shimmers will impact the image quality

Hence, make sure :

• You use Steady support, such as Tripod or Monopod, for photographing birds and Wildlife
• Keep the object in frame
• Check if there is no atmospheric haze or heat shimmer between the camera and the object.
• The object should be in good light conditions. And try to use ISO in the range of ISO 100 to ISO 800. ( Cranking up the ISO beyond 800 will reduce the image quality )

White Balance 

Nikon Coolpix P1100 produces an accurate white balance as close to the actual scene. The overall Color temperature looks good. Also, no tint shift was observed
Auto white balance does a Good job while handling different light conditions during recording videos and capturing the photos.

Adjustable Screen

An Adjustable screen is one of the advantages of the Nikon Coolpix P1100.
This type of screen is very convenient to get High-level/low-level perspective or eye-level images of birds and Wildlife.

Versatile Zoom range with F/2.8 (W) and f/8(T) Aperture

The zoom range from 4.3 mm – 539 mm ( 24-3000 mm on 35mm equivalent ) is the topmost reason why you will love to buy Nikon Coolpix P1100.

The zoom range is awesome to get up close with birds. This superzoom gives you the ability to create some of the close-up shots of Birds at a distance.

Also, 500mm, 1000mm, and 2000mm are great to create close-up Wildlife images as well as wildlife habitat images.

The versatile zoom range of the Nikon Coolpix P1100 makes it perfect for Bird Photography, Wildlife Photography, and Travel Photography. You can photograph almost everything around you.

Nikon Coolpix P1100, with its compact size, provides you with more photographic opportunities. 

Nikon Coolpix P1100 Video Test – Uploading Soon

Bonus: My settings on Nikon Coolpix P1100 for Wildlife and Bird photography 

Camera settings

• Image format: RAW + JPEG Fine
• Color space: Adobe RGB
• ISO: Maximum ISO up to ISO 800
• Autofocus mode: AF – S or AF-C ( Single Continuous ) or Manual, depending on the Bird and Wildlife moment
• Autofocus Area mode: Wide Focus Area
• Metering: For Birds, I use Spot Metering most of the time. And for Wildlife in even light conditions: Matrix Metering )
• Exposure mode :
• Manual mode with ISO from ISO 100 to ISO 800
• Shutter Priority with Auto ISO ( ISO range: ISO 100 to ISO 800 )- set the shutter as per subject movement and light conditions.
• Frame rate is set to continuous high

Nikon Coolpix P1100: Conclusion and Recommendations 

Pros

• A versatile Zoom range of 24-3000 mm ( 35 mm equivalent )
• Easy-to-use and travel-friendly camera body
• Excellent 4K Video capability
• Easy-to-use menu system
• In good light conditions, Beautiful colors, and Image quality
• Excellent vibration reduction and Accurate focus
• Best Budget Bridge camera for Birds and Wildlife photography and Videos
• If bird and wildlife photography is your hobby, and you want a value-for-money camera, then the Nikon Coolpix P1100 is for you.

Cons

• Noise and loss of Image quality at Higher ISO and Low light conditions
• At a Long focal length, such as 3000 mm, and distant subjects, you will need steady support such as a Tripod or Monopod
• The protection against dust and splash is ok
• Lens Zoom in/out operation from 24mm to 3000mm is a bit slower.
• For the objects at a long distance and at 3000mm focal length, the camera acquires focus slowly. Also, for the objects at long distances, atmospheric haze and heat shimmers degrade the image quality.

In summary – 

The versatile zoom range, adjustable screen, accurate focus, 4k video capability, and Inbuild 24-3000 mm (35mm equivalent ) lens make the Nikon Coolpix P1100 the best Bridge camera for Bird and Wildlife photography and videography.

If Wildlife and Bird photography is your hobby, then the Nikon Coolpix P1100 is an excellent camera at an affordable price

You will find joy in capturing bird and Wildlife moments with the Nikon Coolpix P1100.

Nikon Coolpix P1100 at Amazon

SanDisk 64GB Extreme PRO Card at Amazon

What do you think about the Nikon Coolpix P1100 camera? Please do let me know in the comments below.

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