Great, professional like quality camera

Author's Rating:

Pros: Durable, professional, Nikon. Best in its class in my opinion.

Cons: Design placement of flash meter on camera is odd, but does not affect performance.

The Bottom Line: 
Like all Nikon products, it is very durable and very professional. I've used three Nikons and they all still work great.

Author's Review
Nikon is probably the best in photography equipment. The Coolpix 5000 is a great camera for nearly any shooting condition. The flash shoe is great for attaching larger flashes and accessories, a feature most other cameras its size don't have. The 5 megapixel photo is great, and the actual pixel quality is great. This camera against the other 5 megapixel cameras like Sony, FujiFilm, and Kodak has far better pixel quality (at 100% zoom there is very little if no distortion between pixels). Swivel screen makes hard to get shots a piece of cake. I've dropped it several times and it still works like new (can't say that for other brands I've used). Only complaint is the optical zoom is only 3x (In which Nikon fixes in it's 5500 model, making it 4x), which is good but not great. Also, another "pet-pieve" of mine is where the light meter is located...right where most people hands would fall. This can cause the flash to fire improperly. However, the instruction manual does point this out, so as long as you keep your fingers out of the way, it works fine. But overall a very easy, yet powerful enough for the advanced user camera. Great rechargeable battery life as well, and CF Card is the best way to go. Nikon cameras are known for their durability and professionalism, and I have seen this proved in my Coolpix 995, Coolpix 5000, and my Nikon D100.