Unlike the Coolpix 995 where you select A-Rec or M-rec with a Mode Dial, the Coolpix 4500 changes recording modes by pressing the Mode button and rotating the Command Dial. Shown here is the "point and shoot" AUTO mode. The only menu options available are image quality (less the TIFF mode) and image size.

A typical screen display in "P"rogram AE record mode. Top right is Macro mode and red-eye flash icons. Over on the left is the self-timer and exposure compensation icons. Along the bottom is "P"rogram AE, shutter speed, aperture, and finally the quality and number of pictures remaining.

In Shutter speed priority mode you select the desired shutter speed and the camera selects the appropriate aperture value. Shutter speed priority lets you set a fast shutter speed to freeze action subjects or a slow speed to blur them.

The aperture priority mode lets you select the desired aperture and the camera selects the proper shutter speed. Aperture priority lets you control the depth of field (focus), a large aperture has limited depth of field and a small aperture has the most depth of field. (Depth of field is also directly related to the lens' focal length.)

When shooting in the "M"anual mode there is an onscreen exposure meter that is displayed for a few seconds when you change the shutter speed or aperture value. Manual mode requires the user to set both the shutter speed and aperture but does not perform any automatic exposure so that onscreen meter is very important to insure a properly exposed image.

Press and hold the Focus button and rotate the command dial to enter the Manual Focus mode. Rotate the command dial until the subject is in sharp focus on the LCD.   The indicator turns red to warn of focus problems.

Pressing the Quick Review button displays the last image captured in 1/4-screen size over the live preview image. Press the Quick Review button a second time to go into the regular Playback mode. Tapping the shutter button at any time quickly returns you to record mode - we call this recording priority.

There are sixteen pre-programmed "scene" modes that preset the camera with the best settings for various shooting environments.

Shown above is the full menu of all the Scene modes: Portrait, Party/Indoor, Night Portrait, Beach/Snow, Landscape, Sunset, Night Landscape, Museum, Fireworks Show, Closeup, Copy, Backlight, Sports, Panorama Assist, Dawn/Dusk and Multiple Exposure

This is the Panorama Assist scene mode, it aids you via the color LCD in making better panoramas by showing you where to overlap the images for the best "stitching" results later. Before you begin capturing images you choose the direction (left, right, up or down) to take the sequence of images. (A tripod is recommended for panorama capture)

You can capture up to 35 seconds of 320 x 240 Motion JPEG video at 15fps with audio. Movies are stored in standard QuickTime (MOV) format. The Coolpix 4500 disables the optical zoom during movie recording, only digital zoom may be used.

Page 1 of the Shooting Menu:

White balance - Automatic, Manual Preset or preset Daylight, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Cloudy or Speedlight (the last five allow for +/-3 fine tuning)

Metering - Matrix, Spot, Center-weighted averaging or Spot AF Area

Drive Mode - Single frame, Continuous (1.5fps), Multi-Shot 16 (captures sixteen consecutive 568x426 images and combines them into a 2272x1704 collage), Ultra HS (up to 70 Normal quality 320x240 images at 30fps), Movie (Up to 35 secs of 320x240 Motion JPEG at 15fps with audio)

BSS - Best Shot Selector, camera takes up to 10 pictures and saves only the best one. Good for low light with no tripod handy.

Image Adjustment - Auto, Normal, More Contrast, Less Contrast

Saturation Control - Maximum, Enhanced, Normal, Moderate, Minimum, B&W

Page 2 of the Shooting Menu:

Image Quality - HI (TIFF uncompressed), Fine, Normal or Basic JPEG compressed

Image Size - 2272x1704, 1600x1200, 1280x960, 1024x768, 640x480, 2272x1520 (3:2)

User Setting - Memorize features for each of the three user presets

Image Sharpening - Auto, High, Normal, Low, Off

Lens - Auxiliary lens settings for the Nikon Wideangle, Telephoto, Fisheye and the Slide Copier

Page 3 of the Shooting Menu:

Exposure Options - AE Lock, Exposure compensation

Focus Options - AF Area Mode, AF Mode (Continuous or Single), Focus Confirmation

Zoom Options - Digital telephoto (on/off), Startup Position (last position or full wideangle), Fixed Aperture (on/off)

Speedlight Options - Popup (auto/manual), Variable Power, Internal Flash off or both

Auto Bracketing - Turn Bracketing (on/off), Set the step value and the number of frames (3 or 5) for the AEB and enable white balance bracketing if desired

Noise Reduction - Enable noise reduction for long exposures

Reset All - Reset all parameters to default values.