Nikon Coolpix 995 Review

A typical screen display in "P"rogram AE record mode. Top left is the position of the zoom lens, this is only displayed for a few seconds whenever you press one of the zoom control buttons. Top right is Macro mode and flash disabled icons. The "100" indicates that we have manually selected ISO 100 speed and the icon above that is the white balance setting (fluorescent). Along the bottom (left to right) is the metering mode (matrix), "P"rogram AE, shutter speed, aperture, exposure compensation and finally the quality and number of pictures remaining.

When the LCD screen is on you can use the Digital Zoom (if enabled in menu) by pressing the "T"elephoto button for a second after it has reached the telephoto limit of the optical zoom. The digital zoom is step less up to 4X.

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. The "1.3ft" displayed in the upper right indicates the manual focus distance. We've also dialed in a +0.7EV exposure override value.

This screen shows the camera is now is AEB mode - Auto Exposure Bracketing will take a sequence of 3 or 5 shots and vary each frame's exposure value by the amount indicated (+0.7EV).

This is an animated look at all the various record mode display screens. We are cycling through "P"rogram AE, "P*"rogram AE Variable, "S"hutter speed priority, "A"perture priority, "M"anual, "BSS" Best Shot Selector, all the drive modes (Single frame, Continuous, Multi-Shot 16, VGA Sequence, Ultra HS, Movie) and all the image quality settings (Hi, Fine, Normal, Basic).

Page 1 of the Shooting Menu:

White balance - Auto, Preset, Fine, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Cloudy or Speedlight

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

Drive Mode - Single frame, Continuous, Multi-Shot 16, VGA Sequence, Ultra HS, Movie

BSS - Best Shot Selector

Image Adjustment - Auto, Normal, More Contrast, Less Contrast, Lighten or Darken

Saturation Control - Maximum, Normal, Moderate, Minimum, B&W
(this is new feature on the Coolpix 995)

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

Page 2 of the Shooting Menu:

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

Exposure Options - AE Lock, Exposure compensation, Exposure Mode

Focus Options - AF Area Mode, AF Mode (Continuous or Single), Focus Confirmation, Distance Units (Feet or Meters)

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

Auto Bracketing - Set the step value and the number of frames for the AEB and enable white balance bracketing if desired

Noise Reduction - Enable noise reduction for long exposures
(new feature on the Coolpix 995)

Reset All - Reset all parameters to default values.

Setup Menu:

Folders - Select the active image folder on the CF card

Monitor Options - Color LCD on/off/review/preview or adjust the Brightness or Hue of the monitor screen.

Controls - Set the camera features that should be memorized from power on to power off. Also memorize the settings for the Function 1 and Function 2 buttons

Zoom Options - Digital Zoom on/off, Startup position of lens (last position, wide, tele), Fixed aperture on/off.

Auto Off - Set the Auto Off time value (30s default or 1, 5 or 30 min)

Seq. Numbers - Enabling sequential numbering of images. Reset the numbers.

CF Card Format - Format the CF card

Speedlight Options - Variable Power, Internal Flash off, Shot Confirm Lamp

Shutter Sound - On, Off

Date - Set the time and date

Info txt - Enable creation of the info.txt file on the CF card

Video Mode - NTSC or PAL

Language - Menu language

Disable Delete - Disable the ability to delete images using the "trashcan" button on the back of the camera.