Nikon Coolpix 900 - Aux Lenses & Software

NOTE: The Coolpix model 900s & 950 cameras
can use all of these lenses too !

Nikon 0.66x Wideangle Lens

Here's the Nikon WC-E24 wideangle lens for the Coolpix 900. It is a 0.66x wideangle converter and guess what -- it comes with a lens cap. This is a high-quality glass lens made specifically to match the Coolpix 900's excellent Nikkor zoom lens and well worth the $90.

Even though the book says not to use the flash because it won't cover the entire field of view I found it to do a very good job of it. As with all converter lenses a certain amount of darkening will occur when using it but this is easily corrected in software after the fact.

If you want to really cover the subject area try using SR Inc's DSF-1 Slave Flash. Note that the Nikon 900 triggers flash slaves with ONE flash pulse.

Here's a before and after example of the wideangle lens using the flash. Note that I did need to brighten up the wideangle/flash shot.

Here's almost half of my neighborhood circle taken from the end of my driveway. The Nikon wideangle lens is very crisp and I imagine it should make some dandy panoramas.

Here's a closeup shot taken using the macro mode and the Nikon wideangle converter lens. Interesting results can be obtained by going from wideangle to telephoto position with the camera set on macro. Do NOT use the special setting for the wideangle lens or else the macro mode will be unavailable.

Nikon Coolpix 900 28-37mm Aluminum Stepup Filter Rings
Nikon 900 stepup ring

For those interested in a high-quality metal stepup adapter ring for the Nikon Coolpix 900 - they're now available! These stepup rings are made of aluminum, not plastic and have been threaded by computerized machinery and then anodized black. I just received one from Tom and this is a very nice stepup ring that allows you to attach standard 37mm filters, adapter lenses or lens caps on the Coolpix 900 camera.

Go to CK Power's web site for more information, photos and/or to place an order for one of these high-quality stepup rings.

Macro & Tele lenses for Nikon 900
Raynox Coolpix 900 lenses

The Raynox 3.5x macro and stepup ring is the ultimate closeup lens accessory for the Coolpix 900 - you can get so close to things that it is scary. Check out the pictures of the dime below.
The Raynox 1.8x and 2x telephoto adapters are perfect for getting even closer to those "far away" subjects that just don't fill the frame even when using the full telephoto.
And the Raynox clear lens protector is always a good idea to keep fingerprints off of the optical lens cover of the Nikon. Included in this kit is a ND (neutral density) filter and a 28-37mm stepup ring.

Sample 3.5x Macro Pics
I took these three pictures using the Raynox MSN-200 3.5x MacroScan Close-up Lens set. The Nikon 900 was as close as possible to the subject which was a U.S. dime coin. Lighting was furnished by a small gooseneck lamp sitting about a foot away.

Click the thumbnails to download the full size
and un-retouched 1280x960 Fine mode pictures

Using 3.5x macro lens at full zoom

Using 3.5x macro lens at half zoom

Using 3.5x macro lens at full zoom
plus 2x digital zoom

Raynox 2X Macro Lens
This picture was taken using the Raynox 2X Macro lens that is part of the MSO-2000 MacroScan Close-Up set for the Olympus D-600L camera. The kit consists of two lenses, a 2X and a 4X Macro closeup lens and a stepup ring for the Olympus D-600L. These lenses are threaded for 37mm so they can also be used with the Nikon 900 with the appropriate stepup ring.

Raynox 2X macro

This is a full-frame image, absolutely no cropping done.
The Nikon 900 was zoomed out to full telephoto position.

Raynox QM-1010 Copy Stand
Raynox CM-1000

Here's a picture of my newest toy, the Raynox QM-1010 Illuminated Camera Stand with my Nikon 900 mounted on it along with the Raynox 3.5x macro lens. Using this configuration I can easily copy 35mm slides and crop out whatever portion of it I want by just zooming in or out.

When using the 3.5x macro lens you do NOT have to use the Nikon 900's macro setting which means that you CAN use the self-timer to insure movement-free closeups.

You can use the builtin illuminator when copying slides or you can turn it off and use another source of illumination when photographing a non-transparent object on the top of the copy stand. The camera can be easily adjusted up or down with a geared wheel control and then locked firmly in place. As I said before - when using the 3.5x macro lens you do not need to use the macro setting which allows you to use the self-timer function.

Raynox 2X Telephoto

Here's a sample "before and after" using the Raynox 2X telephoto adapter lens. The before shot is full 3X zoom of the Nikon 900, the after shot is using the Raynox 2X with the Nikon 900 in full 3X zoom position.

Click to view the bigger picture

QuickStitch: Instant Super-Wideangle

Some of the coolest software around is QuickStitch and guess what? You already have it if you own a Coolpix 900. It's on the CD-ROM disc that's marked NikonView and can be found in the folder called Enroute. Go to that folder and run the SETUP program and start stitching!
It's so easy you won't believe it until you try it!
Here's a quick example that I did in less than five minutes using the Nikon 900 handheld (no tripod) in my computer room.

These are the three images to be stitched

A little cropping of this "stitched" picture and you would have a super-wideangle shot that couldn't be taken no matter what lens you put on the Coolpix 900. Click to see the BIG picture!

Here's one more sample, cropped and ready for printing.

This was made using the Nikon WC-E24 wideangle lens, DSF-1 slave flash and a tripod. It's four images with about 50% overlap.

New NikonView 1.2 Software Available

Nikon has posted the new NikonView v1.2 for the Mac for download on their web site. The following are the new features and fixes in the Macintosh version 1.2:

The serial port speed can now be set manually. Setting the data rate too high will result in a communication error. Some users will see a speed advantage, some won't. It depends on your particular Macintosh. Printer port speed will still be limited to 57600.
You can now select the application used to open your images
There is now a Macintosh control Strip Module to mount and dismount the camera
Printing and memory related problems have been corrected

A while back they posted NikonView v1.2 for Windows. This update (a complete installer) corrects the following problems that were present in NikonView for Windows.

NikonView 900 supports Windows95, 98, NT4.0 and Internet Explorer 4.0. (We suggest obtaining the Internet Explorer Service Pack 1 Update from Microsoft)
Fixed a problem in which the fourth image of a "four-up" printing operation did not print correctly.
Fixed a problem in which some images that had been rotated and/or resized were not displayed correctly when re-opened.
NikonView 900 is now Year-2000 compliant.
Fixed a bug in which the creation date, as displayed in the image Properties window, could be inaccurate by about one second.

CAME - Digital Camera Control Program
So you say you have the new Nikon 900 and hate that 30-second camera shut off feature? You're not alone - we all hate it. Stop complaining to Nikon Tech and download the CAME program by TsuruZoh Tachibanaya.
Note that the Nikon folks have really ticked TsuruZoh off by commenting that his CAME program can damage the Coolpix 900/900S cameras so he has dropped the Nikon 900 support from the latest version of CAME. You can still download CAME version 0.8 from my web site.

Camera Control v0.5

After you establish a serial link with your camera you can adjust the auto timeout values and then SET these values permanently in the camera. CAME can also download images, take pictures with the camera tethered, preview, set most camera's features via the keyboard and lots more!

And now the best news... Came is FREE and it's not just for Nikon cameras but all of the digital cameras using the Fujitsu chipset such as Agfa, Epson, Olympus, Sanyo and Nikon. More info can be found about the Fujitsu chipset and the compatible digital cameras it controls by going to this web page.

P.I.E. Picture Information Extractor

Picture Information Extractor($19 shareware) will download your Nikon (and Agfa, Epson, Olympus and Sanyo) digicam images using the serial cable or directly from the CompactFlash card and optionally rename them using the actual time/date of each. This allows them to all be placed in the same folder without worry of duplicate filenames.
PIE can also perform lossless rotation (registered version) when the image was shot in portrait mode. P.I.E. also shows you the "hidden" camera info that is imbedded in your image files such as time/date, shutter speed, f/stop, zoom setting (on certain cameras) and more.