I am an enthusiastic amateur photographer completing Photography GSCE and A level, before going on to study biology. I continue with my photography, and over the years have used many digital cameras. I was given the Coolpix 4300, which was my main camera while I was at school. It may not be the best digital compact now, but, I have rediscovered it, as it is useful to have in my bag when I do not want to risk my newer, more expensive cameras to get damaged or stolen.

The spec for this Coolpix does not look particularly good in the current market. It has a pretty standard 3x optical zoom and 4MP (megapixels), and I am currently looking at a Technika in the ‘Tesco direct’ (like Argos) catalogue, which has 5MP for £29.97. However, megapixels are not as important as they are made out to be – the human eye can only process 8MP (at normal print size). So, unless you plan to significantly enlarge your images, you can live without 10 or 12 MP. In fact, too many megapixels squashed onto a small sensor can actually decrease image quality. Do not underestimate a good piece of glass, Nikon are a lens company above all else, so they can be trusted to produce excellent lenses. The lens contributes as much, if not more, to image quality than the MP number (above a threshold). The Coolpix 4300 exposes images well and actually takes surprisingly good quality images. To illustrate this, please take a look at the totally unedited pictures I have uploaded that were taken on my holiday to Thailand. I have included further analysis in the descriptions, and the Ciao XXL view will give you a better idea of the resolution. I have not mentioned digital zoom, as it is a totally useless feature on all digital cameras. Digital zoom is exactly like cropping an image on your computer; the more you use it, the more the image quality is degraded.

One other issue with this camera is speed. The normal instinct when I see a good photo opportunity is to reach for my camera and flick the on switch, sometime even before it has left my bag, n order to react fast enough to catch the moment. While is works with every other compact camera, the Coolpix 4300 continually catches me out. I hold up the camera to take the picture to be greeted with "WARNING!! Remove Lens Cap!" in bright red letters. I must then remove the lens cap and switch it off and on again. I don't see why such a small camera needs a separate lens cap - the Panasonic TZ6 (which I have also reviewed) has a much larger lens and still manages the automated shutter you expect with a compact. Once you have restarted the camera, more often than not I still cannot take the picture because there is a new warning "WARNING!! Mode dial is no in the proper position" - this occurs when the mode dial is very easily knocked slightly out off place in my bag. By the time I have finally managed reach the bird has literally flown the nest and the photo opportunity is gone. Having said all this, once the camera is on, the autofocus is very fast, even in low light levels. The digital processing is not that slow either, so you can take another picture soon after the first.

The Nikon Coolpix is not as compact as the modern competitors; it has fewer megapixels and a few design issues. I would not recommend having this as your main camera if you are really into photography, or if you just want something convenient on a night out, regardless of image quality. However, the image quality of this camera is pretty good, and it feels great in the hand. If you can find this model as a low price, it makes a great backup / emergency camera. It takes great landscape, close-up and tourist shots, and if you don’t want to spend a lot, it makes a great holiday camera (bring spare batteries!). I also think that this would be a great first camera for a kid. Try ebay and you could end up with a fantastic bargain (in the last fortnight, 4 have sold for less than £25!) – even with all the problems, I am not even considering selling mine.