Marketers like to promote cameras based on the number of megapixels, but a much better measure of image quality is the size of a camera’s sensor.
By that measure, the new Nikon Coolpix A ought to be pretty good. It crams the same size sensor you’d find many Nikon Digital single lens reflex cameras (called an APS-C sensor) into a compact camera body 4.4- by 2.6- by 1.6-inches.
Larger sensors generally work better in low light, capture more detail and have less visual noise than smaller ones. And sure enough, the test shots that I took were terrifically detailed, each hair discernible and because I was able to shoot at a low ISO, there was virtually no visual noise.
But there are already compact cameras with big sensors, like the $650 Sony RX-100 and the $1,300 Fuji X100S. The Coolpix A, which sells for $1,200, is notable for what it does not have: a zoom lens. The camera comes with the equivalent of a 28mm wide angle, and that’s it. Also, the lens’s largest aperture is F2.8, which is not impressive for a $1,200 camera.
There is nothing wrong with a good wide angle lens. They are known among photojournalists as “the story telling lens†for their ability to capture a broad vista while keeping both foreground and background objects in focus. The lens on the Coolpix A would make it handy for travel, because it is well suited to landscapes, architecture and settings like markets and plazas. But it is not the best lens for portraiture, and certainly not ideal for sports and action shots.
The Coolpix A does give the photographer more control than the average point and shoot, including many flash settings, so you can add a subtle hint of fill flash once you learn the controls.
But I can’t quite get past the math. For the same money, you could easily buy a Nikon DSLR and not one, but two fixed lenses. Granted, that rig won’t fit in a pocket, but it would be so much more flexible.
