54 f2 FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER Vol 6 No 9

Nikon D3200
W
hile devices to shoot pictures
get ever smaller, the plankton
bloom of photographs shot ex-
pands exponentially to swamp the globe.
We seem to have an insatiable appetite
for taking and sharing our pictures, and
to be happy to spend lots of money doing
so. An estimate at www.quora.com puts
the total number of photos shot last year
at 375 billion. Even if this is wildly inac-
curate, it is clear that snaps are clearly
not going to go away anytime soon.
As cameras get smaller, camera phones
meanwhile get ever smarter. At the dawn
of the digital age, my professional friends
At around 460 including ViewNX 2 software and an 18-55mm kit lens, Nikons
D3200 is an entry level camera that features a 24.2MP DX format sensor, 1080p
HD video, Wi-Fi, and of course Nikons F mount, meaning it is compatible with a vast
range of lenses past and present. Is there a catch? Adam Woolftt investigates
This page: Nikon D3200 with in-built fash
extended, and 18-55mm kit lens ftted.
Right: Shot with Nikon D3200 with
50mm f/1.8 Nikkor AS lens.
1
/400 sec at
f/4. Shooting at ISO 6400,
,
the camera
captures excellent detail despite the
noticeable noise. Children from the Ab-
bey School enjoying a History Tour with
members of the educational team at
Audley End.
Far right: enlarged detail of Audley End
shot, showing level of detail achieved,
despite high ISO.
f2

Tech
f2 FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER Vol 6 No9 55
and I joked about squeezing a 10x8 Dear-
dorf feld camera inside a wristwatch. But
we arent too far from that now, if you
consider Nokias 808 PureView mobile
phone, which features a 41MP camera
with a Carl Zeiss lens. Though the phone
and its operating system leave something
to be desired, the results that I have seen
from the camera are amazing.
So for picture quality versus bulk, true
DSLRs are facing a growing challenge, as
a result of which there is an ongoing push
to make them smaller and lighter.
This is a market segment that changes
almost weekly. As I sat down to write this
review, both Canon and Nikon launched
full frame cameras at photokina (the D600
and the 6D respectively), which are very
much smaller than last years models.
And then there is the intense competi-
tion from dozens of mirrorless and com-
pact digital models to consider.
Nikons D3200 is a trim, featherweight
DSLR, with a 23.2x15.4mm sized DX
CMOS sensor, onto which Nikon has man-
aged to cram 24.2MP effective pixels. This
potentially makes for very sharp pictures
- and surprisingly chunky fles.
When I set the camera to capture NEF
fles (Nikons raw format) + a medium Jpeg,
I found my SD cards flling up fast, and was
reminded, each time I changed one, how
much I dislike the SD card format. I fnd
them too small, too fddly, too fragile and far
too easy to misplace in a pocket or camera
bag. But maybe thats just prejudice speak-
ing - many people love them.
Camera makers certainly love them,
because SD cards occupy so little space in
the total volume of a camera body, easing
the designers problems of shoehorning
everything like batteries and processors
into a compact DSLR.
With the 17-55mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens ft-
ted, the D3200 package is certainly com-
pact and trim, and handles very nicely.
Its ergonomically shaped handgrip has
a non-slip covering, which is pleasantly
tactile, and provides a frm grip on the
camera.
The body includes a pop-up fash,
which, while essential in any camera likely
to accompany its owner to a wedding or a
disco, is also beefy enough to fll the shad-
ows on harsh sunlit portraits, and makes a
surprising but disceet difference to inte-
riors and medium close ups on a dull day.
External controls
Layout of the external controls will be
familiar to those who have handled or
owned earlier iterations of the D3200. To
the left of the rear 3ins 920,000 pixel LCD
screen are fve buttons ranged vertically.
The uppermost button controls the re-
view function, and displays images that
have been shot at full screen.
The next button down gives access to
the entire menu structure with its fve ba-
sic screens, each of which has up to fve
sub screens.
Next comes the Magnify button, which
enables close examination of images.
56 f2 FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER Vol 6 No 9
Above: 18-55mm kit lens @ 18mm.
1
/320 sec; f/7.1; ISO 100
.
A very useful wide angle performance at the short end of the 18-
55mm kit lens pulls in lots of detail in this classic view of the gardens at Hampton Court.
Scrolling around within the frame mean-
while is achieved with the four-way pad to
the right of the screen.
Below that is a dual function button,
which zooms out of any image being
viewed on the LCD screen, while if the
camera is in a shooting mode, it brings up
a helpful dialogue to prompt you through
the possibilities available in whatever
shooting mode is in operation. This facil-
ity works well, and should prove helpful
even to advanced users!
The lowest button, marked I for info, gives
access to a quick setting screen, which dis-
plays the basic settings in use, all of which can
be accessed and altered from this screen.
A simplifed access screen is becoming
a common feature on new cameras and,
since it saves scrolling through numerous
menus to get at basics like ISO or image
quality, is much to be welcomed.
The top plate has a no-nonsense Ex-
posure Settings wheel to the right of the
prism housing, with click stops that are
commendably frm, offering little chance
of switching functions by mistake.
As befts a camera suitable for begin-
ners, several of the settings on this dial
are dedicated to common scenarios, such
as close-ups, sports, and night portraits.
An even simpler menu is invoked by se-
lecting Guide on the exposure wheel on
the top of the camera.
Left and below: Kit lens 18-55mm @
18mm
1
/500 sec; f/5.6 at ISO 400. A mid
range setting (40mm) on the 18-55mm
lens pulls in lots of detail in this shot of
chickens in a Cornish barnyard.
Technical
f2 FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER Vol 6 No 9 57
For more advanced users, there are the
usual Manual, Aperture Priority, Shutter
Priority and Program settings. The group
is completed with a setting for full Auto.
The ISO range is from 100-6400, plus a
H1 setting (12800). The camera performed
well up to ISO6400, though at that set-
ting there was evident but well controlled
noise. A subtle improvement over the in
camera noise reduction was possible by
careful processing in LightRoom 4, but at
the cost of some slight loss of resolution.
On top of the camera near the shutter
button are three other control buttons.
One is an Info button, duplicating that on
the rear, which you press to display cam-
era settings on the rear screen. A second
one controls exposure override in
1
/3 stop
increments.
Left: Nikon D3200 with 50mm f/1.8 Nik-
kor AS.
1
/40 sec at f/5. Shooting at ISO
6400
,
the camera captures excellent
detail despite the noticeable noise,
while the Tungsten white balance set-
ting gets the colour spot on. Painting
in the State Apartments at Hampton
Court. Above: Detail of Henry VIII,
something almost impossible to record
using flm under these conditions.
Above: Rear screen of the Nikon D3200
set to playback video capture. Dis-
played are the video resolution and
frame rate, plus date, time and dura-
tion of the clip.
Although this can be a little hesitant in
low light, it saves the 10 years experience
required to become a fully competent fo-
cus puller!
Wi-Fi
But that is not the only surprise hidden
away in this little box of tricks. Although
I haven't tested this facility, Nikons docu-
mentation describes how the camera can
interact with a smartphone via the WU-
1a, a tiny (optional) Wi-Fi dongle, which
slots into the AV port behind the rubber
cover on the right of the camera body.
Once the dedicated Nikon Wireless Mo-
bile Adapter Utility app is installed on the
phone, you can take photos remotely while
viewing the live view image from the camera
on your smartphone.
HD video
When the camera is in Live View mode,
with an image displayed on the rear LCD
screen, the third button (coloured red) initi-
ates video capture.
A small red signal lights up in the LCD
when the video is running, along with video
parameters, running time available, and the
microphone input levels.
The camera features a microphone socket
as well as a built-in mike, and it is possible
to adjust recording levels within the video
settings menu: one of many sophisticated
facilities tucked away inside this supposedly
humble camera.
At 1920x1080 @ 24fps, Best Video qual-
ity is very good, with lower resolution op-
tions and frames rates available. The sys-
tem offers auto focus during shooting.
58 f2 FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER Vol 6 No 9
Technical
Left and above: Kit lens 18-55mm @
50mm
1
/125 sec, f/8 ISO 125. A close up
with the 18-55mm kit lens set at 50mm
reveals lots of excellent detail.
Below: In View NX2, Nikon's processing
software, you can use Google Earth's
maps to add GEO Tags to identify the lo-
cation of an image. Here, the Victoria &
Albert Museum is tagged.
You can also immediately transfer cap-
tured images to the smartphone, and thence
to social networking sites. Currently, this only
works with Android devices. An Apple version
will follow shortly.
Kit lens
The kit lens is often the weakest link in
entry level cameras, and although picture
quality proved pretty good with the AF-S
Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 G lens sup-
plied, there was a marked improvement
in resolution when using an AF-S Nikkor
50mm F/1.8 G prime lens.
ViewNX 2
There are good reasons to experiment with
Nikons ViewNX 2 software, which is bun-
dled with the camera, and provides a num-
ber of clever add-ons, like GEO tagging and
highlighting the auto focus targets.

Conclusion
It is very hard to fault this camera, as a
lightweight APS DSLR with commendable
video quality thrown in. But I have one
personal caveat. The camera is so light,
that it requires positive concentration to
hold it steady. Flash exposures and those
made on a tripod reveal the true quality in
this little bundle of joy.
The complete kit, including the lens
and ViewNX 2 software, currently costs
around 460 on the street, somewhat
less than a 16GB iPhone5. Now, if only the
Nikon D3200 could make phone calls!
www.nikon.co.uk