Review: Nikon P530

Introduction and build and handling

Bridge cameras such as Nikon's P530 get lumped in with the compact camera category, which can seem a little odd when you consider their overall body size.

Offering a huge zoom range, and generally full manual control, one of the reasons bridge cameras find themselves in this category is down to their small sensor size.

The P530's 16 million-pixel CMOS sensor is just 1/2.3 inches in size, making it much smaller than a DSLR's. It's also a reduction in resolution from the P520, which featured an 18 million-pixel device.

It seems that Nikon has simplified the P530 when comparing it with its natural predecessor, the P520, making this a more budget offering. For those looking to spend a little more money, the P600 now exists, with a huge 60x optical zoom.

While the P530 features the same 0.2 inch, 201,000 dot electronic viewfinder as the P520, the screen is now fixed, remaining at 921,000 dots, but losing the full articulation of its predecessor's screen.

What has also stayed the same is the 42x optical zoom, which gives an equivalent of 24-1000mm in 35mm terms, making it useful for a wide variety of subjects.

Enthusiast photographers will be drawn to the fact that the P530 allows you full manual control over different settings. Unfortunately however, it's not capable of shooting in raw format. Along with manual and semi-automatic modes, there is also fully-automatic mode, and a range of scene and creative modes.

There's still no integrated Wi-Fi connectivity for the P530, while Nikon has taken the interesting decision to remove the GPS functionality too.

A lot of bridge cameras have very long zoom ranges now, making the 42x optical offering slightly less impressive than it once would have been. That said, this camera goes head to head with the likes of the Canon SX50 HS, which although offering a 50x optical zoom, has a similar price to the P530.

Build quality and handling

The P530 is a reasonably chunky camera, and although it's certainly not the largest bridge camera on the market, it's approaching entry-level DSLR size, while it's also pretty weighty, giving it an air of quality.

With a rubberised coating, the deep grip of the camera makes it feel especially secure in the hand, while a contour at the top of the camera helps your finger fit snugly. Despite its relatively large size, this is a camera we would feel comfortable using one-handed.

On the top of the camera is a mode dial for quickly switching between the different exposure options the camera offers. This includes manual, semi-automatic and fully-automatic modes. There's also scene auto selector mode, a couple of scene modes and the effects mode. Movie mode can be accessed no matter what stills shooting mode you're in, simply by pressing a dedicated movie record button on the back of the camera.

Also on top of the camera is a small function (Fn) button which can be set to a number of different options, including white balance, metering or sensitivity (ISO). This is useful if you're often changing the same setting and don't want to dive into the main menu every time.

On the back of the camera is a pretty standard compact camera style button layout. There's a scrolling dial that doubles up as a four-way navigational pad, with each directional key having a specific function. Left accesses the timer function, up accesses the flash function, right accesses exposure compensation and down accesses the different focusing modes.

To change the autofocus point, you need to press the central OK button and then use the directional keys, or scroll with the dial, to the point you need. It's a reasonably quick process, but you've always got the option to leave the point in the centre and focus and recompose if you're in a particular rush.

Zooming the 42x optical zoom lens is achieved via a lever around the shutter release button on the top of the camera. Unlike with the P520, there's no switch on the lens barrel itself. Zooming in and out is pretty smooth and fluid, while it's handy that zooming briefly pauses before straying into digital zoom territory.

If you've used a Nikon camera before, then you'll be at home with the main menu system, which for the most part is pretty sensibly arranged.

Unfortunately the electronic viewfinder doesn't have an eye-sensor, so you'll need to a press a button next to it every time you want to use it, and every time you want to stop using it. It doesn't make for the most seamless of transitions, and I often found myself not bothering to use it at all because it was too frustrating.

If you do use the viewfinder, you'll find that it's not too bad for a bridge camera EVF. It's the same size as its predecessors, and although not as large or bright as some of the current crop from compact system cameras, it's not too bad to use, and useful to have if you prefer using them to using a screen.

Performance and verdict

Colours are generally represented well by the P530, but on occasion, skies tend to have a cyan cast, which although not hugely uncommon for compact cameras, is a little disappointing to see here.

Despite the step back in resolution (16 million pixels compared with 18 million from the P520), the P530 is capable of resolving detail well. If you zoom in 100%, there is evidence of some image smoothing, even at lower sensitivities, but it's not something that should be worrying unless you're printing at very large sizes.

Noise is generally controlled pretty well at lower sensitivities, although that does result in some loss of detail. As is to be expected, as you step into higher sensitivity settings, noise starts to become more problematic, but it's only after ISO 3200 that images start to become unacceptable.

The zoom performance of this camera is probably the most crucial since that's its key selling point. At the furthest reach of the 42x zoom optic, there is a noticeable loss in detail when examining at 100%, but when viewing at normal printing or web sizes, it's more than acceptable and is a great flexible option for travelling photographers.

There is also a digital zoom available if the optical zoom isn't enough – while it's nice to have this, image quality suffers quite badly, and is only recommended for use if you're desperate, and/or you only want to print or share the images at small sizes.

Generally, autofocusing speeds are adequate. The lens locks onto the target reasonably quickly when shooting in good or bright light, hunting around a little more when in darker conditions. You can activate macro focusing if you want to get particularly close to a subject, and generally this also produces attractive images that fill the frame and are sharp.

For the majority of shots, the P530's matrix (all-purpose) metering system does a good job of helping the camera to produce accurately exposed images. It can struggle when you're shooting something with high contrast though, such as a backlit building – an instance when switching to spot metering can be beneficial.

Under different kinds of lighting sources, the P530 copes reasonably well to produce accurate colours. Under artificial lighting, it errs towards warm tones, but it's not unexpected for a camera of its type, and it's easy enough to switch to a more appropriate white balance setting if you need to.

There are a number of different creative filters that you can shoot with, which is good if you like to experiment with your photos. It will of course come down to personal preference, but it's worth using all of them at least once to see if you like them. It's not the greatest set available on the market, but it's nice to see them here nonetheless. You can see examples of the filters on the sample images page.

Verdict

The bridge camera sector is one of the most competitive areas of the camera market, with several manufacturers now producing cameras with huge zoom ranges.

Here we have a camera that offers a 42x optical zoom in a budget body – so if your main concern is the zoom range, then this is a good option for you.

While it's a shame that it can't shoot in raw format, the fact that it has full manual control should appeal to enthusiasts who want a no-frills camera, or perhaps for those looking for a decent travel camera.

Handling is good for the most part, and image quality is decent. It's no better than its predecessor though, which you can still pick up for a reasonable price.

We liked

The huge zoom range makes this ideal for those looking for a flexible camera to shoot a wide range of subjects. Image quality at the telephoto end of the zoom isn't perfect if you examine at 100%, but it seems unlikely that the majority of the users of this camera would do that.

We disliked

There's no discernible leap in image quality from the camera's predecessor, the P520, making this seem like a little bit of a pointless upgrade.

Final verdict

Nikon has once again produced a solid bridge camera in the P530, and if you're on a budget and looking for something that gets the job done without worrying too much about tempting extras, then this is a good option.

For now, you can still buy the P520, which if you're bothered about an articulating screen makes for a better purchase. If you have a bit more cash to spend, take a look at the P600 too.

Sample images

On occasion, skies can have a cyan tint to them, something which is a little disappointing to see from a Nikon camera. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

Colours are generally bright and punchy straight from the camera. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

The camera's 42x optical zoom gives you a flexible range to work with. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

At its widest point, the P530's optical zoom lens covers a wide angle of view, useful for architectural and landscape shots. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

The camera's 16 million-pixel sensor can resolve detail fairly well. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

At mid-range sensitivity, noise is pretty well controlled, but there are some examples of image smoothing if you examine at 100%. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

Use the camera's macro mode when you want to shoot close-ups. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

Despite the camera's small sensor size, you can still achieve shallow depth of field effects if you go close the subject. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

At its widest point, the camera's 42x optical zoom lens offers an equivalent of 24mm. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

At the telephoto end of the optic, the 42x optical zoom equates to 1000mm in 35mm terms, making it very flexible. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

If you need extra reach, the P530 also features a digital zoom, which boosts the reach by 4x, to 4000mm. (Click here to see the full resolution image)

Special effects

The following images display the range of different effects that can be enjoyed when shooting in Special Effects mode.

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