Nikon D3200 - An impressive camera that does not replace the Nikon D3100

When Nikon announced the release of the Nikon D3200 many people thought it was going to replace the Nikon D3100, however this is not the case. Nikon still produce and sell the Nikon D3100 and there is no evidence to suggest the D3100 is going to be discontinued in the near future.

The first thing to point out is the Nikon D3200 is not an entry level dslr camera at all. It has far too many features and has a too high a price tag to compete in the entry level dslr camera market. The Nikon D3200 is a mid level digital slr camera in the same market as the Canon 600D.

I have to admit I am a Canon fan and always have been but since my wife prefers Nikon cameras (I’m sure you can imagine the battles we have on a frequent basis) so I get the opportunity to use and abuse Nikon cameras and accessories as well. After getting my hands on my wife’s Nikon D3200 and spending a few weeks taking some images and putting it through its paces I thought it time for a review.

The Nikon D3200 is pretty much looks and feels like the Nikon D3100 and the overall build quality is the same, which is more than acceptable. The build quality isn’t as good as that of Canon cameras, but it is very good.

New buttons on the Nikon D3200 include a dedicated live view mode, which is great for still lives and macro shots, and a dedicated movie record button, which makes sense. The LCD of the Nikon D3200 has been upgraded to 921,000 dots which is a substantial improvement over the Nikon D3100’s 230,000 dot screen. The screen is bright, clear and simply awesome. The screen is not articulating, which is a shame but then this is a feature found on more expensive dslr cameras.

The Nikon D3200 has 11 auto focus points, which is the same as that of the Nikon D3100. It is a shame the number of auto focus points wasn’t increased, but then 11 is more than enough, and for the cost of the Nikon D3200 you can’t really expect any more.

As much as I hate to admit it, I have to confess the Nikon D3200 is a very good dslr camera and I am very impressed with it. The Nikon D3200 boasts the Expeed 3 processing engine which is very fast and impressive. The faster processor obviously gives quicker processing but in addition it also means low noise and a range of fame rates you can choose when recording full 1080p HD movies.

One of the biggest selling points of the Nikon D3200 is the 24.2mp sensor, which is simply awesome. Sensors like this are usually found on the pro-sumer and top end digital slr cameras so to have a sensor like this on a camera that is aimed at the mid tier of the market is something worth pointing out. The larger amount of pixels allows you to crop and enlarge without losing any quality, which negates the need to invest in longer focal length lenses. In fact, with the D3200 you can crop in camera, which is a pretty cool feature.
A larger number of pixels increases the chance of digital noise, however the Nikon D3200 controls this very well and it isn’t until you start shooting at the higher ISOs that the noise starts to rear its ugly head.

Another top feature of the Nikon D3200 is the ability to use a wi fi adaptor (available to buy separately) which connects the D3200 to tablets, smart phones, notebooks etc for remote shooting and instant uploading and sharing to social networking sites.

So would I recommend the Nikon D3200? Despite being a Canon owner I have to say the Nikon D3200 is a very good dslr camera and is one you should definitely take a look at if you are thinking of investing in a mid tier digital slr camera. My only problem with the Nikon D3200 is the build quality, which just isn’t to the same standard as the Canon cameras. Don’t get me wrong, the build quality of the D3200 is very good, it’s just not as good as that of Canon.

Other than the quality issue I can’t find any other faults with the D3200. It is easy and intuitive to use, the 24mp sensor is awesome and image quality is very, very good and digital noise is well controlled. All in all, the Nikon D3200 is an excellent camera and you won’t be disappointed with it.