The Kodak V550 is a 5-megapixel compact digital camera that offers superior high-resolution photo imaging and a 2.5-inch LCD screen in a stainless steel body. It's a beautiful camera that can easily fit in a shirt pocket and feels great in your hand. The Kodak V550 is available in two different colors for a retail price of $399.
Introduction I've had the opportunity to try out three different digital point-and-shoot (P&S) cameras in the past couple of months, the last one being the Kodak V550. Even though I love my digital SLR, I've had a lot of fun using these cameras. I was able to use the V550 on a paid wedding job and vacation with my niece and nephews in Lake Tahoe. The kids are getting older (and so am I), so having a light camera helped me keep up with them. I had fun letting some of the children at the wedding use the camera to take pictures. If a child can use the V550, prospective owners should have nothing to worry about.
Kodak EasyShare V550 Design
I was impressed the first time I looked at the V550. The primary shooting menus are on top of the camera, easy to find, but out of the way when one is shooting. When I picked up the camera, it felt solid and well balanced in my hands. The setting controls were on the back, and with a couple of clicks, I was able to change the white balance, the ISO, color mode, or even resolution. Even though there are no manual exposure settings, exposure can be changed by one-third stops by using the selector button and pressing left or right. Pressing up changes the information on the monitor, and pressing down changes between macro and landscape focusing points. Everything is well laid out and well thought out.
The camera comes with a docking station that will allow it to communicate with a computer and printer. Unlike the previous camera that I reviewed, the camera battery can be recharged with the ac adapter directly, and the user doesn't have to pack the docking station along on trips.
Kodak EasyShare V550 recording display, with histogram on
Kodak EasyShare V550 playback display, with histogram
Kodak EasyShare V550 menu
Kodak EasyShare V550 Scene modes and picture-enhancing features menu
Camera Experience Start-up on the V550 is incredibly fast. When the photographer hits the power button, the camera requires barely a second to turn on, extend the lens, and be ready to take a picture. Equally impressive is the lack of shutter lag. The zoom is easy to use, and I appreciate when a camera lets me know whether I am using optical or digital zoom. When the LCD information is on it shows the histogram, the resolution, and the flash. To be really useful it should show exposure information, too. But having a histogram display will help the photographer save some images that might otherwise be under or overexposed. The auto white balance is excellent and delivers consistent results in a wide variety of situations. When you carry this camera around you don't need to worry about changing the settings -On pure auto the V550 is great-the camera does the thinking for you.
The V550's 3X Schneider-Kreuznach C-Variogon lens is superb and provides good contrast and sharpness. The 36-108mm optical zoom (35mm equivalent) provides a decent coverage, but having a wider lens would be really nice. Perhaps a future Kodak EasyShare digital camera will offer improvement in that regard. Although lacking a truly wide lens, having the camera start up at the widest focal length is great for capturing impromptu moments.
Left: Kodak EasyShare V550 top of the camera controls Right: 36-108mm Schneider-Kreuznach optical zoom (35mm equivalent)
One of the best features of the Easyshare V550 are the 18 different scene modes. There were two settings that really popped out: the sports mode and the panning mode. These settings allow for motion blur while keeping the subject sharp. Most P&S digital cameras don't have this feature. Normally an SLR with rear curtain sync flash would be necessary to achieve the sharp subject with motion blur. To get this effect at the press of a button was impressive. Other scene modes included are: portrait, beach, twilight, day and night landscape, candlelight, macro, and indoor-party modes. The Kodak also has anti-shake technology that helps prevent blurry pictures, and when there is still too much vibration or the shutter speed is too slow, a red hand on the screen warns of camera shake.
One of the EasyShare V550's coolest features has nothing to do with picture taking. It is the massive 2.5-inch LCD monitor on the back of the camera. From almost every angle, you and the people around you, can look at the pictures or movie clips. The LCD display color and sharpness are extremely good, especially a digital P&S camera. Many of the most expensive medium-format digital cameras back use Kodak technology for their displays and sensors. While I can neither confirm nor deny that the V550 LCD is the same, its performance makes a huge and very favorable impression.
When it comes to usability, the Kodak V550 is even easy for a child to use. At the wedding I mentioned earlier, children from age three to age eight had a great time taking pictures and reviewing them on the camera's great LCD monitor. While it may be nice to have a lot of features and modes, it's also nice to have a camera that can operate as simple P&S. The kids loved taking pictures with the V550, and I loved watching the kids have fun and savor their successful photos.
Image Quality I was really impressed with the images that came from the Kodak V550. They showed little noise and great detail. Skin tones were very pleasing, with or without flash, and in varied lighting conditions. It's important that people don't look like characters from "Star Wars" when the pictures are downloaded from the camera. To get great images straight from the camera without any editing is one of the primary reasons to buy a P&S digital camera like the Kodak EasyShare V550. And with the V550, that's what you'll get.
Landscape photos are my particular strength. And the V550 wowed me when I shot at Lake Tahoe. Even with bright sand and a cloudy blue sky the V550 properly exposed the scene on auto. No ISO setting, no white balance setting, nothing set by me - and yet the camera did an awesome job. I am also amazed at the V550's in-camera color processing. Each shot, straight from the camera, was ready to print.
Click on thumbnails to view sample photos.
Click on thumbnails to view sample photos.
Conclusion The Kodak EasyShare V550 is a great camera for all ages. It's built extremely well, and it has great set of features. Having a pocket-sized camera that delivers excellent results with no thinking on the part of the photographer is amazing. Having scene modes ready when an artistic moment arises is very convenient - although having manual exposure controls as well would be nice.
There is nothing about this camera that takes away from the great images I got, and I return it with a bit of sadness. The Kodak V550 performed so well in so many different situations that it would be impossible not to be enthusiastic about it.
Who Should Buy The Kodak EasyShare V550 If you want an excellent P&S camera that can provide everyday pictures, this is it. This is a camera that I can recommend to almost anybody because of the weight, size, and image quality. Only if you want the control of a digital SLR would this camera not be right for you. It is a pure winner for most people, regardless of photographic skill.
-end-
Contents of the Kodak EasyShare V550.
Kodak EasyShare V550 Digital Camera
Kodak Li-Ion Digital Camera Battery KLIC-7001
Kodak EasyShare Photo Frame Dock 2
USB and audio/video cables
Camera bag
Neckstrap
Kodak EasyShare Software
Getting Started Kit
32 MB internal memory
Custom camera insert for optional Kodak EasyShare Camera and Printer Docks
Sample Images
More Products from Kodak
Link to this page
del.icio.us
