Small, Discreet, Affordable, Great Autofocus and Frame Rate

No Viewfinder, Battery Drain

When the Nikon 1 J1 was released, I paid little attention. I took it for a crummy point and shoot marketed by Ashton Kutcher. I picked one up recently with the 10-30mm and 30-110mm zooms for less than half of the original price, thinking I would have something I could take on a kayak or jet ski without worrying about it too much.

What I got was a small, discreet, camera with much of the capability of my D300s and D7000 SLRs. I can bring it places I can't bring my bigger gear and so far it is as good or better for capturing action shots. The autofocus is amazing and the frame rate can't be beat.The image quality -- especially in low light -- with the D7000 and good fast glass is better, but on a sunny day and at smaller f/ stops, it is closer than I could have hoped.

Fast AF, compact, great pictures from an entry level CSC

Low light, ISO noise levels

For an entry level CSC I was very impressed with the Nikon J1. I picked it up for a super cheap price during black Friday and have fell in love with CSC's. This camera brought joy to my shooting and is an extension of my gear and it is not meant to replace my DSLR setup. Lugging around a big and heavy DSLR is cumbersome when you just want to go out on a walk and shoot random things without planned. This is a great way to simply be on the go and have all the essentials in the palm of your hand for some easy shooting. A great street photography camera. Of course, I will not bring this on a shoot while being paid but in due time I think mirrorless is the future of cameras. A great buy for those who are looking at a compact system that takes fairly nice video and stills. I love the "hybrid" aspect of the camera where I can shoot video and shoot pics at the same time.