1 flew over the Cuckoo's Nest

This is just a short story about my one year experience with the Nikon 1 series which is the company's first mirrorless interchangeable-lens compact camera. In the classic and controversial film "One flew over the cuckoo's nest" Randle McMurphy played by Jack Nicholson entered the mental institution and challenged the controlling and rigid order of the day. Similarly the Nikon 1 offered a refreshing new take on spontaneous photography but alas as in the film the rebellious star ended up losing his mind quite literally after being cut down to size by the head nurse Ratched. The film scooped an amazing five Oscars but unfortunately the Nikon 1 while not exactly a box office flop didn't quite do the same.

My two slightly used Nikon 1 cameras

I received a Nikon J1 with 10mm lens as a birthday gift from my brother and was over the moon. It felt solid and well built yet compact and within minutes of opening my gift I was shooting away. I had recommended the camera to my brother who was looking for a camera for his daughter and she was delighted with her pink J1. Ironically I never personally considered the 1 series as most of the internet reviews including DPREVIEW weren't favourable especially regarding the small 1 inch sensor.

Myself and son Jude Nikon J1 1/125 s at f/4.5  ISO 100  Aperture Priority 10mm lens

One of the first shots taken the day I received my Nikon J1 and perfect for a great father and son family shot as captured by a friend. The super quiet electronic shutter and the high frame rate were great features to be explored. I walked to work and tried some street photography and using the high speed frame rate even managed to capture a Cartier-Bresson decisive moment (except it doesn't quite hold any water!)

Bethlehem   Nikon J1 1/50 s at f/8.0 ISO 400 Shutterspeed Priority 10mm lens

Bethlehem   Nikon J1 1/800 s at f/3.5 ISO 100 Exposure mode Auto High Speed 10mm lens

The next step in my 1 series journey was acquiring the 18,5mm f1,8 lens. Even though it is a fast lens the anticipated shallow depth of field is no where near it's equivalent 50mm focal length in 35mm format due to the smallish 1inch sensor. This lens is a real gem and still small enough on a J1/V1 to carry in a big pocket. The J1 became a regular accompaniment to the workplace which is a hospital theatre. On one occasion I took a small cheap white umbrella and used a secondary Nikon SB800 flash attached to a drip stand to shoot some nursing colleagues. The soft light was beautiful but the 1/60th shutter speed on the J1 is a bit slow nevertheless we made some great memories.

Theatre Sisters   Nikon J1 1/60 s at f/5.6 ISO 100 Aperture priority 18,5mm lens Nik Processing

After a few months with the Nikon J1 it had become a constant companion but the the Nikon V1 with it's higher flash sync of 1/250th plus the fact it uses a much bigger battery the same size as my Nikon D600 made the V1 more enticing. The Nikon 1 series was launched late 2011 and two years later it did not appear to be a commercial success in South Africa and it seems in many parts of the world. I managed to pick up a secondhand Nikon V1 with 10-30mm, 30-110mm and SBN5 flash for a much lower than original launch price and the fun continued. The small SBN5 flash with its swivelling head was a great idea and although Nikon's amazing wireless CLS flash system is not utilised in the 1 series it was possible to use the fully tiltable flash to trigger other flashes.

Ronnie Recovered    Nikon V1 1/160 s at f/5.0 ISO 100 Manual mode 30-110mm lens at 80mm equivalent 

The 1 series smallish sensor size and subsequent noise at higher ISO has been heavily criticised and yes it is no low light marvel but for casual shots it is still usable. I photographed my two mates who happened to be positioned beneath two loving birds in church and was quite surprised at the quality at ISO 3200.

Danie and Johan      Nikon V1 1/40 s at f/5.3 ISO 3200 Shutter Speed Priority 30-110mm @ 90mm equivalent 

Fellow photographers are not always the easiest or most willing to be photographed and that is the convenience of a small compact camera where one can steal a shot or three without being too intrusive! Here I photographed Glen Green in his green Landy the day I received the J1, Lawrance Brennon whilst visiting him in Underberg and Bill Burger outside his home in Bethlehem. These photographs are probably cheeky and maybe even sneaky but great keepsakes. 

Glen Green   Nikon J1 1/125 s at f/4.5 ISO 100 Aperture priority  10mm lens cropped

Lawrance Brennon   Nikon J1  1/50 s at f/2.8  ISO 400 Aperture Priority  10mm lens

Bill Burger   Nikon V1  1/160 s at f/4.0 ISO 500 30-110mm lens @123mm equivalent

The high frame rate and excellent auto focus is great for photographing children as it often takes many shots to get that one with a beautiful smile.

Beautiful niece Sanchia     Nikon V1 ISO 100 1/1000 s at f/2.0 18,5mm lens 

While recently visiting in Rosendal a street parade ended up in the township and there were images everywhere. The speedy and fairly unobtrusive V1 allowed for some interesting shots like these two ladies with a cat above them.

Rosendal   Nikon V1 1/50 s at f/3.8  ISO 720 30-110mm lens 81mm equivalent

My father in law Mike and mechanic friend Les in his workshop in Johannesburg and an impromptu photograph of two great characters.

Mike and Les     Nikon V1 1/100 s at f/2.0 ISO 800 18,5mm lens 

Driving in the centre of Johannesburg as a passenger I was able to photograph freely and when I saw this lady crossing I had the V1 on its high frame rate and out of nine frames this image emerged.

Johannesburg Central       Nikon V1  1/500 s at f/2.8 ISO 110 18,5mm lens

As an anaesthetist witnessing numerous babies being born by Caesarean section in theatre I have been able to photograph and experiment with a few camera setups. Recently I had the J1 and V1 placed on small table top tripods in theatre were they weren't that obvious nor able to capture any inappropriate images. I was using the Nikon D600 as my primary camera and had a helpful nurse press the Nikon ML3 infrared remote to trigger the J1 and V1 as I asked her too. The delivery happens so quickly and it worked out quite well to have more than one angle. This facility on the J1 and V1, which has an infra red sensor on the back too is most useful as is the quiet shutter of the 1 series in this setting. Below are three closely taken images of the birth with two from the J1/V1 captured at the same moment.

Caesarean birth      J1 1/125 s at f/3.5 ISO 200 10mm lens
V1 1/200 s at f/3.5 ISO 400 18,5mm lens
D600 1/160 s at f/5.6 ISO 800 16-35mm lens @ 16mm cropped

After a year I can emphatically state that these two small cameras have been such a pleasure and have added another dimension to my photography. Nikon probably missed the mark in the marketing, the pricing and the crazy additions of two useless modes motion snapshot and smart photo selector on the mode dial. Despite these oversights bordering on lunacy these cameras offer new creative opportunities and I would say are one of the best kept secrets out there. Let's hope Nikon produces the 1 that we want and not the 1 that never flew!

Dear Nikon - We are not the crazy ones!