Review: Nikon Coolpix S6 digital camera

The shiny, sleek and gently curved Coolpix S6 from Nikon may look distinctly like a point-and-shoot fashion camera, but in this case there's so much going on under the hood that pointing and shooting is going to produce some pretty good photographs.

It's strikingly minimalist design is both elegant and, just as importantly, un-intimidating for the casual user. The rear consists almost entirely of a large 3in LCD monitor, flanked on the right by five control buttons and a multi-function wheel.

The front is festooned with, well pretty much nothing – a sweep of brushed metal with a lens and built-in flash up in the top right corner well away from stray fingertips. Gloss Gray, Matte Black and Gloss Silver designs are available.

The lens stays within the body for the entirety of its equivalent 35mm to 105mm zoom range and, when closed, is so subtle it appears almost drawn on.

For some, these features along with the 6megapixel resolution will be enough to sell the camera, but the Coolpix S6 has plenty inside to ensure your photos look as good as the camera.

It doesn't offer manual controls but has 15 scene modes, four of which offer on-screen help on how to compose a pleasing shot. For example, an overlaid wavy horizontal line suggests where to place the horizon when taking landscapes while person-shaped outlines show you where to place people for good portraits and group shots.

However true happy snappers aren't even going to get as far as finding these modes, which is why the most useful and impressive of them has it's very own button on the top of the camera.

The One-Touch-Portrait button activates a number of automatic functions to ensure great shots of people. Face-Priority AF can automatically find your subjectís face and set up focus and exposure accordingly.

You can tell when it has found a face because it draws a box around it which follows it as your subject moves around in shot.

This is sure to impress your friends, but what's more impressive is that it's a function that actually works. No more bleached out, blurred faces, on perfectly-focused backgrounds. Automatic red-eye reduction is also applied in addition to the red-eye reducing flash.

Transferring images to your PC can be performed either by using the combined charger and docking station or by using the camera's built-in Wifi capability. With the latter, a small software utility helps you pair your camera to your PC.

Once this is complete you can place the camera in wireless mode and transfer your images to your PC or printer with no physical connection required. Either copy them in bulk or transfer them immediately as they're shot.

Those who venture into the cameras menu system will find it very easy to use and as stylish as the camera itself. Rotating the multi-function wheel navigates your way round a large virtual mode-dial shaped like a Polo mint.

Because itís all on screen at once, you won't get lost in the menus and thanks to its graphical nature you won't get bogged down in text.

Pictmotion is the most gimmicky of all the Coolpix S6's features. Having selected your favourite photos, it will automatically create an animated slideshow complete with artistic transitions and backing music – often with hilarious results.

You can customise the look and the backing music to these movies and choose from pre-defined styles, such as Moody or Over the Top Music Video.

The supplied Picture Project PC software is right on the mark. Neither too complex nor too simple, it offers a well-chosen selection of image effects and enhancements, including a fully automatic mode which is actually rather impressive.

At £299 the Coolpix S6 is quite pricey, but even inexperienced or casual photographers will find the extra money spent will often translate directly into better photos, especially when taking portraits or party shots.

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