Nikon D3400 vs Nikon D5100

Flip-out screens can be useful for tricky shots.

An optical viewfinder (or OVF) allows the photographer to compose a shot while seeing exactly what the lens sees. There is no time lag and they require no power - as opposed to electronic viewfinders which can drain battery life. They are also better in low light situations.

With 100% coverage you can compose the image correctly when you capture the photo. With less than full coverage you may have to crop your photos afterwards to get them looking perfect.

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A hot shoe can be used to attach an external flash, as well as light meters, viewfinders, rangefinders and other attachments.

A system camera has lots of changeable parts such as lenses, flashes and other accessories. They offer greater flexibility than compact cameras.

The larger the sensor the more light the sensor captures yielding in better image quality.

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With AF tracking, once you choose the subject and press the shutter release part way down, as the subject moves, the autofocus will follow it. No more out of focus shots.

With a higher light sensitivity (ISO level), the sensor absorbs more light. This can be used to capture moving objects using a fast shutter speed, or to take images in low light without using a flash.

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Newer image processors are better at processing multiple tasks simultaneously, and can produce higher quality images with better low-light performance and faster AF.

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A phase detection autofocus is much faster than a contrast detection autofocus, allowing for sharper images.

The maximum resolution available for videos shot with the main camera. Although it may be possible to choose among other frame rates, those recordings usually have lower resolutions.

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A phase detection autofocus system is faster than a contrast detection autofocus system. Even when recording scenes with a lot of fast movements, the videos are sharp and clear.

A timelapse shows a long passage of time sped up. A series of photographs taken from the same position over a long period is joined together to create a short video. It is great way to capture things like the setting sun, or clouds moving across the sky.

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When recording movies they stay focussed and sharp.

24p is a video format (24 frames per second) traditionally used in cinema. Nowadays, it is used to create film-like motion characteristics.

A microphone port allows connecting external high-end or specialized microphones.

CIPA is an independent, standard measurement that determines how many shots a camera can take before the battery dies.

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The battery is removable and can be replaced by the user if broken.

The battery can be recharged and used over again.

An indicator shows you when the device has low battery.

The device has a standard memory slot (such as an SD or micro SD card slot) so that you can either extend the internal storage with affordable memory modules or you can retrieve data, such as photographs, easily from a memory card.

The device can connect to WiFi.

802.11n is a wireless standard released in 2009. It has faster transfer rates and improved security compared to its predecessors - a, b and g.

A remote control allows you to control the device remotely. The remote control can be included or optional.

An accelerometer is a sensor used to measure the linear acceleration of a device. A common application is detecting when a device changes between vertical and horizontal positions.

Newer USB versions are faster and have better power management.

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