Teleconverter for my COOLPIX 4500?

[ljn]

I think my coolpix is a fine camera in most circumstances, but I do think that the focal length is a bit restricted. I have corrected this in the wide-end by bying a 0,63x wide-angle converter and it's working great but now I want to see longer. Has anyone had any experience of Nikon's converters? I'm thinking about the 2xtele because I'm quite sure that it would suit me better but I'm not sure about the quality of the lens.
The other thing I'm not sure about is how the tele-converter affects aperture in telezoom. Do I have to calculate the largest aperture when using the tele-converter, because to my understanding the F-number=D/f(D=diameter of aperture, f=focal length)?

Thanks for anyone who's interested

[jseah]

don't know about teleconverters for P&S's, but typically with a teleconverter for SLR lenses (the teleconverter sits between the lens and the body), a 2X teleconverter will make you lose 2 stops, while a 1.5X teleconverter will make you lose 1 stop.

[modonlay]

I have been using a Coolpix 950 for 4 years and have the Nikon 3x teleconverter too. I just bought a 4500 and can use the 3x on it too. #1: use a tripod!!!! The combination of full zoom on the camera and the 3x lens equals about a 300mm tele for 35mm. The 4500 has a rotation lock so the lens won't rotate down as it did on my 950, which is why I gave up on it. Haven't done any serious resolution tests with it, but I'm finding that for close up work (without any converters) that going to Aperture preferred mode and stopping down make a big difference is sharpness. As the teleconverter would normally be used outdoors, there should be enough light to do that, especially if you're on a tripod. Preliminaryresults look promising. Unless you need the super telephoto results of the 3x, I'd try the 2x. lighter, cheaper, smaller. Stay away from the el-cheapo lenses! Any add-on lens will degrade image quality some, so stop down!! Good luck!

[modonlay]

I forgot to mention that adding a 2x or 3x converter doesn't require any calculations on your part. The cameras autoexposure system compensates for any light loss, but I don't believe there's any significant loss, unlike the ones on 35mm slr's. There's a menu setting for the 2x and the 3x in the shooting menu under "lens". It's all automatic!!