Which nikon camera model is best for me?

I have previously had a Kodak Zx3 (playsport), and don't have much experience with photography.i'm looking for a nice camera, but i don't want to spend a lot of money on it.i'm looking towards a nikon, but to you professionals, do you have any suggestions for me?

Without an actual budget or a type of camera you want to get, it is pretty hard to narrow down what would be good for you.

so what is your budget?

My recommendations:

<$100: there are really no outstanding cameras in this price range. Just pick one.
<$200: Canon SX130IS, SX150IS
<$300: Nikon P7000, Nikon P300, P310, Canon S95
<$400: Nikon P7100, Canon G12, Canon S100, or Panasonic DMC-LX5
<$500: Olympus XZ-1

For the specific cameras I mentioned, most include manual exposure controls, fast lenses, and a couple of them even have manual focus capability and customizable white balance, not something normally seen in a compact camera.

Some have slightly larger sensors than the typical compact, and do not suffer from the overkill (at least as much) of high MegaPixel count sensors or ridiculously high power zoom lenses - both of which serve to reduce photo quality.

Are you looking for another waterproof unit?
The Panasonic TS4 is waterproof and can take stills and video. I have its predecessor the TS3.It's not bad. Moving in and out of the water, the water seems to drain away quickly enough. It does magnify wind noise very badly. I don't know what if any compact camera is better at that. The autofocus seems to hunt a lot.

Check out Nikon COOLPIX S6300 is the cheapest entry and also one that has a CMOS sensor rather than a CCD sensor. Let the argument go on who is better. When the lighting is sun light, the Nikon shines and creates wonderful photos. Low light, of course, is a typical offender of ruining a good picture. If the flash is used, most of the time it does a good job to make everything look natural and not "over-toned" in any way or display odd contrast properties. I think this is a great product and really sells itself when you view the information offered on Nikons web site.