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Nikon D300 Complete Manual

Nikon D300 Complete Manual

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V1.02

Thom Hogan's

Complete Guide

to the Nikon D300

1st Edition

By Thom Hogan

byThom Press

Thom Hogan's Complete Guide to the Nikon D300

Page 1

Table of Contents

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Page 1 V1.02 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 1st Edition By Thom Hogan byThom Press Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 1...
Page 2 V1.02 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 First Edition 2008 Published in the United States by byThom Press Emmaus, PA 18049 http://www.bythom.com © 2008 Thom Hogan All Rights Reserved Copies of this work may not be distributed in any form or by any transmission method.
Page 3: Acknowledgements
Doug Werner, Rob White, and Leroy Wiley. Several Web sites proved useful in researching aspects of this book. While I mention others at appropriate points in the book, four need to be singled out for D300 users: • Phil Askey’s http://www.dpreview.com...
Page 4: About This Ebook
Acrobat Professional versions, sometimes going backwards in ability). Your Rights versus Mine I make my living documenting Nikon equipment. Thus, I have registered the Copyright for this work in order to protect my rights.
Page 5: Printing The Ebook
I have not and will not pass rights for this work to other parties. Yes, other people fraudulently claim that they own the rights when they don’t. And they hear from my lawyer when they do. Don’t say you weren’t warned should you try this. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 5...
Page 6 (“Before You Take Pictures,” “Shooting Pictures with Your D300,” and “After You’ve Taken Pictures with Your D300”); I’ve tried to keep the instructions you’d want while out shooting in the middle section. Since I get the occasional question as to why I don’t publish a paper version, I’ll explain: paper versions turn out to be more expensive to produce in the small quantities at which a niche publication like this sells.
Page 7 This eBook is designed to help you get quality results from your Nikon D300. While I’ll try to provide introductory material that should help even a photography novice get by, this eBook probably isn’t the place to learn what an aperture or shutter speed is (check out http://www.bythom.com/bookrecs.htm...
Page 8 V1.02 Nevertheless, I will try to explain the concepts and terminology that are necessary to understand how a D300 works. If you find something in this eBook unclear, or that I’ve assumed knowledge on your part that you don’t have, don’t hesitate to drop me an email asking for an explanation.
Page 9: Note On The First Edition
V1.02 Note on the First Edition While this is a first edition, the D300 is enough like earlier Nikon DSLRs that I’ve been able to re-purpose and rewrite portions of earlier eBooks—specifically the D200 eBook, as the D300 shares menu structure and many options with that camera—which means that much of the information here has...
Page 10 Things you need to know while using the D300 (labeled • “Shooting Pictures with Your D300” and starting on page <224>).
Page 11 I’ve written about Nikon equipment. It’s not easy keeping up with all the changes Nikon keeps making to its DSLR lineup and software. So if you have any of my previous eBooks, you’ll find that my words and explanations may have changed, even for features that were common across many models.
Page 12: Table Of Contents
Alternate Power Sources ............91 Battery Life................96 Battery Notes..............102 ................ 104 MAGE TORAGE Buffer Sizes ................. 107 CompactFlash..............109 UDMA..................110 Solid-State CompactFlash ............111 Microdrives ................113 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 12...
Page 13 Settings after Reset Resetting Other Settings............215 Settings after Reset Resetting Custom Settings ............217 The Last Resort Reset ............... 217 Firmware Version ............... 218 SHOOTING PICTURES WITH THE D300 ............224 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 13...
Page 14 D300 White Balance Bracketing Values Table Picture Controls..............334 Contrast Parameter ..............354 Hue Parameter ................. 355 Saturation Parameter..............357 Brightness Parameter..............358 .............. 360 ENSES AND OCUSING An Aside About Lenses ............364 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 14...
Page 15 V1.02 Lens Compatibility .............. 367 Focal Length Limitations............. 371 Lens Differences When Used for 35mm film or FX body vs D300 374 Lens Angle of View The Autofocus System............377 Focus Mode (Single Servo, Continuous Servo, and Manual) .. 384 Single Servo versus Continuous Servo Autofocus Autofocus Area Modes ............
Page 16 Custom Setting #D4 Continuous Low Shooting Speed ..551 Custom Setting #D5 Maximum Continuous Shots .... 552 Custom Setting #D6 File Number Sequence ..... 553 Custom Setting #D7 Shooting Info Display Style ....554 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 16...
Page 17 Digital Flash Differences ............ 595 More Hidden Flash “Gotchas” .......... 598 Allowable Apertures in Program Mode ........598 D300 Safe Flash Head Focal Length Settings ......599 Flash Modes ............... 600 i-TTL Balanced Fill-Flash ............600 Standard TTL ................602 High-Speed TTL (TTL FP)............
Page 18 Settings You Change Often ............665 Things To Do After Each Shooting Session ......666 Keeping Track of Batteries ..........668 Maintaining Image Quality..........669 Which Type of Photographer are You?........671 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 18...
Page 19 It’s Not Just Static Cling Worst Case Scenario Temperature Considerations............ 702 Humidity .................. 703 White Balance Settings............. 703 White Balance Color Temperatures AFTER YOU VE TAKEN PICTURES WITH YOUR D300........ 708 ....... 708 HINGS FTER THE HOT IS AKEN ..............709 ETOUCH D-Lighting ................
Page 20: Conventions Used In This Ebook
Nikon models. Moreover, many D300 purchasers followed the earlier camera developments but held off buying one until Nikon came out with a camera that was less expensive. The introduction of the D300 was what they were waiting for, though the resulting camera is a bit different from the earlier models they learned about.
Page 21 V1.02 Instructions that apply to using the camera are marked starting with a . Anywhere you see that symbol, grab your D300 õ and follow along! As I have with all my previous books and eBooks, I use my Web site (http://www.bythom.com/d300guideerrata.htm) to report any corrections or clarifications of information or instructions (you’ll also find some helpful product reviews and...
Page 22: Introduction
V1.02 Introduction You’ve purchased a Nikon D300 and are looking for help in getting the best possible pictures from it. Or perhaps you’re considering purchasing a D300 and want to know how it works and what it is capable of. Welcome. You’ve come to the right place.
Page 23 3. You’ve used a digital SLR before, so the D300 is likely a backup or the new primary body for you. You may Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 24 You’ll find everything you need to know in this eBook (or in the other materials included on the CD). The primary difference is that the D3 excels at high ISO settings in ways the D300 doesn’t. Personally, I don’t worry about the minor differences in image quality between the two, and am happy to shoot just about anything with either camera.
Page 25: D300 Background
The D300’s History The Nikon D300 was announced in August 2007 along with the D3. While the D3 was widely anticipated, the D300 was a surprise addition to Nikon’s lineup; a replacement for the D200 wasn’t expected so soon, or with so many changes.
Page 26 D300. But the bigger surprise is just how close to the D3 the D300 specifications come. Nikon has pushed the prosumer D300 so close to the pro D3 in specifications and capabilities I think it’s easier to now think of the D300 as “the small”...
Page 27 D300 from the D200; neither the Kirk nor the Really Right Stuff D200 plates can be used on the D300. Still, the overall look and feel of the D300 is essentially that of the D200. That’s good, as the D200 was a well proportioned camera that handled quite well.
Page 28 D300, as will most manual focus lenses (with a metering limitation you’ll learn about). As the D300 is a DX body, its sensor is smaller than the frame size most Nikon lenses were designed for. I’ll have much more to say about this in the section on “Lens Compatibility”...
Page 29: Different
The Analog-to-Digital (ADC) conversion is performed at as • high as 14 bits on the D300, compared to 12 bits on the D200 (though this slows down frame rate). This allows for more subtle and accurate tonal ramps. The ADC is also performed on-sensor rather than off on the D300, giving it a slight advantage in terms of read noise.
Page 30 (100ms; the D200’s was longer but unspecified). Manufacturing issues and tolerances make this more like a 99%+ accuracy, but it’s no more than a few pixels off on any given D300, where the D200 could be as many as a couple of hundred pixels off.
Page 31 V1.02 • The color LCD on the back of the D300 has expanded to 3” from the 2.5” one used on the D200. More importantly, the D300 color LCD now uses 922,000 individual dots to display pictures and menus compared to the 230,000 dots used on the D200.
Page 32 D3. And because the D300 didn’t perform at high ISO like the D3 (no other camera does), many missed the fact that the D300 is actually much better than the D200 at higher ISO values. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 33: Is It Better Than Film
I’ve been shooting regularly with the D200 and D2x since they came out, so I can safely say the following after using the D300 for even a short period: the D300 is a clear step above the D200, and clearly equals (and even exceeds in several areas) the D2x.
Page 34 (e.g. 5000 dpi) doesn’t resolve any additional detail. The long axis of the D300’s sensing area is just a tad shy of an inch and it resolves 4288 points in that distance. In other words, the D300 is...
Page 35 (film) and a digital one (a DSLR such as the D300). On such test charts, the digital camera generally has higher contrast and clarity up to the point where the pattern becomes close to or slightly less than the sampling frequency.
Page 36 300 dpi (dots per inch). Inkjet printers often only need about 240 dpi; even the top print technologies generally don’t go beyond 360 dpi). At 300 dpi, a D300 file generates a print size approximately 9.5 x 14” (>ISO A4). The...
Page 37: Debunking Some Myths
ISO 800 from a D300 with ISO 800 film from a film camera. In short, if you want the very best available resolution, consider going to a medium format camera (and paying the price of doing so).
Page 38 Any format/focal length relationship has been arbitrary. The D300 is no different. If you use both a D3 and a D300, then you’ll carry a lens set that helps you bridge the wide angle end. For example: 12- 24mm, 24-70mm, and 70-200mm (the 12-24mm will work on the FX body from 18-24mm);...
Page 39 There’s also a small change Nikon made that comes into play, as well. First, the matrix meter on the D300 is finely tuned to the autofocus system. When you use Single Point autofocus on a D300, the matrix meter has a tendency to highly value the data that’s under the active focus sensor...
Page 40 As I write this, the Canon 40D provides slightly fewer megapixels and features than the D300 at a lower price, while the Canon 5D provides the same number of megapixels and a larger sensor at a higher price.
Page 41 D300 is a terrible camera with a defective design and not worth the money. I completely disagree. If I were told I could only use a D300 for the next two years, it wouldn’t upset me. Handled properly, it can produce quite stunning images.
Page 42 That’s why an eBook like this one is so important: I’ll deal with the abilities of a D300 in a practical and no nonsense manner, hopefully explaining along the way why “digital” does not equate to “perfect” and how you can use the D300 to consistently produce high quality images regardless of any of its minor imperfections.
Page 43 Remember, this is with a consumer lens, taken through an airplane window, at a non-optimal aperture, shown with minimal post processing. I’d say the D300 is quite capable of stellar results, and this example proves that even in non-optimal situations the D300 can resolve plenty.
Page 44: D300 Basics
The power system is the same (though the D300 uses less power while shooting than the D200). From the front, the primary differences between the D200 (left) and D300 (right) are the cover for the 10-pin and PC sync sockets (upper right) and the positions of the controls on the left side as we face the cameras have changed very subtly.
Page 45 The D300 features the “button and command dial” interface for most major controls that was first seen on the N8008 and F-801 in 1988. The D300 uses a new version of the exposure system first found on the F5 and D1 series and refined in the D2 series.
Page 46 V1.02 From the back, the D200 (left) and D300 (right) are still very similar, with the larger LCD being the biggest difference. But a close examination shows changes in virtually all buttons (mostly position, but also function, size, and marking).
Page 47 If you’re coming from a D40, D40x, D50, D70, D70s, D80, or any of the D1 series bodies: • Be prepared to be overwhelmed. The D300 is a highly complex camera and has far more options than these camera bodies; the D300 even has a deeper feature set than the professional D1 series.
Page 48: The D300 Sensor
The D300 Sensor The key element of any digital camera is the image collection device, called a sensor. In the case of the D300, that is a slightly modified Sony IMX021 CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) sensor. In the case of the Nikon D200, it was a Sony ICX483AQA sensor, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device).
Page 49 CMOS is likely the long-term winner in the sensor wars. While it is more difficult to design (especially for high speed transfers, as are used in the Nikon D2 series, D300, and D3), The Nikon-designed sensor used in the D2h and D2hs. LBCAST stands for Lateral Buried Charge Accumulator and Sensing Transistor, a technology unique to Nikon sensors.
Page 50 CMOS sensors is now commonplace at sensor design shops. The CMOS sensor used in the D300 appears to be a close relative of the Sony IMX021 sensor. The most obvious difference appears to be the ability to get 14 bits of data off the sensor instead of 12, though there may be other differences.
Page 51: Sensor Specifications (Size)
“Keeping the Sensor Clean” on page <692>. Many newcomers to digital photography are confused by the published information about imaging sensors. Here are the key specifications for the D300 and other recent Nikon DSLR models: Sensor Specifications (Size) Camera Size “ (mm)
Page 52: Sensor Specifications (Pixels)
APS-DX ). But those DX sensors are not all exactly the same size, as you can tell from the chart. The D200 and D300, in particular, have a very slightly different aspect ratio: 1.49:1 for the D200 versus 1.51:1 for the D300. Nikon generally rounds both to 1.5:1, which was the aspect ratio of 35mm film.
Page 53: Sensor Filtration
Dr. Bryce Bayer. Each individual photosite has a colored filter The critical measurement is area. The best case in a Nikon DSLR, the D2h, has a bit over 88 square microns of area in a photosite, while the worst case, the D300 and D2x, have only about 30 square microns.
Page 54 It’s very important for D300 users to understand what this pattern does, and the consequences it produces in images. Many first-time digital users wonder why the green filter is used for twice as many photosites as the blue and red filters.
Page 55 Software on your computer (Nikon Capture NX or one of the many third- party RAW file converters that are available) is then used to interpret the photosite information to produce the actual RGB values of your visible image.
Page 56 Since the blue photosites are the least sensitive to light, indoor lighting can be a real problem for a sensor, as very small amounts of blue wavelength light is produced by incandescent lighting, Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 56...
Page 57 V1.02 and the lighting indoors tends to be dim to start with. Indeed, overall, the blue channel on the D300 tends to be the noisiest (at least until the camera’s noise reduction circuitry comes into play), and this problem is...
Page 58 In order to “align” the light more properly with the sensor, a microlens is placed over each photosite. The microlens has the task of trying to make the light hit the photodiode at a more perpendicular angle, thus reducing shading effects. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 58...
Page 59 35mm frame means that light can hit the extreme corners of the frame at a very oblique angle with older lens designs. Nikon has done three things to make light hit more perpendicular to the sensor’s photodiodes for the D300: DX frame size—The smaller frame size of the Nikon DX...
Page 60 V1.02 with rear elements that don’t try to make a final dramatic “bend” in the optical path. On top of the D300’s sensor sits a separate “low-pass” filter, sometimes called an anti-aliasing (or AA) filter . The low-pass portion of the filter is used to prevent (as much as is possible ) color aliasing artifacts (like moiré).
Page 61 If you’re getting the idea that the D300 sensor is a “sandwich” of things, you’re correct. Here’s a run-down of the things light has to go through to get to the actual “light-sensing” area on the sensor: •...
Page 62 (often visible as moiré or color fringing in digital cameras). The filter on the D300’s sensor attempts to pass the data below the Nyquist frequency for the sensor pitch, and reject data above that frequency, thus the name “low-pass.”...
Page 63: Tonal Range
V1.02 Tonal Range The sensor in the D300 can capture images with either 12-bit or 14-bits of data for each photosite position. There’s a drop in frame per second shooting performance if you choose 14- bits, but unless you’re shooting action, you might want to...
Page 64 Just for the heck of it, let’s assume that the D300 can capture exactly seven stops of dynamic range (we’ll get to the reality in a bit). Put in a table this 8-bit versus 14-bit difference looks like this: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 65 “Predictable” isn’t quite the right word to use, as no imaging device I know of has a perfectly predictable response to light. My point is that a D300’s tonality curve is more regular than film’s, which tends to vary more with brightness and exposure length.
Page 66 ” in underexposure, as does most slide film, for example. One thing that is a bit unexpected about the D300’s tonal range is that it isn’t perfectly flat, as it has been on most previous Nikon DSLRs. By “flat” I mean that the rendering of the white-to-black patches on a Kodak stepped grayscale chart don’t result in the expected flat line (see chart, below).
Page 67 Web site are pieces of the elaborate testing results that the Imatest testing software produces. Imatest is also the software I use to verify the things I see in D300 images. While I don’t always present the test results in this eBook (you’ve got enough pages and examples to wade through as...
Page 68: Dynamic Range -- Dark V. Bright
My measurement system says the D300 maxes out somewhere around 8 stops of usable camera The sensor is capable of higher performance than the D300’s shutter. “Dynamic range” is the common short-hand term used for both things. I’ve elected to add an adjective in front of the two terms here so that you’ll know if I’m talking...
Page 69 I use (Portra) I usually measure eight or nine stops (processing and printing can have an impact). The camera dynamic range of the D300 is fixed, but the situations you’ll encounter and wish to photograph aren’t fixed in their scene dynamic range. Sometimes you’ll find scenes that have very little range in exposure (said to be low in contrast), sometimes you’ll encounter situations that have...
Page 70 V1.02 noise, as it is the underlying electron current produced without light). On a D300, this results in the following values for the green channel in my testing (rounded to the nearest half ISO 200 1600 3200 12-bit 11.0EV 10.5 14-bit 11.5...
Page 71: Spectral Characteristics
V1.02 But suffice it to say that the sensor in the D300 has a fixed range that it can capture while the situations you want to photograph will present quite a variety of ranges you’ll need to deal with. Don’t fret—the D300 has a plethora of automated features to help you.
Page 72: Noise
V1.02 this—seems to be the D300’s weakest; the green and red responses seem to be stronger and less prone to error. Noise Noise refers to pixel data values in your image that are different from what a “perfect sensor” would produce.
Page 73 Normally I wouldn’t use noise reduction software so heavy- handedly, but I’m trying to make a point: we can remove noise, but not without other issues intruding. Sensors produce noise in two primary ways: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 73...
Page 74 D3, but bigger than that of the Coolpix cameras. Thus, it should be obvious that the visibility of a D300’s shot noise is lower than that of a Coolpix, higher than that of a D3. The generally accepted value is that it takes a signal-to-noise ratio of 2.7 before you can get...
Page 75 That pattern will change a bit over time, and with temperature. Nikon, like all digital camera makers, masks off light from some photosites at the...
Page 76 For example, here’s a 10-minute exposure taken with my D300 and the lens cap on (the entire image should therefore be black, even though I didn’t use any form of noise reduction): And, yes, at 10 minutes the exposure is pretty much all black.
Page 77 What the pattern will be and how visible it is depends upon a number of factors. In general, Even those that argued that some grain seemed “clumped” were only seeing stochastic random patterns. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 77...
Page 78 In general, however, proper exposure and camera settings should help you avoid that. Also, make sure your D300 has the latest firmware, as Nikon changed an internal routine that was triggering visible patterns on long exposures.
Page 79: Hot And Dead Pixels
Dead pixel—a dead pixel is one that is non-responsive to light and/or produces no electrons for the ADC to count. On a sensor like the D300’s, which has an on-sensor ADC, it could also be a problem with the ADC for that photosite.
Page 80: Sensor Longevity
I’ve mentioned “mapping out” pixels several times now. Nikon does this at the factory, and can do it at any of their authorized service centers. If you’re in the “don’t fix it if it isn’t really broke” category, you can also use software to analyze and correct your images after you take them.
Page 81: Sensor Wrap-Up
The photosites are jammed together, but the light-sensing portions of most sensors, including those in the D300, are significantly smaller than the overall photosite size, partly in order to keep light-produced electrons from migrating too easily to adjacent photosites, partly to allow room for other signals on the chip (power and data transfer, primarily).
Page 82: Expeed
For a fuller discussion of how sensors work, see http://www.bythom.com/ccds.htm. EXPEED As part of the D300 (and D3) introduction, Nikon finally got around to giving a name to the digital imaging system internal to their cameras. On a digital camera, there are a handful of digital parts that are involved in the imaging.
Page 83 You may notice that this board looks a little poor. That’s because it came from a D300 that was submerged in the ocean, and is now suffering a bit of corrosion from the salt water. This board has 12 (!) connectors on it, plus the backside has the clock battery Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 84: Power
Lithium- Ion EN-EL3e pack, the same as was used in the Nikon D80 and D200. If you’ve moved to a D300 from the D200 or D80, your extra batteries will work just fine in your new camera. Each EN-EL3e battery weighs about 2.8 ounces (80g), which makes carrying multiple batteries painless.
Page 85 To keep the confusion to a minimum, EN-EL3e batteries—the ones that work in a D300—are gray instead of the black color of the earlier, incompatible batteries. Bottom line: gray Nikon batteries work in the D80, D200, and D300; gray or black Nikon batteries work in the D50, D70, D70s, D80, and D100.
Page 86 Nikon D200 body) will work in the D300. It won’t. The information on the S pin (third terminal) on a battery inserted into a D300 has to be precisely what the D300 is expecting. In the United States, the battery and MH-18a Quick Charger are supplied with the camera;...
Page 87 D300 battery. The only real difference between them is that the older MH-18 is a little bit bigger than the MH-18a supplied with the D300. For those of us who travel a lot, that was a welcome change. The fact that the charger only has two connection terminals while the battery has three also confuses some users.
Page 88: Changing Batteries
Note: Unlike the NiMH batteries used for the D1 series, the Lithium-Ion EN-EL3e used with the D300 shouldn’t have to be “conditioned” prior to use. Still, it has been observed by many that new EN-EL3e’s...
Page 89: Charging Batteries
(or inserting) an EN-EL3e battery pack. If you change batteries and forget to turn the power off while doing so, the D300 sometimes thinks a new card was inserted and a new folder may be created. Multiple folders...
Page 90 This is a serious design flaw, in my estimation, adding extra cords and gadgets a D300 photographer shouldn’t need to deal with. (It doesn’t help matters that D1 series models used different chargers and batteries than the D50/D70/D100/D200, which use different chargers and batteries than the D2h/D2x/D3.
Page 91: Battery Storage
Thus, always store the EN-EL3e battery with a mid-range amount of charge left in it. Clock Battery The D300 also has a small, internal battery for keeping the date and time. This battery has an expected charge life of about three months. Keeping the camera powered for two...
Page 92 The camera power switch should be in the OFF position before removing or inserting any connection to the DC In slot. The D300 can also be powered by a variety of batteries in the optional MB-D10. You’d also need to find the right connector which, unfortunately, is yet another Nikon-proprietary one.
Page 93 Remove the plastic cap from the MB-D10’s connectors and slide the MB-D10 onto the bottom of the D300. As you do this, make sure that the tripod socket and outer alignment tabs on the MB-D10 are going onto the D300 correctly.
Page 94 (four batteries insert into one side, four on the other side of the tray). b. Push the battery tray back into the MB-D10. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 94...
Page 95 MB-D10 battery(s) first. Normally, you want the camera to use the MB-D10 battery first, as it is the only one that’s easily accessible with the MB-D10 mounted on the camera. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 95...
Page 96: Battery Life
V1.02 Battery Life You’ll probably be surprised to learn that the D300 uses very little energy when it sleeps between shots (<3mA). When turned OFF, it uses almost as much (typically <2mA). Thus, it makes little sense to turn the camera OFF between shots (unless you’re using a Microdrive;...
Page 97 (i.e. you’d get a 25% reduction in shots per charge). Note: Most D300 users use the color LCD to review the histogram, but there’s still a trick you can use to preserve a bit of power. After you’ve reviewed the shot for exposure, press the shutter release partway to activate the metering and autofocus systems.
Page 98 WT-4 after a few seconds when it isn’t being used, so battery life is substantively better than that. Unlike the D2h, where the file sizes are small, the D300 has the additional attribute of keeping the wireless transmitter active longer while transmitting a single picture (at least at maximum resolution).
Page 99 The consequence of the LCD overlay needing power is that if you store a D300 for a month, at the end of that month you’ll have either a discharged or low battery. Moreover, you’ll likely be running the battery fully down, which as I’ve already mentioned, is not the way to leave...
Page 100 (this is for a single EN-EL3e battery; users of two EN-EL3e batteries (one in the MB-D10 and one in the camera can let the first battery run down completely but Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 100...
Page 101 (and I mean full). Two fully-charged batteries are all I’ve ever needed shooting NEF images on my D300 during a full day, and that seems to be true for others I’ve talked to, as well. (Again, this might not apply if you’re using the wireless transmitter, GPS,...
Page 102: Battery Notes
Besides the usual battery status icon (on the top LCD), the D300 has the ability to tell you much more about your battery: 1. Press the MENU button to see the menu system.
Page 103 (hint: look at it just before changing batteries) you’ll have a very good idea. I routinely see values above Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 103...
Page 104: Image Storage
After an image is written to the storage card, the buffer space it used is freed up. Put another way: on the one side the D300’s sensor and imaging ASIC (blue items in diagram below) is filling up the buffer, while on the other side the storage circuitry (green items) is emptying it.
Page 105 (and on a D300, card speeds are a factor in clearing the buffer).
Page 106 Note: The D300 can lose images. When you turn the camera off it may still be writing images from the buffer to the storage card. The green indicator light stays lit to indicate this—in...
Page 107: Buffer Sizes
The remaining buffer is always shown by the r indicator while shooting, so it is always easy to see where you stand in terms of remaining memory. But a number of options impact buffer size. Here’s what my D300 says is available at my usual camera settings: Normal...
Page 108 Why is there a limit? To keep the circuitry from overheating and contributing to image noise, apparently. Curiously, Nikon’s numbers were made with a SanDisk Extreme III card, which does not support the fastest write speed the D300 is capable of. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 108...
Page 109: Compactflash
The D300 can use Type 1 or Type 2 CompactFlash cards, but holds only one card at a time (i.e. you can’t stack two of the thinner Type 1 cards in the slot). Nevertheless, most D300 users own and use multiple cards.
Page 110: Udma
• Hoodman 280x The D300 and D3 were the first. Canon’s 1DsIII, Olympus’ E3, and Sony’s Alpha 700 also support UDMA. It’s likely we’ll see many cameras support it in the future. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 111: Solid-State Compactflash
Like a disk, a CompactFlash can develop “bad sectors” over time and files can become “fragmented” if you delete individual files. Fortunately, the act of using the D300’s controls to “format” a CompactFlash card generally removes file fragmentation (as well as the file information!). Formatting a card using a PC also isolates bad sectors, but only if you Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 112 The D300 supports FAT32, but using FAT32 on cards that are 1GB or smaller is inefficient. Unless you have a card at least 2GB in size, use plain old FAT. Moreover, Macintosh users don’t have easy access to FAT32 facilities.
Page 113: Microdrives
(family) with 2GB and 4GB versions, and the newest versions come in 6GB and 8GB sizes, with hints that more increases are forthcoming. The designs of each family are a bit different. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 113...
Page 114: Microdrive Compatibility
Photos: Courtesy of International Business Machines Corporation. Unauthorized use not permitted. Nikon doesn’t recommend using a MK1 version of the original IBM Microdrive in any of their cameras, though versions of the 340MB drive manufactured after mid-2001 (indicated with a letter “D” at the end of the serial number) should work fine, as that drive was modified to incorporate changes that also appeared in the MK2 drives.
Page 115 Nikon has stated that one reason they didn’t endorse Microdrives with the original D1 was that the location of the CompactFlash slot coincided with the “hot spot” in the camera. While the D300 has shifted the positions of components, heat build-up is still potentially an issue. •...
Page 116 Nikon recommends against using a Microdrive for updating camera firmware, and several users I know can confirm this has caused troubles on earlier Nikon DSLRs. If you use a Microdrive with your D300, I’d recommend the following: • Avoid using it in extremely cold or hot weather.
Page 117: Using Compactflash
Using CompactFlash To insert a CompactFlash card in the D300: õ 1. Turn the D300’s power switch to the OFF position. 2. Move the CompactFlash Card Door switch towards the right of the camera (counterclockwise). The card door on the right side of the camera should pop open.
Page 118 If you haven’t previously used the CompactFlash card õ before inserting it into a D300, or if the card contains images you no longer need, you should format it as follows: 1. Turn the D300’s power switch to the ON position.
Page 119 While it is possible to recover images immediately after performing an in-camera format, it is a hassle to do, and Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 119...
Page 120 The D300 tells you when a CompactFlash card is full by blinking the card indicator and 0 in the Frames Remaining indicators in the top LCD, and blinking 0 in the viewfinder.
Page 121: Nikon-Approved Cards
SanDisk: Extreme IV (SDCFX4) 2GB, 4GB, 8GB. These are UDMA capable cards. I’ve used a wide range of other cards in the D300, and have yet to find any that cause operational issues with the camera. However, note that counterfeit cards do exist and are often sold on auction and other Internet sites to the unsuspecting.
Page 122: How Much Card
How Much Card? Files created by the D300 are large; larger than you’re used to if you’re coming from a previous Nikon DSLR other than the D2x. As you’ll find out in coming sections, this can put a crimp on the number of shots you can get on a card.
Page 123: Compactflash Troubleshooting
Likewise, it’s possible for cards to get lost clusters and files on a card. Use the D300’s format function to erase all information from a card instead of individually deleting files. Alternatively, you can reformat cards on your computer if you Clusters are the basic unit in which information is stored on disk drives (and CompactFlash).
Page 124 However, if black frames appear on more than one of your cards or on a regular basis, you should have your camera checked by Nikon. Black frames are also a possible indication of a shutter problem on D300 bodies. Problem: Part of the frame (typically the lower portion) doesn’t seem to have all the colors or has lines and streaks...
Page 125 I can recover images from cards, when necessary. Problem: Images you shot don’t seem to be recorded on the card. Recovery software finds no record of them, and the file numbering seems sequential. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 125...
Page 126: Image Formats
If you have a full buffer of 40 images it can take a few seconds to clear that buffer to CompactFlash. Fortunately, the D300 doesn’t have the design problem of previous Nikon DSLRs, which you could turn off before flushing the buffer completely (the D1 series only flushed one image before letting the camera turn off).
Page 127 JPEG basic image as a “thumbnail” that is added to the file. If you want the highest quality image the D300 is capable of, use 14-bit uncompressed or lossless compressed NEF (though this requires that you use appropriate software to decipher the data;...
Page 128 Fair enough. Just realize that you’re going to have to make some choices about how you shoot with your D300, and the It’s unclear exactly how the data goes from 12-bit to 16-bit internally. But a commonly accepted programming practice is to place the 12-bits of data into the highest order bits of a 16-bit field.
Page 129: Pixels
Photoshop, normally use 8-bit values for most work JPEG shooters should note that the D300 does a pretty darned good job of rendering into the format. It’s not that JPEG quality is bad, it’s that NEF quality can be better in the right hands.
Page 130 (the remaining color information is deciphered later). You do this in a compilation of bytes called a file. On a D300 at its highest in-camera resolution, that amounts to a minimum of 36,636,672 bytes of data (4288 x 2848 pixels at 3 bytes per pixel), which we’d normally just...
Page 131: Jpeg
This is true for JPEG and NEF files on a D300. JPEG The D300 normally stores images in JPEG format Windows, the three-letter file extension limit reduces this to .JPG, so you may also have seen this format referred to as JPG).
Page 132 The D300 can produce photos encoded in JPEG format. The D300 has two settings that determine how much compression is used. The first, consists of the type of JPEG image: fine, normal, and basic, which determines the gross level of compression.
Page 133: Setting Jpeg
Thus, if you want to create smaller images from the JPEGs that the D300 produces (say for Web use), the highest quality will be obtained if you reduce the size to 1/8 (e.g. 536 x 356 from the Large JPEG size created by a D300).
Page 134 Medium 2144 x 1424 3.1mp Small To set the D300 to record JPEG images: õ 1. Press the MENU button to show the menu system. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SHOOTING menu (green camera icon tab).
Page 135 > key on the Direction pad to select it. 7. Use the Direction pad to navigate to JPEG compression and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 135...
Page 136 (Size priority or Optimal quality). This last bit (Steps 7 and 8) first appeared on the D2x and is relatively new to Nikon DSLRs. You may think it’s another way to set JPEG fine or JPEG normal. Not quite.
Page 137 While the image looks bright, it is properly exposed—the slight lack of definition in the white is caused by Nikon’s change in gamma (Brightness setting). One word of warning: go by what I write, not necessarily what you see.
Page 138 4.1MB. There is a slight boost in contrast, but I don’t see any other obvious changes. JPEG normal Optimal quality. File size is now 3.2MB. Again, contrast is building. Artifacts are well controlled. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 138...
Page 139 I’m seeing JPEG artifacts at one full step in the resolution charts above that of JPEG normal. Still an impressive showing considering the data reduction, but those Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 139...
Page 140 Colors have lost a tiny bit of punch due to noise, and I’d rate the really fine edges slightly worse than any of the ISO 200 samples. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 140...
Page 141 JPEG normal Size priority. File size is 3.5MB. Detail is now visibly getting lost in the lower levels of the resolution chart that wasn’t before. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 141...
Page 142 Contrast has picked up to visibly higher levels. So what are we to conclude from the above? The D300 always does a pretty good job of rendering, even when JPEG compression is cranked up and you bump ISO values. As you move to higher compression levels you get a slight contrast build up.
Page 143: Jpeg Rendering
16-bit data (early Nikon DSLRs used 8-bit processing, later Nikon DSLRs used 12-bit processing). The translation to 8-bit JPEG on a D300 is done only after all the demosaicing, color manipulation, sharpening, and other effects are first handled. In other words, the D300 takes the...
Page 144: Jpeg Artifacts
By keeping the in-camera manipulations in 16-bit data, the D300 avoids this problem. Shadow detail in JPEGs made on a D300 is much better than most previous Nikon DSLRs (though it can be a bit noisy at higher ISO values if noise reduction isn’t turned on).
Page 145 “mosquitoes,” as it looks like a large swarm of flying insects was present when you took the picture. This is the primary artifact I see (rarely) in D300 JPEG images, though it is difficult to produce in a way that’s clearly visible. But let’s try: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 146 JPEG compression: Curiously, applying a small amount of “blur” to the original data before applying JPEG compression reduces the visibility Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 146...
Page 147 My point is that the more JPEG compression you use, the more you’ll fight that problem. The D300 is a bit like the D100 and D200, though: something in the JPEG rendering scheme used tends to make JPEG fine...
Page 148 This is probably a good point to introduce the interaction effect of certain camera features, since I’ve already mentioned a few. The D300 does have a few image quality issues that you need to be aware of, and we’ve come to one of them.
Page 149 • Higher JPEG compression produces more artifacts at higher ISO levels. The noise on the D300 tends to be very granular and visible at high ISO levels, and this triggers the compression engine towards mosquito-type artifacts on hard edges. Avoid JPEG basic and Size priority at ISO 1600 and above.
Page 150: Jpeg Recommendation
I start dropping the “if you can” at the really high ISO values. TIFF Format The D300 also can store information in TIFF format (in Windows, the three-letter file extension limit reduces this to .TIF). TIFF (pronounced TIF) stands for Tagged Image File Format, which was originally proposed by a group of multimedia software developers and later standardized.
Page 151 12 bits to 8 bits per value. The translation to 8-bit TIFF on a D300 is done only after all the demosaicing, color manipulation, sharpening, and other effects are first handled.
Page 152: Setting Tiff
That’s a tough trade to make. Most people will pick the smaller file size. The D300 creates one type of TIFF file, an RGB TIFF that has pixels stored with 8-bit red, green, and blue components. I mention this because the D1 series could create a second type, YcBcR TIFF, which was one 8-bit luminance and two 8- bit color components.
Page 153 Medium 2144 x 1424 3.1mp 10.2MB Small To set the D300 to record TIFF images: õ 1. Press the MENU button to show the menu system. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SHOOTING menu (green camera icon).
Page 154: Tiff Recommendation
Top LCD (only one of the options is highlighted at time): TIFF Recommendation If you know that you need the best possible out-of-camera results and have the card space, don’t be afraid to set TIFF Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 154...
Page 155: Nef Format
Nikon defines “black” in raw data, and partly to do with the compression options for raw data. The first 300,000 D3 and D300 owners received a free copy of Nikon Capture NX 1.3, which is Nikon’s raw conversion program.
Page 156 The image thumbnail is generated by the EXPEED imaging ASIC while the raw data is in the memory buffer, then the file is written to the card. The format used is Nikon’s derivative of the TIFF-EP standard. In other words, a Nikon NEF is a TIFF file with Nikon-defined tags pointing to various .TIF...
Page 157 If you’re just curious about how software converts the Bayer pattern data into RGB data, send your browser to www.liralab.it/teaching/SINA/papers/demosaicking-JEI- 02.pdf, which contains a short discussion on common demosaicing methods. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 157...
Page 158 If you open an NEF file with Bibble, Photoshop CS3, Capture One, and Nikon Capture NX side by side, you will see subtle differences in rendering of color and detail. If you’re getting the idea that it might be worthwhile to sample all the NEF converters, you’re right.
Page 159: Typical D300 File Sizes
For NEF+JPEG just add the appropriate NEF and JPEG figures together. File sizes are approximate due to compression effects and also sector size differences. The numbers reported above are Nikon’s. In practice, I find Compressed NEFs actually tend to be a bit smaller than Nikon’s numbers. Compressed NEFs The D300 supports two types of compressed NEF files.
Page 160 I’m not sure I’d term the methodology Nikon uses for the visually lossless format as “compression,” but here’s how it works: when photosite data comes off the ADC, it has 12 or 14 bits of value to it.
Page 161 8-bit RGB data. Even with the visually lossless compression scheme used in the D300, we still have the equivalent to more than 8-bits of original data. Since we almost always reduce 12-bit data down to 8-bits for printing anyway, the minor tonal loss that these compressed NEFs introduce into highlights isn’t usually...
Page 162: Why Nef
0,0 on a graph to 255,255 (you may have seen such a line in your software’s Curves tool). We can actually change the straight line to a curved one, which is close to what post processing exposure corrections for raw files are. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 162...
Page 163: Setting Nef
D300, so the amount of correction range you have will be dependent upon your tolerance for noise). You also gain full post-shooting control over color...
Page 164: Pad To Select It
NEF image! It’s embedded as the preview image. Software exists that let’s you extract this JPEG (see http://drchung.new21.net/previewextractor/), so the NEF+JPEG choices are a bit redundant. Too bad Nikon provide an option to extract the embedded JPEG from NEF files during downloading from camera to computer.
Page 165 > key on the Direction pad to select it. 7. Use the Direction pad to navigate to your choice of 12-bit or 14-bit and press the OK button to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 165...
Page 166: Use The Direction Pad To Navigate To Tiff And Press
Custom Setting #F7 to change the dial functions: Top LCD (only one option will appear at any given time; the LMS indicators only appear if you’ve selected a RAW+JPEG option): Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 166...
Page 167 Note that you don’t normally set the Image size when you select NEF (RAW) format, as the D300 always records the full 4288 x 2848 image size for NEF files. However, if you elect to record a JPEG image along with your NEF, you can set the size of the JPEG image that’s recorded using Image size (or...
Page 168: Nef Recommendations
V1.02 The worst case I’ve seen for a single D300 NEF file is a 1.25x change (e.g. if 24 frames remain, you really get 30 on the card). So we can generally assume that you’ll get something between those two values for Lossless compressed.
Page 169 As I explained in the section on the D300 sensor, the change in speed has to do with counting by four (faster, and what 12- bit does) instead of counting by one (slower, and what 14-bit does).
Page 170: Exif
Nikon D300 cameras follow a standard developed by the JEITA (a Japanese standards body), sometimes referred to as EXIF (Exchangeable Image File Format). The current standard version is EXIF 2.21, and is supported by the D300. The additional data EXIF tags attached to an image include: •...
Page 171 V1.02 If you’re interested in the esoteric inner workings of your D300, a fuller description of the EXIF file format is available at http://www.exif.org/Exif2-2.PDF. Note that just understanding the EXIF tags isn’t enough—programs must also know what each of the values each manufacturer assigns means. Bibble,...
Page 172 Save or Update action on your computer, some of the EXIF tags in the file get modified (or removed) in ways that the D300 detects. This is too bad, as it prevents you from editing a series of JPEG files on your computer, then moving them to the camera for playback as a slide show.
Page 173: Iptc
EXIF data into IPTC fields, which I recommend using. I’ll deal with that in the section on the Nikon software in the companion Introduction to Nikon Software eBook you received with this Complete Guide.
Page 174: Dpof And Pictbridge
DPOF and PictBridge The D300 supports DPOF information in the image files. DPOF stands for Digital Print Order Format and was developed by Canon, Kodak, Fuji, and Matsushita to allow...
Page 175: File Names And Folders
A summary of the DPOF specification is available at: http://panasonic.jp/dc/dpof_110/white_e.htm. You select the pictures to print on your D300 by adding them to a Print Set (see “Printing Your Images” on page <736>). When you remove the CompactFlash card from your D300...
Page 176: Folders
Within the folder, digital cameras place one or more additional folders, each of which can have up to 999 images in them. 100ND300 On the D300, Nikon names the first such folder 101ND300 the second , and so on. DCIM...
Page 177 As with the D50 and D70 series, on some Coolpix models you can rename the lettered portion of the name. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 177...
Page 178 Short of doing a complete card format, you won’t be able to remove a D70 folder that has images in it using your D300. And, of course, if you perform a format on the D300 you may be removing folders created by other cameras even if that’s not what you want (this is one of the reasons why I’m a never-...
Page 179 (perhaps because you used a drag and drop method from card to computer instead of using Nikon Transfer), then reformat the card. Goodbye images. I’ve learned the hard way not to get too creative with folders.
Page 180 5. In the display that appears, enter the three-digit prefix: a. Use the Direction pad keys to increase or decrease the value. The D300 will skip over numbers that are already in use. b. Press the OK button when complete.
Page 181 > key on the Direction pad. 5. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the name of the folder you wish to make the active one and press the > Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 181...
Page 182: File Names
999ND300 and a filename that contains the number 9999 or is the 999 file in the current folder, the D300 locks up and refuses to take another photograph. In this situation you must 100ND300 create a new folder name (hint: try ) and make it active.
Page 183 Color Space is set to AdobeRGB.) Note: When I shoot with both a Fuji S3 Pro and a Nikon D300, I can immediately tell which images came from which camera: the Fuji uses an F instead of _ in their filenames DSCF0001.JPG...
Page 184 5. Press the > key again to enter the entry screen. Enter the name you wish to use: a. Use the keys of the Direction pad to navigate to the letter you wish to enter (white letters on gray background). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 184...
Page 185 (even Photoshop CS3 has decent renaming capabilities). I suggest you do the following: 1. Leave the default folder name intact on your D300. While you can create and name folders and move between them, capturing some images in one folder, some in another, etc., this can get confusing in...
Page 186 PhillyZoo_0001.NEF with file names such as . One bad thing about Nikon Transfer is that it always places both files in the same folder. I prefer having my preview files (JPEGs) in a different folder than my “negatives” (NEFs). SeparateJPEGs...
Page 187 JPEG format as soon as possible, even before rotating them.) If you’re shooting NEF+JPEG you can safely ignore this advice, as you have a NEF file that isn’t affected in this way. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 187...
Page 188 Other than the three items listed previously, a file numbering reset doesn’t necessarily happen every time these other events occur. I’ll mention this again in the Custom Settings section, but Nikon has a horrible habit of renumbering custom settings with new cameras. This function is #D5 on the D2h, and #D4 on the D2x, for example.
Page 189: File Number Sequence
Remember, you can change the “DSC” portion of the filename on the D300. If you have multiple D300 bodies, I strongly recommend doing so. Using the filename change ability for keeping track of jobs might be useful for someone...
Page 190 V1.02 Of these options, On makes the most sense, and is the one I use on all my Nikon DSLRs. That’s because file name duplication is dangerous—you could accidentally erase or overwrite a file you wanted to keep. If you set the camera to DSC_0001.JPG...
Page 191: Camera Setup
How Menus Work Many of the D300 settings you’ll want to make require navigating options displayed on the color LCD (see “D300 Color LCD” on page <231>. When you press the MENU button on the back of the camera, the color LCD displays a menu of selections to choose from.
Page 192 NEF(RAW) bit depth, then select 14- bit. To accomplish this navigation, you use the Direction pad (just to the right of color LCD) to move through the menu system: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 192...
Page 193 (changing names of things, for instance). By moving the acceptance gesture from using either option to pressing the OK button, the D300 makes it a little harder to accidentally lose or change critical data. Before you move on, make sure that you understand how you navigate between menus (Tabs), and within menus (Menu Items).
Page 194: The Setup Menu
SETUP menu. You’ll see a short list of options Nikon is up to their old tricks: they’ve changed the name of some items on the D300’s menus from those on previous cameras. This really is silly and is very frustrating to users of multiple Nikon bodies.
Page 195 Sets the date and time (see “Setting Date and Time” on page <199>). Language Sets the language used for the menus on the color LCD (see “Setting Language” on page <204>). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 195...
Page 196 The WT-4 instructions will be available in the future as a supplemental update to this eBook. Image authentication Allows you to set the D300 to work with Nikon’s Image Authentication software. Save/load settings Allows you to save the current camera settings to a file, or to load previously stored settings into the camera’s...
Page 197 I’ll tackle the items on this menu in the order and organization I think more appropriate. Worse still, Nikon has gotten terribly confused on the distinction between things you set while shooting (SHOOTING menu), things you customize on the camera (CUSTOM SETTING menu), and things you set up once (SETUP menu).
Page 198: Date, Time, And Language
Make sure that the camera is either on AC power or has a fully charged battery in it for the next three days in order to recharge the internal battery. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 198...
Page 199: Setting Date And Time
5. In the screen that appears, use the < and > keys on the Direction pad to place the highlighted area in your time zone (names appear at the bottom of the screen). Press the OK button to select the currently highlighted Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 199...
Page 200 > 8. Use the and " keys on the Direction pad to set the M (month) value. Press the key to move to the next > Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 200...
Page 201 > field. 11. Use the and " keys on the Direction pad to set the M (minute) value. Press the key to move to the next > Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 201...
Page 202 Note: If you pause for 20 seconds or more during Steps 6 through 13, the D300 automatically turns off and cancels any changes you’ve made up to that point. Alternatively, you can press the shutter release halfway (or more) or press the MENU button during Steps 6 through 13 to cancel the operation.
Page 203 Press the key to select it. > 17. Use the Direction pad to navigate to your choice of On or Off and press the > key or OK button to select Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 203...
Page 204: Setting Language
Gray market products are those that are brought into a country by someone other than the official importer. Nikon’s warranties only apply to officially imported cameras. In the US, especially, Nikon is particularly careful to only repair officially imported cameras.
Page 205: Programming A Comment
LCD and viewfinder remains in Anglo-based icons. Programming a Comment The D300 allows you to place a short comment in the EXIF õ data of every photograph you take. I suggest that you use it to enter a Copyright notice on your images: 1.
Page 206 > key on the Direction pad to select it. 5. On the input screen that appears: a. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the next letter you want to enter (white letters on gray Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 206...
Page 207 6. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Attach comment and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. The box should be checked if you want to use the comment. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 207...
Page 208: Setting The Lcd Brightness
Copyright 2008 Thom Hogan ########## though.) Setting the LCD Brightness The D300 allows users to set a brightness value for the õ color LCD screen on the back of the camera: 1. Press the MENU button to show the menu system.
Page 209 Novice DSLR users have a tendency to “crank up” the brightness of the color LCD. Moreover, they rely upon it too much to make visual assessments of the photo they just took. Unfortunately, both of these things are wrong. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 209...
Page 210 Gamma refers to how the mid-tone values are set. In general, the D300’s color LCD seems to have the gamma set a bit bright. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 211: Set Up Recommendations Summary
I’ll deal with these items in the section “Shooting Pictures with the D300” that begins on page <224> Viewfinder Adjustment The D300 allows you to manually adjust the viewfinder to help accommodate small differences in vision. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 212 (or the gridlines if they’re on). Are they sharp and distinct? If not, rotate the Diopter Adjustment knob until the focus area marker is sharp. You may want to remove the rubber eyecup to make it Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 212...
Page 213: Focus Screens
(with an LCD overlay on the focusing screen; Custom Setting #D2 on page <549>). Katz Eye makes a split prism screen for the D300. It remains fully functional with the camera’s AF sensor display and on- Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 214: Resetting The Camera
See http://www.katzeyeoptics.com. Resetting the Camera Because the D300 has an enormous number of user-settable options, Nikon has provided a quick reset system to bring the camera back to the factory default settings. Resetting Basic Settings To reset the basic camera settings, hold the QUAL and õ...
Page 215: Resetting Other Settings
(camera icon tab) and press the > key to enter the menu. 3. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the Shooting menu bank option and the > key to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 215...
Page 216: Settings After Reset
6. Navigate to Yes and press the > key to select it. Settings after Reset Setting Default Shooting menu bank Active folder File naming Image quality JPEG normal Image size Large JPEG compression Size priority Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 216...
Page 217: Resetting Custom Settings
Resetting Custom Settings See “Custom Settings Reset” on page <519>. The Last Resort Reset The D300 contains considerable electronics, including a CPU and dedicated digital processors. Like a computer, it can sometimes get confused. If the camera is locked up or displaying unusual or garbled characters, you’ve got one last...
Page 218: Firmware Version
Nikon for servicing (see “Getting Service” on page <761>). Why turn the camera On in Step 3? We want the camera to exhaust any internal capacitors that are storing charge and holding values that need to be reset.
Page 219 2. Use the Direction pad keys to navigate to the SETUP menu (wrench icon tab). 3. Use the Direction pad keys to navigate to Wireless transmitter and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 219...
Page 220 5. Use the Direction pad keys to navigate to Firmware version and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. 6. The firmware version should be displayed: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 220...
Page 221 I prefer the sequence given here, as it means you don’t have to take the WT- 4 off, nor change the USB setting on your camera. Nikon can and does make changes to their naming methodology that I can’t anticipate or predict.
Page 222 10. Navigate to Update and press the > key on the Direction pad to get to the update dialog. a. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Yes. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 222...
Page 223 10, except with the file. The exact display is a bit different, but the D300 turns off the video while updating, so the display can’t be captured. The wording is the same as the screen shot shown here, though; only the progress bar in the middle is different.
Page 224: Shooting Pictures With The D300
D300 Controls Note: I’ve mounted the MB-D10 on the D300 body in the following illustrations. If you don’t have an MB-D10, some numbered items may not apply to you. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 225: Front View
8. Primary Front Command dial (called sub-command dial in Nikon manuals) 9. Shutter release 10. Vertical Shutter Release Lock lever 11. MB-D10 Mounting wheel 12. Lens Alignment mark 13. Lens strap attachment points Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 225...
Page 226: Top View
What’s a focal plane? It’s the point at which the image is focused (i.e. the surface plane of the sensor for a D300 or the surface plane of the film for a 35mm film camera). In close up (macro) work, it’s sometimes necessary to measure distances from the focal plane, thus the mark.
Page 227: Back View
30. Diopter Adjustment knob 31. AE-L/AF-L button 32. AF-ON button (repeated on MB-D10) 33. Rear Command dial (main command dial in Nikon manuals)(repeated on MB-D10) 34. Autofocus Area Direction pad (doubles as Autofocus Sensor selector and Direction pad for the menu system)(repeated on MB-D10) 35.
Page 228: Side View
46. Flash Release button 47. Video Out connector (under rubber flap) 48. HDMI connector (under rubber flap) 49. DC In connector (under rubber flap) 50. USB connector (under rubber flap) Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 228...
Page 229: D300 Displays
V1.02 D300 Displays The D300 features three displays, all of which can present information about the current camera settings. On the top of the camera is the familiar (to 35mm film users) informational panel (called the Top Control Panel by Nikon), though it displays additional information not found on the film bodies.
Page 230 58. Over 1000 Frames indicator 59. Flash Options indicator 60. Focus Area indicator/AF-Area Mode indicator 61. Battery Condition indicator 62. Exposure Mode indicator \ ] ^ l Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 230...
Page 231: D300 Color Lcd
80. Auto ISO indicator ISO-AUTO D300 Color LCD On the back of the camera is a large (~3”) color LCD (Nikon refers to this as the “Monitor”), which can be used to review images taken with the D300 or to display shooting information.
Page 232 V1.02 delta array The D300 uses a color LCD with 920,000 dots arrayed in a stripe pattern: stripe array This is the way in which most LCD TVs display colored information. Indeed, the screen on the D300 is essentially a small VGA-sized television (640x480 pixels You’ll note the strange terminology (dots instead of pixels).
Page 233 V1.02 The higher density of the D300 color LCD and the use of the stripe array makes for a visibly better image on which it’s easier to evaluate sharpness: The difference is most noticeable when you’re zooming in on images to assess the focus. Even with the side-by-side colors, the implied pixel pitch of the D300’s color LCD is 266 dots...
Page 234 Nikon did switch to a glass covering on the LCD to make it more resistant to scratching, but that’s compared to the older style acrylic or plastic covers used on some LCDs. Like any glass, you can still manage to scratch the covering on the color LCD;...
Page 235: D300 Viewfinder
In this book, whenever I refer to the “viewfinder display,” I’m referring to this information. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 235...
Page 236 103. Manual Exposure display/Exposure Compensation setting òóô 104. Frame Count indicator/Frames Remaining indicator/Exposure Compensation value/PC Connection indicator 88.8 105. Over 1000 Images indicator 106. Flash Ready light ç 107. Automatic ISO indicator ISO AUTO Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 236...
Page 237: Image Quality
(see “Spot Meter Point” on page <255>). Unlike previous Nikon DSLRs, the D300 doesn’t really have a way to visually estimate the area comprised by the center- weighted area when you set that method of metering. The area used for center-weighted metering can be changed using Custom Setting #B5 (see page <541>), but you’ll have to...
Page 238 The D300 supports five basic levels of image quality (plus you can record RAW and JPEG qualities simultaneously: (NEF) Images are not demosaiced and do not have camera data applied to them;...
Page 239: Approximate Images Per Card
12-bit RAW Compressed TIFF Large 36500 TIFF Medium 21200 TIFF Small 10200 JPEG Fine Large 5800 JPEG Fine Medium 3300 1271 JPEG Fine Small 1500 1398 2796 JPEG Normal Large 2900 1446 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 239...
Page 240 V1.02 Size is in K (e.g. 6000 is 6MBs) and some of these sizes are the average I’ve seen using my D300, not necessarily Nikon’s listed sizes. Note: Not all CompactFlash cards labeled of a particular size actually have the same capacity due to differences in file allocation and marked bad sectors.
Page 241 Press the > key on the Direction pad to see the sub-options. 7. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the size you want to use. 8. Press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 241...
Page 242 Press the > key on the Direction pad to see the sub-options. 5. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the option you want to use. Press the > key on the Direction pad to Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 242...
Page 243 OK button to complete the settings. If you selected JPEG or one of the RAW+JPEG formats, you need to set the JPEG compression option: 8. Press the MENU button to show the menu system. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 243...
Page 244 JPEG compression varies with the amount of detail in the underlying data. What the JPEG compression option provides you is with a way to force the JPEG compression to react to the detail differently. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 244...
Page 245: Metering And Exposure
In dark scenes, we may need to increase the total amount of light or time the Yet another thing that Nikon doesn’t tell us in their technical documents. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 246: Metering Methods
Today, all SLR-type cameras such as the D300 have multiple automatic ways to do the same thing. First, the D300 has an internal and automatic metering system (see “Metering Methods”...
Page 247 Nikon used to call this system 3D Color Matrix II. However, starting with the D3 and D300, Nikon is now touting it as a Scene Recognition System. That’s because the CCD in the viewfinder is more integrated with the other components in...
Page 248 However, if you’re used to the way the D200 matrix meter worked, for example, you may find that the D300 doesn’t quite meter the same way. The integration of the autofocus sensor information adds another twist into the complex decision the matrix metering system applies, as it tries to reconcile what you’re focusing on with what it thinks you...
Page 249 One thing that catches many by surprise is that the D300’s matrix meter sometimes tries to preserve highlight detail over shadow detail in high contrast situations, especially if you’ve selected Auto Area Autofocus.
Page 250 A “middle yellow value” doesn’t have the same reflectance as a “middle gray value,” or a “middle red value” for that matter. The color ability of the Nikon matrix meter corrects for this, however. If your subject is a big gray blob filling most of the image area, the gray blob will be placed near the midpoint in the dynamic range of the camera.
Page 251 Before leaving the matrix metering, we need to discuss one other thing: gamma. One relatively common complaint by first-time D300 users is that the camera “overexposes.” But if you look at some of the images these people are objecting to, the image isn’t actually overexposed (i.e.
Page 252: Center-Weighted
Having shot on glaciers and in snow several times now, I’m impressed at how much better the D300’s meter is at getting it right (or at least close) than previous matrix meters were. Center-weighted Nikon’s center-weighted metering system measures the...
Page 253: Spot
#B5 (see “Center-weight Circle Size” on page <541>), though I personally don’t find this to be an overly useful feature. One throwaway note in the Nikon literature should be called out: if you’re using a filter that has an exposure factor of one stop or more, use Center-weighted metering instead of matrix metering.
Page 254 In practice I see “exposure pollution” with point sources of light over a far greater area than 2% on my D300 bodies (and usually a bit more elliptical in nature than circular). The spot pattern on the D300 is nowhere near as tight as it is on some earlier Nikon bodies I’ve used.
Page 255: Spot Meter Point
This is a bit less confusing than some previous Nikon DSLRs. Essentially, there are three possibilities with spot metering on the D300: •...
Page 256: Metering Compatibility
Method switch (around the AE-L/AF-L button) so that the white line is pointing to the icon position for the metering method you desire (top setting is center-weight, middle is matrix, bottom is spot). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 256...
Page 257: So Which Metering System Should You Use
Single Point autofocus. Thus, if you focus on something darker or brighter than a middle tone, the exposure may be off. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 257...
Page 258 DSLR. If that’s the case, by all means change the metering system of your D300 to Center-weighted and set the system to match the circle size from your original camera (some earlier Nikon SLRs used a smaller center circle, some larger than the 8mm the D300 uses).
Page 259: Metering With Digital Requires Care
<253>). Metering with Digital Requires Care For some of you reading this eBook, the D300 is your first excursion into digital SLR cameras. If you’ve previously used a 35mm SLR body with print film, you’re likely going to be a bit frustrated with exposure when you first start using the D300.
Page 260 The new Picture Controls and tools like Active D-Lighting have a wide range of ability to change the image.) Let’s cut to the chase: shooting with a DSLR like the D300 is akin to shooting with slide film on a 35mm SLR: to get the best possible image quality out of the camera, you’ll need to...
Page 261 Nikon’s DSLR designs, to date, all have some tendency to preserve highlight detail with their matrix metering system. The D300 does, too. In digital, when more light photons hit the sensor than it can hold (i.e. overexposure), no additional data is recorded; the photodiode and the electron well that holds the electrons it produces is said to be saturated.
Page 262 Yes, those are old favorites: red, green, blue (the primary colors picked up by the sensor) and yellow, magenta, and cyan (the alternate colors on the color wheel). Of the six, I Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 262...
Page 263: Options For Evaluating Exposure
Red+Green channels a lot (yellow patch). In short, take the time to learn how to control exposure with your D300. Fortunately, the camera has some useful tools that’ll help you do just that, which I’ll cover next. Options for Evaluating Exposure The D300 has two useful exposure evaluation features that analyze the exposure data after you’ve taken a picture: RGB...
Page 264 The individual channels are on the right and colored to match the channel (red = red, green = green, blue = blue). The white histogram below the image is the luminance histogram. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 264...
Page 265 Nikon digital SLRs, which could be important to understand if you’re upgrading from a D1 to the D300. On the original D1, only pixels that were 255, 255, 255 (absolute white) were blinked. On the D300, pixels “near”...
Page 266 However, as you’re learning how your D300 works, I think it’s important to have all of these options active and use them to review what the camera is doing.
Page 267: How To Interpret Histograms
This part of the screen is the histogram: The vertical axis is the number of pixels in the image with a particular luminance value. The vertical axis scales with the Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 267...
Page 268 Previous Nikons used a yellow-on-white style that made it easy to see luminance blowouts. Curiously, the old style histogram is possible on a D300, but you have to set Custom Setting #F1 to use the center press of the Direction pad to pull up the histogram.
Page 269 Consider adding fill lighting if you have lots of Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 269...
Page 270 If you’re working in a scene that has many bright values (e.g. snow), the largest peaks may be to the right of the histogram. Likewise, if you’re working in a Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 270...
Page 271: The Histogram
If you use Capture to output 16-bit images to Photoshop, be aware of that! The D300, like the D2 series, the D200, and the D3, has the ability to show individual channel histograms. So what have we been looking at up to this point in this section? Something called a luminance histogram, which doesn’t take color into...
Page 272 Note the spike up the right side? That means that the red channel is fully saturated and blowing out (probably that red roof). Yet the luminance histogram (white) doesn’t show any blowout! Here’s the same image properly exposed: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 272...
Page 273 That’s because most color manipulations you’d make after the fact impact the blue and red channels more than the green, which is in the middle of the spectrum between the two. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 273...
Page 274: Exposure Modes
The D300 (and D2 series, D200, and D3) use a simpler program that does not change with focal length, figuring that the camera operator is smart enough to override the program if shake might be an issue.
Page 275 M Manual exposure mode You control and choose both aperture (Front Command dial) and shutter speed (Rear Command dial); the D300 advises you on exposure by activating an analog metering bar in the viewfinder and top LCD showing what your...
Page 276 Flexible Program exposure mode). Top LCD: Note: If the lens mounted on the D300 does not have what Nikon calls a CPU (i.e. it is an AI or AI-S lens) and you are in matrix metering with Program, or Shutter-priority exposure mode set, the camera won’t take a picture.
Page 277: Flexible Program
Shutter Speed f/1.4 2 seconds f/1.4 1 second f/1.4 f/1.4 f/1.4 f/1.7 1/12 1/15 f/2.4 1/23 f/2.8 1/30 f/3.5 1/45 1/60 f/4.8 1/90 f/5.6 1/125 f/6.7 1/180 1/250 f/9.5 1/350 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 277...
Page 278: Iso Sensitivity
<536>], but I’d suggest just leaving the camera at the default) The D300 also has settings of LO 0.3, LO 0.7, and LO 1.0, HI 0.3, HI 0.7, and HI 1.0, which are approximately equivalent to ISO 100, 125, 160, 4000, 5000, and 6400 respectively.
Page 279 As you move ISO values up, the camera dynamic range decreases. Eventually, that range becomes suspect and it gets difficult to reproduce a wide range of tones. Nikon marks that changeover point by stopping the use of numeric ISO values: To set ISO values on the D300: õ...
Page 280 > key on the Direction pad to select it. 5. Use the Direction pad to select an ISO value and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 280...
Page 281 Added digital noise makes an image look rougher (most noticeable in large areas of a single color). Worse still, digital noise added by the D300 is not truly random, unlike film grain. The D300 has a variety of noise reduction schemes, some of which work automatically and some of which are user controlled.
Page 282 “damaged”; and (4) whether colors are staying accurate and vibrant, even in the shadows. Note that some of the colors are intentionally going out of gamut in this example. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 282...
Page 283 It’s modest, but most certainly there (all noise reduction is Off). Remarkably, the colors still have a vibrancy to them. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 283...
Page 284 Note: Underexposing is a bit like setting a higher ISO. Some of the complaints I’ve heard from D300 users about “noisy, unsaturated images” can be attributed to this. For example, let’s say you were shooting at ISO 200 but underexposed by Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 285 Do your images look as if they were shot at ISO 800 when you run a correction on them in post processing? I’m betting that, yes, they do. Just like with the other Nikon DSLRs, I see an almost direct one-to-one correspondence between results from underexposure and higher ISO use on the D300.
Page 286: Noise Reduction Settings
(photosites where the data values get “stuck”). Surprisingly, this is not a particularly necessary function on the D300, as the camera seems only modestly prone to Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 286...
Page 287 Since this is apropos to a discussion of ISO, let’s look at how noise reduction fares at the highest ISO value, HI 1.0. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 287...
Page 288 (note the edges are starting to become less distinct). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 288...
Page 289 Off—the colors are brighter and more accurate at the expense of “sharp” film grain-like noise in the JPEG images. A good noise reduction program can do Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 289...
Page 290: Auto Iso
The ISO sensitivity auto control option tends to be misunderstood by virtually all users; it does not operate quite as you’d expect and has definite limitations. Fortunately, the D300’s high ISO capabilities are good enough that this is a useful option. Note: Previous Nikon DSLRs used a Custom Setting to enable automatic ISO and set its options.
Page 291 On. Moreover, the camera sets the actual ISO value it picks in sixth stop increments when this feature is active. Another nice touch is that D300 shows the ISO value being used in the viewfinder (and the ISO-AUTO indicator blinks).
Page 292 5. Use the Direction pad to navigate to On and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. 6. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Maximum sensitivity and press the > key on the Direction pad Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 292...
Page 293 9. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the lowest shutter speed you want the camera to use when automatic ISO is active and press the > key on the Direction pad Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 293...
Page 294 Avoid the JPEG basic and Size priority settings. By making the settings I suggest, you’re working not only in the “sweet spot” of the D300, but you’re minimizing the chance that whatever noise is produced will show up in your image.
Page 295: How Iso Values Are Created
To optimize image quality, follow these guidelines for setting ISO values: • Use the lowest numbered ISO setting (200) whenever possible. The D300 is near state-of-the-art if not at state- of-the-art when using its base ISO level. • Expose to the right. Underexposure will generate additional noise when you post process an image to restore brightness.
Page 296 Capture NX or Photoshop to re-center the exposure (Curves, Gamma, Exposure Compensation, etc.). On a D300 you don’t want to fail to use the full range of the histogram to the right of center (i.e.
Page 297 Tip: For noisy NEF images taken at high ISO values, try using Nikon Capture NX to convert the image to 16-bit TIFF. Open the resulting file in Photoshop to make your color and image adjustments. Convert the image to Lab Color. Then use the Median filter (on the Filter/Noise menu) to remove noise on the A and B (color) channels.
Page 298 Still, the higher the ISO value you use, the more likely you’ll spend significant time performing image correction, especially as you go up in print size. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 298...
Page 299: Exposure Bracketing
“expand” the data to the full 8-bit width in post processing, you’ll get posterization in your data. Moreover, in 8-bit data, the bottom Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 299...
Page 300 (both can’t be set simultaneously). One thing that is going to frustrate D300 users is that Nikon has removed the dedicated exposure bracketing button that we used to have on the D200 and D2 series bodies. Instead, bracketing is one of the possible assignments for the Fn button on the front of the camera.
Page 301: D300 Exposure Bracketing Values Table (Exposures)
0, +0.7, +1.3 EV + 3F 0 .7 0, +1, +2 EV + 3F 1 .0 0, -0.3, +0.3 EV 3F 0 .3 0, -0.5, +0.5 EV 3F 0 .5 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 301...
Page 302 (I end up with exposures of +0, +0.7 and +1.3 or +0, +1, and +2.) You can do the same thing by setting +3F 0.7 or + 3F 1.0 on the D300, but I use the combo method because it works on every Nikon body that supports bracketing, while the second, direct method works on only Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 303 Here’s the bare outline of the steps needed: 1. In the field, set your D300 to 3F 1 .0 bracketing. In theory, this provides us another stop of detail in the shadows and another stop of detail in the highlights of our final shot when we combine the images later.
Page 304 Photoshop skills, but I’ve seen some remarkable images created this way. These images would be very difficult to duplicate with film. Better still, use the D300’s bracketing sequence to create images for Photoshop’s Merge to HDR function . This new...
Page 305 The same thing is true if your CompactFlash card fills up in the middle of a Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 305...
Page 306 1, 2, or 3), then you’re setting white balance bracketing! Note: If you shoot in NEF format, Nikon Capture NX allows a range of after-the-fact exposure adjustment. You can actually save space on your CompactFlash card by simply...
Page 307: Exposure Compensation
(beach, snow, etc.) +3F 1 .0 Exposure Compensation The D300’s exposure meter, like all modern meters, is set to assume that the subject it is looking at has a reflectivity of middle gray. Camera meters are calibrated to ANSI standards, which use luminance targets, not reflective targets.
Page 308 I know also does so with regularity . Fortunately, it’s quite simple to do, and Nikon has been good about keeping the exposure compensation control in the same location on most of their recent camera bodies, whether they are film or digital As you might expect, I have my own method of dealing with exposure.
Page 309 Custom Setting #B4; see “Exposure Compensation Control” on page <539>. When you set this alternate method, called “Easy Exposure Compensation” by Nikon, one of the command dials on the camera is used to adjust compensation values, even when the button is not £...
Page 310: Active D-Lighting
Many recent Nikon DSLRs have had D-Lighting built in (as does the D300). This feature lives on the RETOUCH menu and is used to apply value changes after the fact on images you’ve shot (see “D-Lighting” on page <710>). What’s new Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 311 V1.02 on the D300 (and D3) is that the technique can be applied as you shoot. Nikon calls this Active D-Lighting. Active D-Lighting also changes exposure (which is why I’m dealing with it in this section of the eBook). Specifically: •...
Page 312 • The Active D-Lighting function is designed to work on high contrast scenes. If you use it on a low contrast scene, Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 312...
Page 313: White Balance
(where the light is usually “bluer” due to reflections and light scatter), our brain knows that shirt itself isn’t getting Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 313...
Page 314 (which would have more blue wavelength components). On digital cameras, you set a “white balance” to adjust the sensor to the wavelengths of light being captured. D300’s have nine basic white balance settings: Automatic white balance. Nikon claims that this â...
Page 315 4000K (note that Nikon doesn’t recommend Auto below 3500K for the D300; yet I find that even at 4000K the camera tends to set a white balance that’s a bit too high in Kelvin for the light).
Page 316 Nikon suggests for most indoor lighting (e.g. Incandescent a1 or a2). The D300 detects automatic white balance via two different systems: (1) via the 1005-pixel sensor in the viewfinder; and (2) via the main imaging sensor itself. Nikon doesn’t reveal...
Page 317 (That again brings up Nikon’s choice of 5200K for Daylight—most of the time you’ll find that it generates results that are slightly on the blue side).
Page 318 Lincoln sits. From left to right: 3000K, 3200K, 3400K, 5000K, 6000K. All camera settings and Nikon Capture settings otherwise the same. You should notice in the above examples that as the color temperature on the camera is set higher than the actual value of the lighting, a red/orange cast appears in the photo.
Page 319 Other solutions exist. You could filter one or other of the light sources, add light of a different color (e.g. flash) to overwhelm the poor color, turn the troublesome light off, and more. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 319...
Page 320 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SHOOTING menu (green camera icon). 3. Use the Direction pad to select the White balance option and press the > key on the Direction pad to see the submenu. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 320...
Page 321 Direction pad to highlight the type of bulb that dominates the lighting and press the > key to select it. 6. A new wrinkle (with the D3 and D300) is that you are next given the chance to fine tune the white balance using a two-dimensional plot.
Page 322 Personally, I prefer to get dead-on neutral results out of my camera because it’s always easy to add color in, but more difficult to later remove it. Thus, setting a proper white That would be a moderate magenta filter. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 322...
Page 323 Here’s how these numbers influence each of the white balance settings: My Nikon Field Guide, published in 1998 was I believe the first non-academic work to use MIRED to calculate color shifts. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 324: D300 White Balance Settings
Shade 10526 9524 8696 8000 7407 6897 6452 If you compare this to the tables Nikon supplied with older cameras, you’ll note that either those old tables were wrong, Nikon’s 5 MIRED per increment on the new camera is wrong, or the new camera’s fine tuning option pushes color...
Page 325 The D300 does this, too. If you use the fluorescent white balance settings on light that was produced by a continuous spectrum light source (most other lighting), you’re likely to see a cyan and/or green shift.)
Page 326 The D300 and D3 share the same Kelvin values and form the third group. The D300 also allows you to measure the lighting in a particular location and manually select an appropriate white balance using the Preset manual selection. To select and set a white balance of Preset manual, there are additional steps you must take.
Page 327 MENU button to show the menu system. Otherwise you’re done and can skip the rest of the steps. 7. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SHOOTING menu (green camera icon). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 327...
Page 328 Direction pad to select it. 10. Navigate to the preset setting (d-1 to d-4) you want to copy the white balance to and press the center of the Direction pad to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 328...
Page 329 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SHOOTING menu (green camera icon). 3. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the White balance option and press the > key on the Direction Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 329...
Page 330 4. Navigate to Preset manual and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. 5. Navigate to the preset setting (d-1 to d-4) you want to assign and press the center of the Direction pad to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 330...
Page 331 D300. Curiously, the D300 will sometimes show you images from other cameras, but you’ll get an error message (Can only use photo taken with D300) if you select one. You may wonder why you’d want to copy white balance from an existing picture on the card.
Page 332 Unfortunately, it doesn’t really save an enormous number of steps on the D300, but it is convenient enough to be effective in actual practice (moreover, you don’t have to keep getting your gray card out).
Page 333: D300 White Balance Bracketing Values Table
White Balance settings are maintained when the camera is turned off and turned back on. You can also bracket the white balance settings on the D300: 1. Make sure that Image quality isn’t set to NEF (white balance bracketing only functions for JPEG images).
Page 334: Picture Controls
Remember, MIRED values represent a visually constant change in color. A +10 MIRED adjustment is twice the color change of a +5 adjustment. Nikon uses this instead of Kelvin because a doubling of Kelvin doesn’t have a constant visual change. At low Kelvin values, doubling the value makes for a larger change than at higher values.
Page 335 Space, and Color Mode lived. Older Nikon DSLRs tended to have these things separated out into separate Menu Items. The D300 and D3 have a new approach, which Nikon calls Picture Controls. A Picture Control is a set of parameters for telling the EXPEED imaging system (or Capture NX) how to fine tune the image’s appearance.
Page 336 This is more control than was available with previous Nikon designs. I present it this way just in case Nikon offers any additional Picture Controls, and so that you can see both the Windows and Macintosh downloads and choose which one is appropriate for you.
Page 337 I’m going to come back to these individual items in detail with separate sub-sections in a bit, but first we need to deal with Picture Controls in a more general sense. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 337...
Page 338 17 Picture Controls (by loading new ones from your card), it allows you to share Picture Controls between your D300 cameras (by saving on one and loading on another), and allows you to find the Picture Control of your choice by looking for its name (user assignable).
Page 339 To modify a Picture Control: 5. Use the Direction pad to navigate or change an individual control: a. Quick Adjust modifies the Sharpening, Contrast, and Saturation controls simultaneously. If you leave the selection Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 339...
Page 340 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SHOOTING menu (green camera icon). 3. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Manage Picture Control and press the > key on the Direction pad to Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 340...
Page 341 5. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the Picture Control you wish to use as the base for your newly named Picture Control and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 341...
Page 342 7. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the “slot” you wish to use for your new Picture Control. The camera allows up to nine user-defined Picture Controls, labeled C1 thru C9. Press the > key on the Direction Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 342...
Page 343 (gray highlight) in the bottom box. e. If you have more letters to enter, return to Step 8a, otherwise press the OK button to return to the previous menu. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 343...
Page 344 > key on the Direction pad to select it. 5. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the Picture Control you wish to delete and press the > key on the Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 344...
Page 345 > key on the Direction pad or the OK button to select it. To load a Picture Control (I’ll use one of the D2X Picture Controls that Nikon provides on their Web site in my example): 1. Press the MENU button to see the menu system.
Page 346 6. The camera looks in a folder named on the .NOP card and displays any files it finds there. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the one you wish to use Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 346...
Page 347 To save the Picture Controls you’ve modified: 1. Press the MENU button to see the menu system. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SHOOTING menu (green camera icon). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 347...
Page 348 > key on the Direction pad to select it. 6. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the Picture Control you’ve defined that you wish to save and Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 348...
Page 349 The EXPEED image processor determines how to set these controls based upon its examination of the underlying pixel data. An image low in contrast would be boosted while an image high in contrast Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 349...
Page 350 Personally, I find this setting problematic, just as I did in its previous incarnations on earlier Nikon DSLRs: A (automatic) settings in Picture Controls have a tendency to produce images without much punch. Before we get to the individual controls, let’s take a look at how the predefined settings look.
Page 351 Way too much color push. Note that we’ve lost detail in the red roofs. And look at the green, red, yellow, magenta, and cyan patches in the third row of the ColorChecker: wrong, wrong, wrong, a bit exaggerated, and really Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 351...
Page 352 Monochrome: Note how the blues are all going to black. Nikon’s choices seem a bit on the contrasty side for me, and favor skin tones. You can generally do a better job using Channel Mixing in Photoshop.
Page 353 D2XMODE1: For me, the downloadable Picture Controls are a much better standard choice than Standard. This is the old Nikon color many of us liked, though the reds still have a bit too much yellow-orange to them to be called neutral.
Page 354: Contrast Parameter
For JPEG images, you absolutely need to set something, with 0 being the default choice for the predefined Picture Controls. Okay, that’s a gross simplification. I wrote a long article in my Nikon DSLR Report, Issue #5 that describes in gory detail the “normal” way in which brightness values becomes bit values, if you’re so inclined to get beyond the simplification.
Page 355: Hue Parameter
As with anything in digital, adding contrast after the fact to an image is easier than taking it out. Indeed, Nikon provides such a high contrast capability that you might not be able to recover highlight and deep shadow detail in post processing.
Page 356 I’ll get to in a minute. Grand total, we can move the hue about 18º around the circle using the controls on the D300; that’s about one-third of the way between any of the two colors I show in the wheel, above.
Page 357: Saturation Parameter
The more you boost or reduce the saturation, the more difficult it is to correct. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 357...
Page 358: Brightness Parameter
Think of it like applying a gentle Curve in Photoshop. Personally, I already find that the D300’s images have a slight boost to gamma compared to previous Nikons, so I don’t tend to make additional adjustments to this parameter.
Page 359 +1 Brightness Raising the gamma brings those same values up. Now that gray scale ramp is so low in value that the first two values look similar (though black still is black). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 359...
Page 360: Lenses And Focusing
V1.02 Lenses and Focusing The D300 features the traditional Nikon F mount, and thus can use most lenses made for Nikon 35mm film cameras (see “Lens Compatibility” on page <367> for exceptions). The white marker on the lens (right facing arrow in the...
Page 361 If you’ve previously entered the information for the lens, you can skip to Step Navigate to Focal length (mm) and press the < and > key on the Direction pad until you’ve Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 361...
Page 362 That’s so that you can make it quicker to scroll through and find the exact lens you want to set in Step 4e (or with the Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 362...
Page 363 BF-1A body cap (see “Keeping the Sensor Clean” on page <692>). Note: The body cap for the D300 (BF-1A) is different from the one for earlier, manual focus 35mm film cameras (BF-1) and much different from the cheap plastic cap that comes with the N80 and some other Nikon bodies.
Page 364: An Aside About Lenses
(see “Lens Angle of View” on page <375>). Roughly speaking, anything less than 24mm is considered a wide angle lens on the D300, anything over 55mm would be considered telephoto. Wide angle lenses are used to frame a large area all at once, telephoto lenses are used to isolate a single item and bring it closer.
Page 365 The D300 has a sophisticated, fast, and accurate autofocus system, but with the 18-200mm lens mounted on it and set to 200mm, the camera’s autofocus system isn’t as responsive.
Page 366 V1.02 type lenses are the ones that enable the most features on the D300 ED—Refers to a type of low dispersion glass Nikon uses in • many lenses. This special lens material has the primary property of focusing different colors at the same exact spot...
Page 367: Lens Compatibility
AI-S. AI and AI-S refer to a manual aperture indexing scheme Nikon used to use to get the lens aperture information to the camera (all autofocus lenses and lenses labeled AI-P use an electrical connection to convey this information). Again, see the article on my Web site for a full list of all these arcane abbreviations and what they mean.
Page 368 3D be off. Special Program, Metering None case: PC Aperture- may be off Micro priority, if lens is Nikkor and Shutter- shifted or 85mm priority not at f/2.8 f/2.8D Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 368...
Page 369 Nikkor 1200mm f/11) are incompatible and shouldn’t be used. • Fisheye lenses whose rear element sticks into the mirror box and that require mirror lockup (e.g. the Nikkor 6mm Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 369...
Page 370 PC Nikkor 35mm f/3.5 is incompatible and shouldn’t be used. (Note: Nikon’s manual implies that a newer version of this lens can be used, but Nikon only made one version of this lens! Perhaps they were referring to the later f/2.8 version.)
Page 371: Focal Length Limitations
Because Nikon chose to retain its F mount on the D300, virtually every lens Nikon has made in the past 30 years can be mounted on a D300. But the field of view you see in the viewfinder is different on a D300 than on a 35mm film body.
Page 372 The outer circle is the normal image circle of a 35mm lens. The brown rectangle is the 35mm film imaging area, the inner green rectangle is the boundaries of the D300’s sensor. The D300 is therefore seeing only a portion of the area a regular lens covers.
Page 373 Chromatic aberration and light falloff, for example, increase with distance from the center, and the D300 doesn’t use the far edges of the image circle of regular 35mm lenses. However, note that DX lenses have an image circle smaller than the 35mm frame and may exhibit undesirable edge characteristics.
Page 374: Lens Differences When Used For 35Mm Film Or Fx Body Vs D300
V1.02 between the expensive Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8D AF-S and the inexpensive Nikkor 18-35mm f/3.5-4.5D, at least when mounted on a D300. But there is when used on a 35mm body (though mostly in the corners). Note: If you use your lenses on both a 35mm body (or the FX sensor size of the D3) and the D300, you still must pay close attention to corner issues.
Page 375: Lens Angle Of View
1.5x factor Nikon uses (it should be 1.52). The D300’s aspect ratio is close to that for 35mm in final pixel size (1.49:1 versus 1.5:1), but the exact “angle of view”...
Page 376 Thus, using a lens originally intended for 35mm on a D300 limits you to an angle of view of only about 91° diagonally, while 35mm film users can easily obtain lenses that go as wide as 114°.
Page 377: The Autofocus System
The Autofocus System The D300 uses a new autofocus system, introduced with the D300 and D3 together. While arguably state-of-the-art, Nikon’s documentation of the autofocus system leaves a lot of Modulation Transfer Function.
Page 378 With autofocus active, one or more sensors may light up, indicating the sensor(s) that will be used for focus: The actual part that contains the autofocus sensors—called the CAM3500DX—looks like this: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 378...
Page 379 “separator” lens just above the actual autofocus sensors. This splits the light into two distinct “images” and the line sensors underneath Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 379...
Page 380 That’s why, when there’s enough underlying contrast in the subject to produce data that can be interpreted, the Nikon autofocus system almost never “hunts” for the actual focus point.
Page 381 (we’re talking about something measured in microns here, so these are very tight tolerances). My D300 seems as accurate as any camera I’ve seen to date, Nikon or otherwise. But the shape of the autofocus sensor markings in the viewfinder is a little deceptive.
Page 382 Indeed, this is something you need to watch for in general: if what you’re focusing on is visually smaller than the autofocus Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 382...
Page 383 The autofocus sensor used in the D300 is called the CAM3500DX by Nikon. In the D3, the same part is called the CAM3500FX, though I believe that physically they are the same (the difference comes in how the software algorithms are applied).
Page 384: Focus Mode (Single Servo, Continuous Servo, And Manual)
M Manual Focus—the D300 does not attempt to focus the lens and pictures are always taken immediately when the shutter release is fully pressed. (The viewfinder still displays the autofocus confirmation information, though, which is useful in verifying focus in some situations.)
Page 385: Single Servo Versus Continuous Servo Autofocus
In practice, the D300’s autofocus sensors are so good that such lag rarely happens (usually only for off-center subjects). About the only time I’ve seen it is in low light situations where there is also very little contrast in the subject.
Page 386 V1.02 It’s very important to note the primary difference between Single Servo and Continuous Servo AF. Nikon calls the Single Servo AF mode “focus priority” for a reason—an image is not taken until the camera achieves focus. If the conditions are such that the camera can’t manage to find focus—as...
Page 387: Autofocus Area Modes
One point that sometimes gets confused is how the camera uses something called “predictive focus tracking.” When the D300 focuses in Continuous Servo AF, it always uses predictive focus tracking. But it doesn’t do that in Single Servo AF. That’s a change from previous Nikon models, where Single Servo AF would use predictive focus tracking if a subject was moving at the time focus was acquired.
Page 388 It should be clear that Single Servo, Single Point is straightforward: the camera only focuses on the spot you pick, and the camera Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 388...
Page 389: Autofocus Summary
Autofocus Summary Yes, the autofocus system used in the D300 is quite complex and a bit difficult to understand at first. Here’s a table that summarizes the key options: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 390: Autofocus Settings Summary
Camera Cont Servo Auto Area Camera Camera The big problem most first time D300 users have is that this is a very different system from previous Nikon cameras. In particular, I see these aspects causing the most confusion: • Single Servo no longer uses predictive focus. A subject in...
Page 391: Trap Autofocus
Autofocus Area mode setting immediately below the one you’re using! Trap Autofocus If you’ve used a Nikon film SLR, you may have encountered a special autofocus mode called “trap autofocus.” On some Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 392: Autofocus Assist
The moment that first racer does hit the finish line, click, your picture is taken. You can mimic trap focus on a D300 (Custom Setting #A2 cannot be set to Release): 1. Set Custom Setting #A5 to AF-ON Only.
Page 393 D300, you’re right. Fortunately, you can turn it off (see “CSM #A9, Autofocus Assist Light” on page <532>). If you have an SB-600 or SB-800 mounted on the D300, the camera will use the Autofocus Assist lamp on the flash (if the conditions above are met) unless you turn that feature off at the flash (or are using a lens wider than 16mm).
Page 394: Lock-On (Focus Tracking)
V1.02 Lock-On (Focus Tracking) The D300, like all previous Nikon bodies, has the tendency to hold focus at an established position when objects move in front of the object being focused on. This trait can also show up as an inability to follow focus on something that’s jumping big distances between shots when you’re a using Continuous...
Page 395: Adjusting Your Lenses
Adjusting Your Lenses Nikon has provided a method of fine-tuning the autofocus performance of individual lenses with the D300. This, of course, immediately brings up the question of why you might need to do that—aren’t all new lenses perfect right from the factory? Yes and no.
Page 396 Most new lenses you get these days—especially AF-S ones—are usually dead on, but almost every Nikon user has found one or two of their lenses don’t quite focus where they want it to. If that’s consistently in back of the subject, we call that “back...
Page 397 V1.02 Fortunately, if something is consistently off, you can apply a consistent correction to it, and that’s what Nikon is offering us with AF fine tune (on the SETUP menu). Basically, the camera allows you to set and can remember corrections for up to 12 lenses.
Page 398 72 300mm f/2.8D IF-ED AF-S 73 600mm f/4D IF-ED AF-S 74 85mm f/1.4D IF 76 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6D IF 77 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6D IF 78 135mm f/2D DC 83 80-200mm f/2.8D ED 84 70-180mm f/4.5-5.6D ED Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 398...
Page 399 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED DX VR AF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED DX AF-S 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED VR AF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED DX AF-S 55-200mm f/4-5.6G IF-ED DX VR AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8G ED AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED AF-S Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 399...
Page 400 I’m in a hurry to calibrate Unfortunately, third party makers have a dilemma: they can either use existing Nikon numbers if their lens mimics the Nikon specifications, or they can invent a new number. Unfortunately, with the latter, Nikon sometimes doesn’t look for numbers above a certain value, and the values they do look for might end up getting taken by a new Nikon lens.
Page 401 When you can see the camera centered in the mirror as you line up the chart, you’re perpendicular. Finally, make sure you’re using the largest aperture on your lens so that you have the minimum depth of field. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 401...
Page 402 1. Press the MENU button to show the menu system. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SETUP menu (yellow wrench icon). Tripod mode uses contrast-based focusing, which is not what you want to adjust. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 402...
Page 403 5. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the On option and press the > key to select it. 6. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the Saved value option and press the > key to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 403...
Page 404 You only get one calibration for each lens. A corollary to the point just made is that you can’t do multiple calibrations for a single lens, which means a zoom lens Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 404...
Page 405: Chromatic Aberration Correction
List saved values after you calibrate the first one to set different lens numbers for each of them. Chromatic Aberration Correction When you shoot JPEG and TIFF images with the D300, the EXPEED image processing system automatically removes lateral chromatic aberrations.
Page 406: Manual Focus
You can focus lenses manually on a D300. With many older Nikkor autofocus lenses you’ll need to move the Focus Mode lever on the front of the D300 to the M (manual) position to do so. With most AF-S lenses...
Page 407: Depth Of Field Preview
(e.g. have set an aperture of f/11 on the lens aperture ring). Depth of Field Preview The D300 features a Depth of Field Preview button that closes down the aperture of the lens to the one that will be used during exposure. This allows you to see the approximate depth of field of the final image.
Page 408 I could present a long theoretical discourse and accompanying math regarding the differences between 35mm film and the D300, but that’s a bit beyond the scope of this book. Instead, I’ll present my conclusion: depth of field appears to me to be a bit less than a one stop difference for a D300 than 35mm film or the FX sensor on the D3.
Page 409: 18Mm Lens
Infinity Infinity Infinity Infinity 22.90 20.16 18.58 14.85 11.41 8.85 6.44 4.85 3.44 near Infinity Infinity Infinity Infinity Infinity Infinity Infinity Infinity Infinity hyperfocal 42.2 33.7 29.5 21.1 14.8 10.7 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 409...
Page 410: 28Mm Lens
Infinity 39.30 37.30 36.00 32.37 28.12 24.16 19.56 15.93 12.16 near 68.71 75.80 81.83 109.78 225.15 Infinity Infinity Infinity Infinity hyperfocal 183.0 146.4 128.1 91.5 64.1 46.6 32.0 23.3 16.0 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 410...
Page 411: 70Mm Lens
(sharpness) with increasing diffraction effects (softness). For the D300, it appears that f/11 is about the point where diffraction begins to impact image acuity. I’ll caution that this is an anecdotal value I’ve come up with based upon examination of images, both on screen and printed.
Page 412: Other Dof Theories
V1.02 the value I currently use on my D300 as my diffraction limited aperture. I wouldn’t rule out using f/16 or f/22 to get an increased depth of field, but be aware that diffraction “steals back” some of the sharpness benefits of the very small apertures. If you’re looking for absolute best possible acuity in your images, use f/11 and make sure that the things you want “in focus”...
Page 413: Sharpening
Edges of sampled objects tend to be rendered in a manner that looks slightly fuzzy to our eyes. plays upon those brain interpretations, while having a slightly soft near is in violation of them. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 413...
Page 414 If some detail falls on multiple sensors (bottom) the detail is blurred. While you might not have realized this, you’ve seen those “beat” patterns before in this book: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 414...
Page 415 The usual technique for sharpening images is to apply a technique called “unsharp masking,” and a variation of that technique is used by the D300. Unsharp masking finds edges by looking for adjacent pixels with value differences. On the brighter side of the edge, unsharp masking lightens the pixels;...
Page 416 Epson printers with regular ink and papers is about 30%.) Another photographer I know applies Photoshop Unsharp Mask values of 4, 50, 4 for the D300 (Radius, Amount, Threshold). What you use depends on your output device and the way you balance visual impact with artifacts.
Page 417 D300 at the low ISO values. I’ll often use a value of 7 or higher when I’m trying to assess focus in the field.
Page 418 Note: If you’ve set a sharpening level on the D300, it is applied by default to NEF format files in Capture NX if you’ve left it at the default settings. This is yet another reason to turn sharpening OFF on the camera (that way the camera’s...
Page 419 Sharpening is set via the Picture Control Set option on the SHOOTING menu (see “Picture Controls” on page <334>). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 419...
Page 420: Shooting Controls
V1.02 Shooting Controls Many of the shooting controls of the D300 have already been covered in earlier sections, but a few important ones remain to be described. Shutter Releases The D300 sports the usual shutter release at the right-front top of the camera.
Page 421: Shutter Lag
In manual focus and manual exposure mode with no images in the internal memory buffer, the shutter lag on a D300 is actually only a bit longer than that of the D2 series (45ms on the D300 compared to the D2 series’ 37 ms). That’s still better than most other Nikon bodies, and pretty much matches what the F5’s shutter lag was.
Page 422 V1.02 Frame Rate)” on page <423>), when the internal memory buffer fills, the D300 must write that information to the CompactFlash card. As enough internal memory becomes available for another image, the D300 again releases the shutter. Fortunately, the D300’s buffer is rather large and its write speed to storage is fast, so it’s rare that you’ll...
Page 423: Shooting Method (And Frame Rate)
12-bit format. Shooting Method (and Frame Rate) One of the D300’s key attributes is its ability to take multiple photos in rapid succession. Most digital cameras are quite limited in this respect, but the D300 operates much like a D2 Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 424 (unless you use Custom Setting #D4 to set another value from 1 to 7 fps). If the buffer fills and you continue to hold the shutter release down, the D300 shoots another picture each time one image has been completely saved to CompactFlash.
Page 425 I deal with in “Self Timer” on page <426>), or M (Mirror Up) shows in the notch at the top of the camera. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 425...
Page 426: Self Timer
When the self-timer is set, the camera blinks the white lamp on the front of the D300 from the time you press the shutter release until two seconds prior to the exposure, at which point the camera turns the light on continuously to warn you that the exposure is about to be taken.
Page 427 (or use manual exposure mode). And yes, this is a real problem—I’ve seen exposures vary by more than a full stop! • Bulb can’t be used with the self timer. The D300 automatically cancels bulb shutter speeds and uses 1/3 second instead. (BULB still appears as the shutter speed!) •...
Page 428: Live View
Live View Nikon added a significant new ability to the D300, something they call Live View. Live View allows you to see an image on the color LCD on the back of the camera prior to taking a picture.
Page 429 That’s because Nikon left out a key element that would help you do that: histograms. That’s right; on the D300 you can’t see a histogram while in Live View mode (you can on the D3). Nikon says that’s because the D300 doesn’t have enough computational horsepower to do...
Page 430 Live View requires the mirror to be up to get light to the sensor so that you can see a preview image, Nikon has used a trick to resolve this difference. I call this mode the three-press method: press the shutter release...
Page 431 V1.02 Despite the names, you can use the Hand-held method on a tripod and vice versa. Nikon selected those names because the focus performance for the Tripod method is slower, and not as suited to handheld shots in fast moving situations. That doesn’t mean you can’t use either as you wish.
Page 432: Using Hand-Held Live View
(green camera icon) and press the > key to enter the menu. 4. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Live view and press the > key to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 432...
Page 433 6. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Hand-held and press the > key to select it. 7. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Release mode and press the > key to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 433...
Page 434 (h±) to get back to the full frame. c. You can hold the Playback button ( ) down while using the keys on the Direction pad to change LCD brightness. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 434...
Page 435: Using Tripod Live View
(green camera icon) and press the > key to enter the menu. 4. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Live view and press the > key to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 435...
Page 436 6. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Tripod and press the > key to select it. 7. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Release mode and press the > key to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 436...
Page 437 8. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the shooting method of your choice and press the > key to select it. 9. Nikon suggests focusing prior to invoking Live View, as this gives the camera a better starting point. Select your focus point using the Direction pad (it doesn’t...
Page 438 If you’re using a wired remote, holding the shutter release button on the remote halfway for more than second will mimic pressing the AF-ON button Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 438...
Page 439: Frame Rate Troubleshooting
If you need to shoot with flash with rapid refresh, you should also look into getting the high voltage power option for your Speedlight. For example, you can run both a D300 and an external Speedlight from either a Digital Camera Battery or a Quantum Turbo battery, with the Speedlight being powered at 24v by the battery for faster cycling.
Page 440: Interval Shooting
V1.02 Interval Shooting The D300 provides the ability to have the camera take one or more shots at periodic intervals (sometimes called time lapse or step photography). Interval shooting can be done with the camera unattended, assuming that the camera will stay powered and protected from someone changing settings.
Page 441 Enter the minutes at which you want the pictures to begin by using the % and " keys. Press the > key to move to the interval selection process (and skip Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 441...
Page 442 Now and press the > key to move to the interval selection process. 5. Use the % and " key to set the hour interval between shots. Press the > key when you’ve done so. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 442...
Page 443 Intervals). If you set an interval of 1 second in Steps 5 through 7 and want the D300 to take a sequence that lasts ten minutes, you’d need to enter a value of 600 in the left- Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 444 Press the > key to move to the next entry. 9. You’re almost done. Press the " key to move the selection to On and press the OK button to complete the process. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 444...
Page 445 " key to select Off and press the OK button. Again, you must have the item highlighted when you press the OK button. (Pause means interrupt the process, but remember where you’re at. You’ll later be able Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 445...
Page 446 Confused yet? I hope not. Setting up interval shooting is relatively simple once you get past the complications in Nikon’s menu design and get used to the slightly odd naming. However, there are a few other things you need to take into consideration if you’re going to use interval shooting...
Page 447 See, it’s not a useless feature like you thought it was! Digital still cameras are often used in Hollywood effects, and the D300 will likely get a workout in La-La Land, too. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 448: Multiple Exposures And Overlays
V1.02 Multiple Exposures and Overlays The D300 has two in-camera facilities for creating composite images. These differ in several ways: Image Overlay Multiple Exposure Number of shots 2 only 2 to 10 Image Format Pre-shot NEFs Finished image is a...
Page 449 6. If you want the camera to adjust exposure for the multiple images automatically: a. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Auto gain and press the > key on the Direction pad Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 449...
Page 450 OK button to select it. The camera is now set to take a sequence of photos and combine them into one. But there are some twists involved, so let’s look at them individually: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 450...
Page 451: Remote Control
Control Pro 2.0 (see the Introduction to Nikon Software eBook that accompanied this one). Connecting to a GPS The D300 can be connected to most GPS devices. When you do this, you’ll have Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), longitude, latitude, and altitude data added to the EXIF information for every picture you take while the camera and Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 452 This cradle (for the Garmin Geko GPS units) mounts into the hot shoe on the top of the D300 and has a short, integrated cable that doesn’t get in the way. I personally use an even more elegant, lower cost solution: the di-GPS mini from Dawn Tech http://www.dawntech.hk/di-...
Page 453 GPS data in the EXIF fields. Unlike the D200, the GPS data in the D300 EXIF fields is not truncated in the last digit of the seconds field, which means that it provides the highest possible accuracy.
Page 454: Shooting Information Display
D300 if the camera thinks that’s the case (e.g. you partially press the shutter release). Indeed, the new automatic eye-detection feature on the Nikon D60 indicates that this is the case.
Page 455: D300 Menus
Indeed, I find it easier to read this display than the top LCD with the backlighting active. D300 Menus The D300 uses the color LCD extensively to give you a clearer indication of your options and settings. The menu system contains settings for shooting, setup, and custom settings.
Page 456: Playback Menu ( Tab)
The PLAYBACK menu is disabled and inaccessible if no card is present in the camera. Delete Selected Playback folder Current Hide image Select / set Deselect all? Display mode Done Highlights Focus Point RGB Histogram Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 456...
Page 457: Shooting Menu (Õ Camera Tab)
Print set is grayed out if you have no JPEG or TIFF images. SHOOTING menu (õ camera tab) Showing images rotated on the LCD makes them too small to assess well, IMHO. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 457...
Page 458: Active Folder
NEF (Raw) + JPEG basic NEF (Raw) TIFF (RGB) JPEG fine JPEG normal JPEG basic Image size Large (4288x2848; 12.2M) Medium (3216x2136; 6.9M) Small (2144x1424; 3.1M) File size is very, very large. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 458...
Page 459 High temp. mercury-vapor Direct Sunlight Flash Cloudy Shade Choose Color Temp 2500K to 10000K Preset manual Set Picture Control Standard Neutral Vivid Monochrome Manage Picture Control Save/edit Rename Delete Load/save Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 459...
Page 460 400 to HI 1 Minimum shutter speed 1s to 1/250s Live view Live view mode Hand-held Tripod Release mode Single frame Continuous low-speed Continuous high-speed Multiple exposure Done Number of Shots Auto Gain Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 460...
Page 461: Setting And Naming Shooting Menu Banks
2. Navigate to the SHOOTING menu (camera icon tab) using the Direction pad. 3. Navigate to Shooting menu bank using the Direction pad and press the > key to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 461...
Page 462 Direction pad enters the currently selected letter, Thumbnail button plus Direction pad moves the data entry location, Delete button deletes the character at the data Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 462...
Page 463 ISO sensitivity auto control to On with my usual settings, lower the Sharpening and Contrast settings in my Picture Control, and set High ISO NR as I suggest earlier). I name this bank Thom High ISO. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 463...
Page 464: Custom Setting Menu ( Pencil Tab)
Personally, I wish Nikon had gone all the way with the “bank” idea. The SET UP menu should have banks, too, and there should also be a set of Master Banks that control which of the menu banks are in use.
Page 465: Setup Menu (Ø Wrench Icon)
Custom Settings #A1 through #F10 (see “Custom Settings” starting on page <508>). Unlike most previous Nikon Custom Settings menus, the D300’s menu system is “grouped” into related functions: A Focus related Metering and Exposure related...
Page 466: Format Memory Card
480p (progressive) 576p (progressive) If I have any gripe about Nikon’s option ordering, it is on this menu. The things that you tend to change once (LCD brightness, for example) really should be on the second page and the things you use more often (e.g. Dust ref photo or Battery info) should be on the first page.
Page 467 Nederlands Polski Português Pycckn Svenska Chinese (both traditional and simplified) Japanese Korean Image comment Done Input comment Attach Comment Auto image rotation Mass storage MTP/PTP Dust off ref photo Start Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 467...
Page 468 > key on the Direction pad to select it. 7. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Load settings and press the > key on the Direction pad or the OK Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 468...
Page 469: Retouch Menu (Folder Tab)
The RETOUCH menu and its Menu Items use purple for easy recognition of where you are in the menu system (note the line). D-Lighting Red-eye correction Trim Monochrome Black-and-white Sepia Cyanotype Filter effects Skylight Warm filter Color balance Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 469...
Page 470: My Menu (Checked Tab)
Add items Remove items Rank items Nikon has taken a haphazard approach to ordering Menu Items across the many menus in the system, making many of the more useful ones sprawl into inconvenient locations that take many keystrokes to get to. Fortunately, they also gave us Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 471 To add an item to MY MENU: 1. Press the MENU button to see the menu system. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the MY MENU menu (white checked menu icon). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 471...
Page 472 MY MENU. 6. If the item is not in the position on MY MENU you want it at, use the keys on the Direction pad Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 472...
Page 473 > key on the Direction pad to select it. A check appears in the box in front of the Menu Item. Repeat this step for all the Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 473...
Page 474 1. Press the MENU button to see the menu system. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the MY MENU menu (white checked menu icon). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 474...
Page 475 6. Press the OK button again to complete the move. Repeat Steps 4 through 6 for all the Menu Items you wish to move. To leave the ranking option at any time, just press the MENU button. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 475...
Page 476 V1.02 When you select items from MY MENU during shooting, these apply to the currently active SHOOTING bank or CUSTOM SETTINGS bank. This is important to remember! Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 476...
Page 477: Error Messages
V1.02 Error Messages The D300 viewfinder and top LCD have a number of indicators that remind you how the camera is set while you’re shooting. But more important is that these displays show error messages you need to be aware of:...
Page 478 BULB shutter speed, switch to Manual exposure mode; otherwise set a valid shutter speed (the camera can’t set an aperture when it doesn’t know how long the shutter will be open). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 478...
Page 479 ÄÅÇ Viewfinder The scene brightness exceeds (blinks) that which the meter can handle. Solution: Use a neutral density filter in bright situations, flash in dim situations. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 479...
Page 480 “The Last Resort Reset” on page <217>. Top LCD Speedlight doesn’t support red @(blinks) eye reduction. Solution: Cancel red-eye reduction Flash Option on the camera. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 480...
Page 481 It’s possible that images are on the card, but in a different folder, so check to make sure that you’ve selected the proper folder using Playback folder on the PLAYBACK menu. Otherwise, take a picture! Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 481...
Page 482 Check paper. PictBridge and the printer has a paper feed problem. Solution: check to make sure the printer has paper in it, that the paper feed isn’t jammed, then select Continue. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 482...
Page 483 Continue. color LCD Appears when you’re using Out of ink. PictBridge and the printer has run out of ink. Solution: Put more ink in the printer and select Continue. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 483...
Page 484: Image Review And Playback
V1.02 Image Review and Playback The D300 allows images to be reviewed quickly and conveniently, and provides several options for viewing them. We’ll deal with things that pertain to reviewing and marking images in this section. Image Review Quick review is accomplished by pressing the button on õ...
Page 485: Image Review Options
(when you get to the last picture, the camera loops back to the first, and vice versa). You can change Custom Setting #F7 (see “Command Dial Functions” on Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 485...
Page 486 (the sensor just to the left of center in the example screen on the right). If you’ve set Highlights to appear using Display mode, blown highlights blink. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 486...
Page 487 Page 3: (Only appears if you’ve set Data to appear using Display mode). Metering method, shutter speed, aperture, exposure mode, ISO, exposure compensation, focal length, lens, autofocus method, VR, and flash mode are displayed over the image. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 487...
Page 488 The folder number and file number appear in the upper right corner of the thumbnail image, and the folder and filename, date and Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 488...
Page 489 V1.02 time, size, and image quality, frame count appear at the bottom. Nikon has made two changes that impact users of older Nikon DSLRs: • Highlights appear on the main information page. Some people are objecting to the compression of information into a single space (they don’t like having highlights...
Page 490 D300 may be oriented 90 degrees different from those for some other Nikon DSLRs you’re using. Don’t despair. Use Custom Setting #F3 to set the D300 to match your other Nikon DSLRs (see “Direction Pad Scrolling during Playback” on page <575>).
Page 491 9 images per screen • You can magnify the view by pressing the Zoom In (h) button. Each press (you can do this up to eight times) takes you closer into the image. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 491...
Page 492 1. Press the MENU button to show the menu system. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the PLAYBACK menu (blue playback button icon). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 492...
Page 493: Rotating Images
D300. Current only looks at the folder set by Active folder on the SHOOTING menu.
Page 494 4. Use the Direction pad to navigate to On and press the > key or the OK button to complete the setting. If you’ve set Auto image rotation to On, Nikon Transfer automatically rotates the images during transfer to your computer so that they’ll show up in the correct orientation in...
Page 495 That’s especially true if you use the RGB Histogram page as your primary review page. I leave this option Off on my D300 and just tilt the camera or my head. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 496: The Playback Menu
(press any button on the back of the camera except for the Delete (p) button to cancel Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 496...
Page 497 3. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Delete and press the > key on the Direction to select it. 4. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Selected and press the > key on the Direction to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 497...
Page 498 7. Press the OK button to get the confirmation prompt. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Yes and press the OK button again to confirm the deletion. The two choices in the Delete Menu Item are: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 498...
Page 499 V1.02 Selected As just outlined in the screen shots, above, the D300 displays a thumbnail view of the images, six at a time (Step 2, above). You navigate through them exactly as you would in thumbnail view (< and > key on the Direction...
Page 500 > key on the Direction to select it. 4. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the option you wish to use and press the > key or the OK button to complete the setting. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 500...
Page 501: Image Recovery
Thus, if you write additional images to a card after deleting a file, you often can’t recover the deleted file, as the D300 may have used the space for the new images.
Page 502 +----100ND300 +----101ND300 etc. You can create new folders, but they always have a number as the first three characters and the D300 identifier as the last 102ND300 five (e.g. ), which isn’t particularly flexible. Once again, here’s the full extent of what you can do with...
Page 503 Select which folders to display in playback: õ 1. Press the MENU button to see the menus on the LCD. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to PLAYBACK menu (blue playback button icon). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 503...
Page 504 Folders cannot be renamed (curiously, they can be on the D50, D70 and Coolpix models). The D300 doesn’t allow you to delete folders. To actually get rid of a folder number, you’d have to first set your Active folder value to a lower number, then delete the folder in question with your card in your card reader connected to the computer (or with the D300 connected to your computer).
Page 505: Hiding Images
V1.02 strongly advise against creating additional folders on the D300 (note that if you shoot more than 999 images on a card, you might have one created automatically by the camera). Not only will it create confusion when transferring images to your computer, but unless you’re disciplined about erasing...
Page 506 (e.g. image 100- 24 in the following screen): At this point, you’re done. 7. If you selected Deselect all? in Step 4, the D300 next displays a confirmation message. Navigate to Yes and Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 507: Other Playback Menu Items
Rotate tall is dealt with in “Rotating Images” on page <493>. Slide show is dealt with in “Slide shows” on page <752>. Print set (DPOF) is dealt with in “Printing your Images” on page <736>. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 507...
Page 508: Custom Settings
For example, the self-timer function is #16 on the F100, F5 and D1s, but it’s #C4 on the D2 series and D200 and #C3 on the D300. Fortunately for D2 series, D200, and D3 users, the D300 Custom Settings only have a few numbering differences, but if you’re coming from a D50,...
Page 509 Custom setting bank and press the > key to see the options. 5. Select a bank. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the bank you wish to modify, and press the > key to Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 509...
Page 510 7. Finish up. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Custom setting bank and press the > key to see the options. 8. Name your Bank. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Rename and press the > key. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 510...
Page 511 Press the OK button to complete your entry. Yes, with 48 possible settings in each of four banks, this could take you a while to do. Another option is to use Nikon Capture Camera Control to make the settings with your camera connected to your computer.
Page 512 3. Using the Direction pad to navigate to the group (a, b, c, d, e, or f) in which the custom setting you wish to change is located and press the > key to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 512...
Page 513 Note: In the sections that follow, my name for the custom setting is given in the title. The name displayed underneath it is the one the D300 menu system shows. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 513...
Page 514: Custom Setting #C Custom Settings Bank
V1.02 Custom Setting #C Custom Settings Bank (Custom setting bank) The D300 allows you to store groups of Custom Settings in up to four named “banks.” A Bank A B Bank B C Bank C D Bank D Rename Assign a name to a bank...
Page 515 When I use flash on the D300, I move to Bank C, and when I’m shooting action, I move to Bank D, as those are preconfigured for changes I make in those circumstances.
Page 516 C1: AE Lock C2: Auto Meter C3: Self Timer C4: Monitor D1: Beep High D2: Grid Lines D3: Viewfinder Warning D4: CL 3 fps 1 fps 1 fps 4 fps Shooting Speed Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 516...
Page 517 Default F4: FUNC +dials +dials FV Lock Spot metering Button Bracketing Bracketing F5: Preview +dials Button Dynamic Area AF F6: AE-L/AF-L AE-L/AF-L AE Lock AE Lock AE Lock Button (Hold) Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 517...
Page 518 You may think that setting and naming all of those Banks is going to be a big pain. Not really. With your D300 connected to the computer, use Nikon Camera Control Pro 2.0: 1. Start Nikon Camera Control Pro 2.0.
Page 519: Custom Setting #R Reset Custom Settings For Current Bank519
Custom Setting #R Reset Custom Settings for Current Bank (Reset custom settings) The D300 has a simple method of canceling all user-set Custom Settings in the current bank and returning them to the defaults:...
Page 520 1/60s CSM #E3 Built-in flash mode CSM #E4 Modeling flash CSM #E5 Auto bracket set AE & Flash CSM #E6 Manual mode bkting Flash/Speed CSM #E7 Auto bracket order Mtr>Under>Over Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 520...
Page 521: Custom Setting #A1 Continuous Servo Af Priority
Custom Setting #A1 Continuous Servo AF Priority (AF-C priority selection) When the camera is set to Continuous Servo autofocus (AF-C in Nikon’s usual abbreviation), you can choose whether the shutter release or focus has the priority. Shutter activated on release [default]...
Page 522 Shutter activated only when focus is Focus achieved Recommendations: 1. If you use other Nikon bodies, especially ones that don’t allow you to override this function, consider leaving this setting at its default for consistency. 2. It’s a subtle thing , but some people prefer to have Custom Setting #A1 set to Focus (it’s the way the camera...
Page 523 What I notice on the D300 is that it has a slight and almost imperceptible lag in this respect that I don’t see on some other Nikon bodies, especially if you’re...
Page 524: Custom Setting #A2 Single Servo Af Priority
This is one reason why I always try to write Single Servo AF instead of AF-S in this work. I want it to be clear which “AF-S” I’m referring to. Unfortunately, Nikon uses the AF-S abbreviation in their menu system and documentation, which does have the side effect of confusing users.
Page 525: Custom Setting #A3 Dynamic Area Af Customization
V1.02 Custom Setting #A3 Dynamic Area AF Customization (Dynamic AF area) When you set Dynamic Area autofocus on the D300, a grouped pattern of sensors is used to obtain final focus information, though the initial focus is obtained with the currently selected sensor.
Page 526 So consider the situation where the person’s face temporarily moves out of the area that has autofocus sensors. What happens? If you’re lucky, the camera will Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 526...
Page 527 I’ve found in testing is that the more advanced 3D function makes more of a difference on a D3 (where the autofocus sensing area is smaller) than on a D300 (where the autofocus sensors cover a larger portion of the frame).
Page 528: Custom Setting #A4 Set Focus Lock-On Parameters
Sports photographers sometimes don’t always want the camera to refocus in such situations, so Nikon added the ability to tune this ability: Change has to occur for a long time to trigger...
Page 529: Custom Setting #A5 Autofocus Initiation Method
Custom Setting #A5 Autofocus Initiation Method (AF activation) Nikon bodies have long had a number of flexible and useful autofocus customizations, and this function is one of the classics. The default behavior of most autofocus cameras is that autofocus begins when the shutter release is pressed partway.
Page 530 (b) point the camera at that which you want to meter, press and hold the AE-L/AF-L button (you might want to explore Custom Setting #F6 for options here); and (c) reframe and press the shutter release. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 530...
Page 531: Custom Setting #A6 Focus Area Illumination
One word: power. If you set On, you’ll be using a tiny bit more power every time you move autofocus around. The default is a good balance between power consumption and visibility, but if you’re a power miser, select Off. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 531...
Page 532: Custom Setting #A7 Focus Point Selection Wrap
Custom Setting #A8 Number of AF Points (AF point selection) The D2 series had an eleven-point autofocus system that many users liked. This option allows you to set the D300 to mimic that autofocus sensor layout: All 51 autofocus sensors are used [default] 51 points Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 533: Custom Setting #A9 Autofocus Assist Illumination
51 point 11 point Custom Setting #A9 Autofocus Assist Illumination (Built-in AF-assist illumination) The D300’s Autofocus Assist lamp is controlled by this function: In poor lighting, the Autofocus Assist light on the camera illuminates [default] Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 534: Custom Setting #A10 Mb-D10 Af-On Button Options
Custom Setting #A10 MB-D10 AF-ON Button Options (AF-ON for MB-D10) Because the optional MB-D10 vertical grip hand position puts the AE-L/AF-L button too far away to reach easily, Nikon has wisely chosen to allow you to specify what the handy AF-ON button on the MB-D10 does.
Page 535 AF-ON button: AF-ON button function, AE- L/AF-L button function, or FUNC button function. You’re given the option of the most logical coupling (exposure and focus lock), plus the ability to have the button control Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 535...
Page 536: Custom Setting #B1 Iso Increment
Custom Setting #B1 ISO Increment (ISO sensitivity step value) ISO values that the D300 sets can be chosen in three different increments. The increment chosen with this setting is used for all ISO settings in the camera, excluding Auto ISO:...
Page 537: Custom Setting #B2 Exposure Control Increment
Generally you want to set your brightest point as close to the top end of the D300’s range as possible, and 1/3-stop increments allow you to get closer to the top end than 1/2 stop increments 2.
Page 538: Custom Setting #B3 Exposure Compensation Increment
Generally you want to set your brightest point as close to the top end of the D300’s range as possible, and 1/3-stop increments allow you to get closer to the top end than 1/2 stop increments Technically, we’re talking about a 1/6 stop difference.
Page 539: Custom Setting #B4 Exposure Compensation Control
Some users think that pressing a button and turning a dial to set exposure compensation is less convenient than other possibilities. Again, Nikon allows you to change the behavior of the D300: On (Auto reset) Exposure compensation is set by rotating a Command dial without pressing the button.
Page 540 (usually aperture- preferred), and thus find this custom setting useful. Your choice. But know what you’re doing. 2. If you’ve used Nikon 35mm film bodies for any amount of time, the button is right where you expect it and works £...
Page 541: Custom Setting #B5 Center-Weight Metering Circle Size
2. Note that the final choice, Average, takes away the center-weighting—all parts of the scene are considered equally in determining the exposure (this is not the same as matrix metering, where different parts are weighted differently). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 541...
Page 542: Custom Setting #B6 Meter Compensation
8mm. Custom Setting #B6 Meter Compensation (Fine tune optimal exposure) The D300 has a Custom Setting that allows you to individually dial in a permanent exposure compensation for each metering system. This fine tuning of the meter systems is “hidden”;...
Page 543 3. If you don’t use a gray card to meter but find that you’re consistently dialing in a specific exposure compensation in all situations, consider using this custom setting to adjust the camera. The ISO standard for meter calibration Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 543...
Page 544: Custom Setting #C1 Shutter Release Exposure Locking
Custom Setting #C1 Shutter Release Exposure Locking (Shutter-release button AE-L) Many consumer cameras automatically lock the exposure when the shutter release is pressed partway, but the D300 (and most other Nikon DSLRs) behave differently: Exposure locks when either the shutter release is held partway down or the AE-L/AF-L button is pressed.
Page 545: Custom Setting #C2 Meter/Camera Active Time
(e.g. 1/125 instead of 1/250). Custom Setting #C2 Meter/Camera Active Time (Auto meter-off delay) The D300, like all Nikon bodies, has a higher power demand when it is “active” (metering, autofocus, etc.). Thus, Nikon has programmed an aggressive time-out for the camera’s basic functions.
Page 546: Custom Setting #C3 Self Timer Delay Setting
Custom Setting #C3 Self Timer Delay Setting (Self-timer delay) The D300 allows you to set four different delay times for the self timer (the delay time is the time between pressing the shutter release and the shutter actually being opened for...
Page 547: Custom Setting #C4 Color Lcd Active Time
Custom Setting #C4 Color LCD Active Time (Monitor off delay) The D300 uses more battery power when the color LCD is active. This function allows you to program the amount of time the LCD stays active when no other activity (button pushing) takes place.
Page 548: Custom Setting #D1 Sound Feedback Setting
10 minutes and you can’t alter that. Custom Setting #D1 Sound Feedback Setting (Beep) For some reason, the D300 has the consumer body beeping sound capability, and worse still it’s the default setting. This can be altered: Camera beeps during countdowns and Single...
Page 549: Custom Setting #D2 Grid Line Display In Viewfinder
Custom Setting #D2 Grid Line Display in Viewfinder (Viewfinder grid display) The D300 has the ability to show grid lines overlaid in the viewfinder, which help with alignment. Grid lines are shown in the viewfinder...
Page 550: Custom Setting #D3 Viewfinder Warnings Display
100% perfectly aligned. Often the lines are a fraction of a degree off from absolute horizontal and vertical. 2. For some reason, Nikon has also chosen to put the grid lines at one-quarter points rather than the one-third points that many compose with. Moreover, they don’t correspond to any other useful framing position, either.
Page 551: Custom Setting #D4 Continuous Low Shooting Speed
Camera displays the overlay warning [default] Camera doesn’t display overlay warning Recommendation: 1. A good idea, but Nikon has taken a step backward (in the D200 the camera also displayed B&W and No Card warning icons). Most users should probably leave the warning enabled, though, as it’s difficult to ignore the low...
Page 552: Custom Setting #D5 Maximum Continuous Shots
Custom Setting #D5 Maximum Continuous Shots (Max. continuous release) By default, the D300 will stop at 100 shots when you shoot in continuous release shooting methods. This is to keep the sensor and digital circuitry from overheating and producing less than ideal results.
Page 553: Custom Setting #D6 File Number Sequence
(File number sequence You may remember from the section on filenames (see page <182>) that the D300 has two basic capabilities for naming files: file numbers are reset to 0001 by a number of actions (formatting, new card, new folder, etc.), or they aren’t reset until you hit 9999.
Page 554: Custom Setting #D7 Shooting Info Display Style
Custom Setting #D7 Shooting Info Display Style (Shooting info display) The D300 has the ability to display a detailed shooting information display on the color LCD when you press the Protect (}) button (also marked ).
Page 555: Custom Setting #D8 Lcd Illumination Control
ON position), which provides backlighting for about six seconds. You can change this behavior: Backlighting controlled solely by power switch [default] Backlighting occurs when meter is active Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 555...
Page 556: Custom Setting #D9 One Second Shutter Delay
V1.02 Recommendations: 1. Nikon has made a change since the D2: the alternate setting on the D2 series was triggered by pressing any button on the camera (shutter release partway, and of the control buttons), and was of limited duration (6 seconds).
Page 557 Previous Nikon bodies used a delay of 0.4s, which in extreme cases didn’t quite wait long enough for support system motion to dampen due to the mirror slap.
Page 558: Custom Setting #D10 Battery Type In Mb-D10
This is another design flaw, in my opinion. The battery setup is a camera-wide action and should be in the SETUP menu for any camera with Custom Settings banks. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 558...
Page 559: Custom Setting #D11 Order Batteries Are Used
V1.02 2. You don’t have to set this function if you use EN-EL3e or EN-EL4 batteries in the MB-D10; the D300 detects those automatically. 3. So what type of battery should you use in the MB-D10? EN-EL4a batteries are the first choice, by far. First, they’re rechargeable, which is good for the environment.
Page 560: Custom Setting #E1 Flash Top Sync Speed
Custom Setting #E1 Flash Top Sync Speed (Flash sync speed) Nikon allows you to adjust the flash sync speed on the D300 downward from its normal setting, plus set to “faster” sync speeds: 1/320 (Auto FP) 1/320 second lower limit, plus TTL FP...
Page 561 It appears that this is option is a return of the old F5 trick, where the power is restricted on the flash. Indeed, there’s one note in the D300 manual that suggests just that. The problem is that Nikon hasn’t provided...
Page 562: Custom Setting #E2 Flash Low Shutter Speed Barrier
V1.02 3. One reason to set a slower sync speed would be to force the D300 to operate like a backup camera, which might not have the same top flash sync speed. With two cameras shooting the same scene with slightly different shutter...
Page 563: Custom Setting #E3 Flash Mode For Internal Flash
Custom Setting #E3 Flash Mode for Internal Flash (Flash cntrl for built-in flash) I wish Nikon had set flash mode up differently (e.g. put the flash mode control into the Flash Pop-up button in conjunction with the command dials). Because buried down in the Custom Settings menus, and requiring multiple settings for some functions, partially negates a very useful feature.
Page 564 (the D200 only supported full stop increments): If you set Repeating flash, you also need to set the power setting (suddenly renamed Output in this menu by Nikon), the number of times to repeat the flash during the shot, and the interval at which the flash is repeated.
Page 565 Interval until you get a meaningful potential set of repetitions. Finally, set Times to a value less than or equal to what you just calculated. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 565...
Page 566: Custom Setting #E4 Dof Preview Triggers Modeling Flash566
3. If you use visual slaves to trigger studio lighting, try leaving your D300 set at Manual flash mode at 1/128 power. That’s generally not enough flash to do much more than produce a minor catchlight effect on your models, but it’s usually enough to trigger you main studio...
Page 567: Custom Setting #E5 Exposure Bracketing Method
3. Surprise, surprise. The SB-600, which does not have a modeling light button, does have a modeling light function. I had initially missed that paragraph in the SB- 600 manual, but reading the D300’s manual made me test it: it works. Custom Setting #E5 Exposure Bracketing Method...
Page 568 Slow Sync. The default setting is okay, but generally is not what all users want. I tend to leave my D300 on AE only, as I’m normally using Standard TTL and setting my own flash compensation value.
Page 569: Custom Setting #E6 Manual Exposure Mode Bracketing
V1.02 2. White balance bracketing is an interesting option, though Nikon doesn’t document it nearly well enough, and it would be more helpful if we saw real Kelvin values, not cryptic #F, A#F and B#F indicators. Also, you only press the shutter release once when WB bracketing is set (unlike bracketing for exposure compensation).
Page 570: Custom Setting #E7 Bracketing Order
(by switching exposure modes). Custom Setting #E7 Bracketing Order (Bracketing order) You can select the order in which the D300 exposes the photographs when automatic bracketing is set (see “Exposure Bracketing” on page <299>): Note: Bracketing can set sequences fewer than three exposures.
Page 571 Recommendations: 1. Pick one and use only that setting. This is one of those things where consistency is preferable. Since the D300 names every file only with numbers, this becomes even more important. (You could browse through the EXIF data to figure out which is which.)
Page 572: Custom Setting #F1 Direction Pad Center Button
Custom Setting #F1 Direction Pad Center Button (Multi selector center button) The Direction pad on the D300 is like that of the D2 series, D200, and D3, in that you can press it any of eight directions or press the center. This option controls what that center press...
Page 573 Recommendation: 1. Your choice. I leave my camera at the default, though I’ve noticed that on some well-used D300’s that the Direction pad gets a little loose and you’re more prone to accidentally press the central area, which may move your autofocus area unintentionally.
Page 574: Custom Setting #F2 Additional Direction Pad Control
Reset Mtr-Off Delay Any press on the Direction pad does its normal function plus the meter off count is reset (same as when pressing shutter release part way) Direction pad operates normally Do Nothing [default] Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 574...
Page 575: Custom Setting #F3 Direction Pad Scrolling During Playback
1. Unfortunately, Nikon has removed the option I found most useful on the D200: Initiate autofocus. 2. Note that this is another area where the D300 can be configured to work differently than all previous Nikon SLR bodies (other than the D2 series, D3, and D200), so if you use multiple bodies, you might want to consider leaving the camera at the default.
Page 576: Custom Setting #F4 Func Button Setting
Command dials Button Press only: [sic] Nikon’s manuals refer to it as the FUNC. button. Apparently, there wasn’t enough room to stencil FUNC on the camera body. Some settings allow you to choose an option for both press and press+dials. For example, you can set the button to spot metering and still have it work with dials for bracketing.
Page 577 If held at start of a bracketing Bracketing burst sequence, all shots in the sequence are taken immediately (with one shutter release press); in continuous release shooting method, multiple sequences of a bracketing set will be Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 577...
Page 578 Rear Command dial sets the non-CPU lens number Holding the Fn button and turning the Auto bracketing Command dials sets bracketing (see “Exposure Bracketing” on page <299>) [default] Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 578...
Page 579 2. First, don’t change from the default without understanding what you’re giving up. Because the D300 no longer has a button dedicated to bracketing, they’ve wisely assigned bracketing as the default for the Fn button. If you set...
Page 580: Custom Setting #F5 Dof Preview Button Setting
Custom Setting #F5 DOF Preview Button Setting (Assign preview button) New to the D300 (and D3) is the ability to program what the DOF Preview button does. Like the Fn button (Custom Setting #F4) you have the choice of making the assignments using...
Page 581 Pressing the DOF Preview button AE lock (Hold) locks exposure until the meter times out or you press the button again Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 581...
Page 582 (but holding it and turning the Command dials may do something, if set) [default] Button Held with Rotating Command Dials: 1 step spd/aperture Holding the DOF Preview button and turning the Command dials controls Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 582...
Page 583: Custom Setting #F6 Ae-Lock Button Function
Custom Setting #F6 AE-Lock Button Function (Assign AE-L/AF-L button) New to the D300 (and D3) is the ability to choose many more options in how to program what the AE-L/AF-L button does. Like the Fn button (Custom Setting #F4) you have the choice Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 584: Preview Button
But not all combinations are possible. Most settings force you to use the button either via a single press or via pressing in conjunction with the Command dials. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 584...
Page 585 L/AF-L button is held down Pressing the AE-L/AF-L button does None nothing (but holding it and turning the Command dials may do something, if set) [default] Button Held with Rotating Command Dials: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 585...
Page 586 2. Whatever you set, don’t set it without first considering what you’ll be setting for Custom Settings #F4 and #F5. These three options have overlapping choices, so you really need to consider them all as a group. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 586...
Page 587: Custom Setting #F7 Command Dial Functions
Rear Command dial for setting apertures. Others don’t like the direction the controls work (e.g. clockwise increases apertures normally). Fortunately, you can override four of Nikon’s choices with this custom setting. Reverse rotation Operation is as described in the manual...
Page 588 Direction pad (the Rear Command dial is equivalent to the left/right keys on the The Front Command dial doesn’t always control the aperture as implied by Nikon’s default choice; after all, you can change that function with another option in this same Custom Setting! On AI and other lenses without CPUs, this is effectively the default for this setting.
Page 589 2. If you also use any Nikon film body that doesn’t have all these custom functions (e.g. D50), leave the D300 set on the defaults, otherwise you’re likely to get confused when you move back and forth between bodies.
Page 590: Custom Setting #F8 Pressing Or Holding Buttons
Custom Setting #F8 Pressing or Holding Buttons (Release button to use dial) Nikon’s default user interface for SLR bodies has long been “hold down a button and twirl a Command dial.” This option allows you to override the “hold” aspect (any button press...
Page 591: Custom Setting #F9 Lock Camera With No Compactflash
(No memory card?) As a safeguard to keep you from thinking you’re taking pictures when you aren’t, the D300 can lock the shutter release when no CompactFlash card is present in the camera. The shutter release locks if no card is Release locked present in the camera.
Page 592: Custom Setting #F10 Reverse The Manual Metering Bar
- 0 + other camera makers’ models Recommendations: 1. Since the D300 is a pro camera, let’s make sure you know the reason why Nikon’s metering bars seem the opposite of everyone elses: they reflect the direction you should turn the aperture ring on the lens to correct the exposure problem you’re seeing.
Page 593: Using Flash
V1.02 Using Flash Flash use with a D300 is different than with film SLRs and early Nikon DSLRs. Like all recent Nikon DSLRs the D300 uses a form of flash technology Nikon calls i-TTL. Obviously, I’d love for all readers of this book to rush out and purchase my Nikon Digital Flash Guide.
Page 594: Flash Basics
In order to have any variability in flash output something has to measure the amounts of light produced and make the decision of when to shut the flash off. Either the D300 or the flash itself can both measure and control the amount of light.
Page 595: Digital Flash Differences
D100, and the D2 series with the SB-28DX, SB-50DX, SB- Note that one way the D2 series and the D300 differ is that the D2 series has an additional five-segment sensor in the mirror box, which looks at the shutter curtain.
Page 596 D-TTL. Other (mostly older) flash units, including the original SB-28, cannot be used in TTL flash modes with these Nikon DSLRs. Indeed, if you attempt to do so, the shutter release locks and you can’t take pictures until you set the Speedlight to Automatic (A) or Manual (M) flash modes.
Page 597 SU-800, or internal flash set as Master) A D300 using i-TTL is a good news, bad news situation: the good news is that this is arguably the most elaborate, user- controllable, and accurate TTL flash system Nikon—or perhaps anyone—has produced. The bad news is that you can only use the very latest flash units with it, which may mean purchasing new equipment.
Page 598: More Hidden Flash "Gotchas
Be wary of data in Nikon’s manuals. For example, the chart on page 405 of the D300 English manual is incorrect (as are several others; but this one is particularly important to point out). It seems to imply (once you relate the heading to the data) to all flashes.
Page 599: D300 Safe Flash Head Focal Length Settings
Program exposure mode using external flash, those fancy wide apertures of your expensive lenses won’t ever be used. Another issue to note with the D300 is that the focal lengths the Speedlight uses are geared towards 35mm film, not the D300’s 1.5x field of view reduction.
Page 600: Flash Modes
That happens rarely, but the lower power of the preflash does make the accuracy of the On a D300, AI and AI-S lenses can also support balanced TTL if you’ve entered their data using Non-CPU lens data (on the SHOOTING menu).
Page 601 The more likely problem of preflash on the D300 is that it triggers “early blinkers.” There’s just enough time between the preflash and the actual flash that some fast-responding...
Page 602: Standard Ttl
Note: Unlike the SB-24 and later flashes on film bodies, the D300 internal flash, SB-400, SB-600, SB-800, and SB-R200 always fire pre-flashes in i-TTL modes, even if the flash head is set...
Page 603: High-Speed Ttl (Ttl Fp)
High-Speed TTL (TTL FP) (TTL BL FP or TTL FP on external flash LCD; only available on SB-600, SB-800 and RB-200 Speedlights): The D300 supports a variant for both Balanced Fill-Flash TTL and Standard TTL: FP. FP doesn’t change the type of TTL being performed (Standard or Balanced), it only changes the allowable shutter speeds.
Page 604: Summary Of I-Ttl Flash Modes
TTL BL pressing the Mode button selects instead. One final note on sync speeds: the D300 also provides a setting in Custom Setting #E1 of 1/320 (AUTO FP). This acts like the 1/250 (AUTO FP) mode with one exception: flash units that do not support FP will sync at 1/320 instead of the usual 1/250 (and default) limit.
Page 605 This mode is not available on the D300 except with the SB-800, and appears to be one of the simplifications Nikon made from the pro series cameras.
Page 606 Manual (Ë): Available with any Speedlight that supports Manual flash modes, including the internal flash on the D300. In Manual flash mode, the Speedlight fires at a fixed output you select. It’s up to you to perform the calculations to ensure that the proper amount of flash is produced.
Page 607 Speedlight to A (or AUTO), or press the Mode button on the Speedlight until is displayed on the flash unit’s Ê LCD. You may need to manually transfer the ISO setting and aperture to the flash. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 607...
Page 608: Setting Flash Options
You’ll note that I’ve chosen to call these items “options” rather than “modes.” Nikon uses the term mode so frequently that it gets very confusing. For example, if I ask a student which flash mode they have set, they’ll sometimes answer “Rear Sync.”...
Page 609 V1.02 D300 and is indicated by a Ø icon on the top LCD that has no additional icons inside it. (Notes: TTL FP removes the faster shutter speed limit [1/250]. SB-24, SB-25, and SB-26 flash units should have their Mode switch set to NORMAL.)
Page 610: Flash Option Interactions
** Can be altered to 1/320 using Custom Setting #E1 Flash Exposure Compensation Flash exposure compensation can be set on the external flash or on the D300 body. For the external flash, that usually Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 610...
Page 611 Direction pad in the direction of the + and – symbols while in a TTL flash mode. For the D300 body, that means holding down the Flash Options button and rotating the Front Command dial.
Page 612 V1.02 flash). Those compensations are cumulative! If you set -1.7 EV on the external flash and -1 EV on the D300 body, you’ll get -2.7 EV flash exposure compensation. Thus, you need to be very careful about where you set flash exposure compensation.
Page 613: Flash Features Available Using A D300 With Speedlights
V1.02 Flash Features Available using a D300 with Speedlights Model TTL A Slow Rear RF Internal Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes SB-R200 Yes No Yes No Yes Yes No SB-400 Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No...
Page 614: Controlled, Repeatable Flash Results
3. Turn the flash ON 4. Set the flash to Standard TTL mode (on the D300, this is automatic if you’re in spot metering; otherwise you’ll have You can power the flash before Step 1, but I intentionally have you turn it ON here because, if you get in the habit of doing this, if you later switch from Manual to Program or Aperture-priority modes, you’ll immediately notice if the camera changes...
Page 615 (just as with the main exposure meter, the flash meter in the D300 tries to make the “average” exposure middle gray). In bright situations, you’d tend to use more flash compensation, in dark...
Page 616 Custom Setting #E2 to set the lower shutter speed limit to what you can hand hold. On my D300, I’ve set 1/15 and don’t normally use Slow Sync. • Put the flash in Standard TTL mode. Why? Because we want to control the exact amount of flash used.
Page 617: Third Party Flash Units
Third Party Flash Units The i-TTL flash units required by the D300 to perform TTL mean you are restricted to the SB-400, SB-600, SB-800, and SB-R200 if you want to purchase an external flash and retain the most available capabilities.
Page 618: Studio Flash
ISO and aperture settings. Thus, at present, I don’t recommend third party flashes with the D300. There are just too many caveats. If you want an external flash for the D300, the SB-800 is currently the best choice.
Page 619 0.6 – 0.8m Red apertures not available in Program exposure mode Blue apertures not available on most lenses There are a few things you should note about the above table: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 619...
Page 620 At longer distances, some lenses and lens hoods interfere with the internal flash. A few of these are listed in the D300 manual, but that list is by no means comprehensive. If you’re interested in whether a combination will work or...
Page 621: Internal Flash Basics
Internal Flash Basics I’ve covered some of the internal flash use already, but to be consistent with the Nikon Flash Guide and to elaborate on some of the deeper features of the internal flash unit, I’m going to provide a step-by-step section, just as I do with the common external flashes in the next section.
Page 622: To Set Manual Flash
Press the > key to enter the Manual flash mode settings. d. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the Manual flash power you want to set. Press the Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 622...
Page 623: Internal Flash Guide Numbers (Feet)
(Determine the GN by looking at the tables, below). 6. Set the D300 to the exposure mode you wish to use, and set your aperture and shutter speed, as usual. Just make sure that the aperture you set matches the one...
Page 624: Internal Flash Guide Numbers (Meters)
Use the Direction pad to navigate to Custom Setting #E3. Press the > key to enter the Flash Mode setting. c. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Repeating Flash mode. Press the > key to Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 624...
Page 625 Use the % and " keys on the Direction pad to set the frequency of repeats you desire. Only frequencies of 1 to 50 times per second are allowed. Press the > key on the Direction or Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 625...
Page 626 5 flashes while the shutter is open, which we set in our repeats value (Step 1e in the above; as you can see from the steps in setting procedure, Nikon got things backwards—we’d really want to perform Step 1f first, not Step 1e).
Page 627: Wireless Flash
For the wireless flash system to work, the remote flash units need to be able to see the light output of the D300’s internal flash, and the D300 needs to be able to see the light output of the remote flashes.
Page 628 For example, Commander mode and Master flash get a little confusing if you read multiple Nikon manuals. I’ll try to stay a little more consistent. The solution for that is the same as I’ll outline a little later in this section for SU-4 type wireless: use FV Lock.
Page 629 D300’s wireless abilities are excellent, and all that you need. (If you need more than two Remotes [Groups], you need to substitute an SU-800 or SB-800 on the D300 as the Commander instead of the internal flash. But that’s a subject for another book…)
Page 630 If a flash is set to TTL, Comp. sets flash exposure compensation for that flash. If a flash is instead set to M (Manual), Comp. sets the power level (1/1 = full, 1/2 = half, etc.) for that flash. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 630...
Page 631 Press the OK button when you’ve completed this step. 2. Let’s move on to our first remote flash, which for illustration purposes will be an SB-800. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 631...
Page 632 Custom Settings for the flash. Instead, when I say press, I mean a quick jab of the button. It may take multiple jabs to get to the right item, which is why I say “press…until.” Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 632...
Page 633 Press the Zoom button until 0N shows above the wireless icon. d. Press the On/Off button briefly to leave Custom Settings. The SB-600 should be set for remote use: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 633...
Page 634 (note that you can rotate the flash head to fix the orientation, if necessary). 4. Activate the internal flash on the D300 by popping it up. (Press the Flash Release button.) 5. Set the camera to Single Servo AF; this step isn’t...
Page 635 You’re ready to shoot. Nikon includes a drawing showing where remote flashes need to be positioned relative to the D300. I’ve actually found their suggestions to be relatively conservative, especially in low light, where the infrared component of the preflash is easily seen by the remote flashes.
Page 636 Here’s the trick in more detail: 1. Set the Custom Setting #F4 on the D300 to FV Lock. 2. Set Custom Setting #E3 to TTL (if it isn’t already set to that).
Page 637: External Flash Models For The D300
External Flash Models for the D300 SB-400 The SB-400 is the simplest of the four external Speedlights that can provide TTL flash with the D300. This small flash was introduced with the D40 models in 2007. Specifications 98 (ft), 30 (m) (at ISO 200) Weight: 4.5 oz.
Page 638: To Set Ttl Flash
2. Select the type of TTL to be performed. Basically, you only have one choice: whether to cancel the “balanced fill-flash” mode (you can do so on a D300 only by selecting Spot metering on the camera); see “Summary of i-TTL Flash Modes,” on page <604>).
Page 639: Usable Apertures And Flash Range In Ttl Mode (Feet)
SB-600 The SB-600 is one of four external Speedlights that can provide TTL flash with the D300. The SB-600 is similar to the SB-800, but with fewer features and lower power ratings. The SB-600 was announced with the D70 and arrived in stores in spring 2004.
Page 640: To Set Ttl Flash
Balanced Fill-Flash mode; see “Summary of i-TTL Flash Modes,” on page <604>). Note: When the D300 is set for spot metering, Standard TTL is set automatically. 3. Set the camera to Single Servo AF (flash only operates when the camera achieves focus; this isn’t technically...
Page 641: Usable Apertures And Flash Range In Ttl Mode (Feet)
(the actual value depends upon ISO setting; see “Allowable Apertures in Program Mode,” on page <598>. Note: The D300 and SB-600 may warn you of several possible errors when you partially press the shutter release to verify settings: - The lens must be set on its minimum aperture, or else the error message FEE appears in the viewfinder.
Page 642: To Set Manual Flash
With lenses that don’t have CPUs (AI and AI-S), the aperture on the camera isn’t linked with the flash, so you have to adjust flash power settings on the SB-600 to control the flash output. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 642...
Page 643 > buttons on the flash direction pad to choose a value. Wait a moment and the flash locks in the current value. Note: The SB-600 is capable of keeping up with the D300 at 5 fps at powers of 1/8, 1/16, 1/32, or 1/64 as follows: 4 consecutive frames...
Page 644: Guide Numbers At Iso 100 (Feet)
Full (1/1) 20 1/16 10.6 12.7 13.4 14.1 1/32 1/64 Note: All numbers above 16 may be rounded to the nearest integer. That shouldn’t impact calculations by enough to be visible. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 644...
Page 645: To Manually Set The Zoom Head
The flash may not be able to produce +3 compensation in some situations (e.g. if it’s already firing at full power). To cancel compensation, repeat the process outlined above and set a value of 0.0. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 645...
Page 646: To Set Red-Eye Reduction
To Set Red-Eye Reduction Set Red-eye reduction on the D300 by holding the Flash Options button on the camera and turning the Rear Command dial until @ appears on the D300’s top LCD.
Page 647 SB-600 automatically turns off 40 seconds after the camera’s meter turns OFF (STBY is displayed on the flash’s LCD). A light press on the shutter release turns the D300’s light meter back ON, and the SB-600 turns ON at the same time. Note: The SB-600 has a “special”...
Page 648: Specifications
V1.02 SB-800 The SB-800 is the top of Nikon’s flash lineup. The SB-800 is basically the same flash as the SB-80DX, but with additional features and support for the new i-TTL flash system. The SB- 800 was announced in July 2003 and arrived in stores in fall 2003.
Page 649: To Set Ttl Flash
1/250 if necessary. Note: When the D300 is set for spot metering, Standard TTL is set automatically. 3. Set the camera to Single Servo AF (flash operates best when the camera achieves focus;...
Page 650 (the actual value depends upon ISO setting; see “Allowable Apertures in Program Mode” on page <598>. Note: The aperture the D300 (or you) selected also appears on the SB-800’s LCD panel when you partially press the shutter release, as does the allowable flash-to-subject distance range.
Page 651: Usable Apertures And Flash Range In Ttl Mode (Feet)
ON. 2. Press the SB-800’s Mode button until Ë appears on the LCD. 3. Set the D300 to Aperture-preferred (A) or Manual (M) exposure mode and set your aperture and your exposure, as usual. 4. Set the camera to Single Servo AF (flash operates best when the camera achieves focus;...
Page 652: To Set Repeating Flash
> buttons on the flash direction pad to choose a value. Wait a moment and the flash locks in the current value. Note: The SB-800 is capable of keeping up with the D300 at 5 fps at powers of 1/8, 1/16, 1/32, 1/64, or 1/128 as follows: 4 consecutive frames...
Page 653 Then press the + and - buttons on the flash direction pad until the number you want is shown on the LCD. b. Press the middle button (ø) again to lock in that value. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 653...
Page 654: Maximum Number Of Repeating Flashes At Each Power Setting
(2) the subject appears to fade into the background (especially true if you’re off by a bit in your distance). If in doubt, bracket your exposures for the background! Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 654...
Page 655: To Manually Set The Zoom Head
1. Hold the ø button for two seconds to enter the command setting mode for the flash. 2. Press the > until you see the m/ft box highlighted on the LCD. 3. Press the ø button again. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 655...
Page 656: To Set Flash Exposure Compensation
Note: You can also set flash exposure compensation on camera bodies that have an internal flash, such as the D300 body. If you do this, the value is cumulative with that you set on the external flash. Get in the habit of only setting the flash...
Page 657: To Set Red-Eye Reduction
V1.02 To Set Red-Eye Reduction Set Red-eye reduction on the D300 by holding the Flash Options button on the camera and turning the Rear Command dial until @ appears on the D300’s top LCD). Note: Red-eye reduction works in most flash modes, but not in the Repeating Flash mode.
Page 658: Flash Troubleshooting
V1.02 camera’s meter turns OFF (STBY is displayed on the flash’s LCD). A light press on the shutter release turns the D300’s light meter back ON, and the SB-800 turns ON at the same time. Note: The SB-800 has a “special” No Standby mode that can be set, as well as the ability to set different time-out values (80, 160, 300 seconds).
Page 659 • In Program exposure mode, the maximum aperture that can be used is highly restricted. On a D300 at ISO 200, the largest aperture you can set with an external flash is f/5. •...
Page 660 At a minimum, you should use the Slow Sync option or Custom Setting #E2 to lose the slow shutter speed restriction. But I’d recommend that you switch to Aperture-preferred exposure mode to also remove the aperture limitation. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 660...
Page 661: Using A D300 In The Field
V1.02 Using a D300 in the Field Using a D300 is very much like using a Nikon F100, F5, or F6 with slide film. Very few practical differences enter into the picture. This section deals with those differences and other more generic issues that come up while shooting with the D300.
Page 662 Personally, I like checklists, which keep me from forgetting various cords I might need or my backup storage devices. With a D300, that list needs to include things like the BF-1A camera body cap, and emergency cleaning equipment. If I’m teaching a workshop, I have to remember my video cable and extension.
Page 663: Check Each Time You Turn The Camera On
__ Storage (CompactFlash cards, Coolwalker, etc.) __ Cards (gray card, white balance card, etc.) __ Cables (FireWire, video, AC power, etc.) __ Laptop with Nikon ViewNX/Capture NX and plenty of storage space __ Other (card reader/PCMCIA adapter, rain cover, etc.) Check Each Time You Turn the Camera On •...
Page 664: Settings You Change Rarely (And Then Only For A Reason)
(TTL, Automatic, Manual, etc.) is controlled with the MODE button on the flash. The internal flash mode is controlled by Custom Setting #E3 (see page <563>). If you’ve set TTL, the type of TTL performed Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 664...
Page 665: Settings You Change Often
In Auto Area you don’t make a selection. • Set exposure compensation. Especially true if you use matrix metering and are moving in and out of high Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 665...
Page 666: Things To Do After Each Shooting Session
• Set exposure bracketing. Pay close attention, though, as the D300 can be set to bracket white balance as well as exposure; the controls are the same and Custom Setting #E5 selects which is in effect (see page <567>).
Page 667 (yes, it’s happened to me; don’t let it happen to you). If you’re not going to be shooting with your D300 in the next month or so, make sure the battery has a mid-level charge (not full or empty) in it before storing it outside the camera.
Page 668: Keeping Track Of Batteries
Keeping Track of Batteries If you use the D300 heavily you may find that one battery doesn’t always get you through a full day of shooting (it might though). Thus, most D300 users carry multiple batteries with them.
Page 669: Maintaining Image Quality
Maintaining Image Quality You’ll get the highest quality images out of the D300 if you: • Shoot NEF format. You have the original sensor data to deal with, and can apply different interpolation routines on it after the fact.
Page 670 Watch your focus. If you intend to print at sizes larger than 8x10” (~ISO A4), you should realize that depth of field on a D300 is a bit smaller than for the same focal length, focus distance, and aperture combination on a 35mm or FX body (see “Depth of Field Preview”...
Page 671: Which Type Of Photographer Are You
Fortunately, it takes a small, tight pattern to trigger moiré on the D300, and these don’t occur as often as the patterns that trigger the problem on the D70. Which Type of Photographer are You?
Page 672 AF Assist On). If you’re trying to get the most quality you can out of your D300, then you’ll be changing your settings quite a bit to optimize for each situation you encounter. A few, however,...
Page 673: Dealing With Jpeg
Color Space possible. Using a measured White Balance (Preset manual) is the best way to get the best color and exposure out of the D300, but if you know what you’re doing, you can set Kelvin directly.
Page 674: Custom Curves
Nikon bodies. I tend to set my D300 to 4 or higher sharpening in camera, as it helps me evaluate focus when zooming in on the preview image on the color LCD.
Page 675 Spaces: sRGB and AdobeRGB. Color Modes, which interacted with Color Spaces, are now a thing of the past and don’t appear in the D300 menus (though you can still get the effects they produced by downloading the D2X Picture Controls).
Page 676 Color Space that every monitor can reproduce? The result was a narrow range that tends to exaggerate saturation, which also adds a perceptual increase in contrast to most images. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 676...
Page 677 Color Space of AdobeRGB you can’t use the color LCD on the D300 to assess color. The Color Spaces on the D300 appear to be accurate, and I applaud Nikon for giving us a choice. Unfortunately, it’s not just a simple matter of setting the camera’s Color Space using the options on the SHOOTING...
Page 678 Color Space, or assign the correct one. • NEF output often works a bit differently. Nikon Capture NX assigns the correct Color Space and attaches the color profile information to the TIFF and Photoshop PSD files it outputs (assuming that you’ve set the program’s...
Page 679: Setting Color Spaces In The Camera
2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SHOOTING menu (the green camera tab). 3. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the Color Space item and press the > key on the Direction pad to select Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 679...
Page 680: Setting Color Spaces And Profiles In Your Software
“color aware” programs (on Windows; virtually all Macintosh programs use the value set in ColorSync and are automatically color aware). Photoshop, for example, is color aware and the profiled monitor settings the Colorvision makes Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 680...
Page 681 Preserve Embedded Profiles and check all the boxes that begin with Ask… Other Programs pose different problems and require us to make additional settings. Nikon Capture NX on Windows, for example, isn’t automatically color aware! Even on a Macintosh you’ll want to check what’s set: Choose Preferences and use the Color Management tab to see Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 682: Fine Tuning The Color
V1.02 what’s being used: Note: Nikon has their own Color Space definitions, and yes, they are very subtly different from the ones Adobe supplies (note the name Nikon Adobe RGB 4.0.0.3000 in the above screen shot versus the name Adobe RGB (1988) in the Photoshop CS3 screen shot, above).
Page 683 GretagMacbeth ColorChecker chart using a custom white balance and see the correct colors on your monitor. I haven’t seen differences in color rendering between different D300 bodies, so I generally don’t find that profiling the camera is useful, as even small white balance issues will more grossly affect color than individual camera variation.
Page 684 Tip: Advanced users only. Technically, the sensor of the D300 doesn’t have a Color Space, because it should “capture” any color of light that hits the photosites within the spectral range that it allows through.
Page 685: Special Lighting Issues
Each successive Nikon DSLR seems to be less responsive to UV and near infrared, and the D300 is the least sensitive to date (actually, the D3 might be slightly less sensitive). Thus, the D300 isn’t the best candidate for shooting infrared or UV—the D100 is much more...
Page 686: Ultraviolet
Tiffen Hot Mirror filter to hold back the near infrared spectrum slightly, he takes what he calls “invisible images” using his Nikon bodies. (You can also use a Nikon FF or a Wratten 18A to block visible light, by the way.) Note that if you try to duplicate his work with a regular lens, you’ll find...
Page 687: Infrared
V1.02 frustrating, at a minimum. If you really want to use a D300 for such work, you’ll need to take the filter over the sensor off (see my comments about this at the end of the next section). Infrared At the other end of the light spectrum, the D300 does a marginally better job at the near infrared spectrum.
Page 688 Well, if you want to throw caution to the wind, you can make such a modification, but note that this is major surgery and, done incorrectly, will render your D300 useless. Fortunately, there are companies that offer a modification service, most notably http://www.lifepixel.com...
Page 689: Shooting Under Fluorescent Lighting
Another property of most light emitters is that their color balance is relatively stable (e.g. two brief measurements of color temperature taken a Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 689...
Page 690 Front Command dial modification), then examine the neutral gray patches for color casts; if one of the variants has little or no color cast, use that white balance setting in the future. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 690...
Page 691 1/120 to match the AC frequency in the US). I haven’t had problems with this shutter speed, so I suspect that it has to do with the specific fluorescent bulbs encountered. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 691...
Page 692: Other Field Shooting Issues
V1.02 Other Field Shooting Issues Keeping the Sensor Clean One difficult aspect of using a D300 in the field is keeping the sensor clean. To minimize the need to clean the sensor, you should: • Minimize lens changes, especially in dusty environments.
Page 693 If you use Capture NX, it is possible to use what Nikon calls a “dust reference photo” to perform a software “dust removal.” Here’s how it works: 1.
Page 694 (card or sheet of paper) 10cm (4”) from the front of the lens. Fill the frame with this object. 7. Press the shutter release. If you get the message INAPPROPRIATE EXPOSURE CONDITIONS Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 694...
Page 695 So the dust reference photo technique is worth using as a stop-gap measure until you can get back to an environment that is more conducive to cleaning. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 695...
Page 696 Remember, the lens reverses up for down to the sensor (software in the camera flips it around so you see the image in the correct orientation). The D300 has a built-in ability to do modest dust removal õ from the filter over the sensor: 1.
Page 697 > key to select If the above method doesn’t remove all the dust, you’ll õ have to use a more aggressive and intrusive method to clean Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 697...
Page 698: Turn The Camera On
Copyright page (i.e. I won’t be responsible for damage to your camera). The commercial solutions work well, and in the case of Sensor Swabs, there’s a damage-free guarantee that’s worth noting. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 698...
Page 699 10. Use a manually powered bulb blower to blow out any large chunks of grit (usually hairs). 11. Use a Sensor Brush to swipe across the sensor area (remember to “recharge” the brush before each pass using compressed air) Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 699...
Page 700 Yes, Nikon’s documentation says don’t touch the sensor. But Sensor Swabs are similar to the method they use to clean the sensor. Heck, Nikon even sells cleaning kits in Japan. Don’t get the cloth too wet [you’ll leave streaks], and don’t use force in cleaning [you could grind dirt into the filter face or break the filter].
Page 701: It's Not Just Static Cling
DSLRs. Still, dust collection on the sensor has always been more due to the laws of gravity and surface tension. If you store your D300 on its back, gravity will have its way, and as the inevitable dust in the air settles, it’ll settle downwards onto the filter surface.
Page 702: Worst Case Scenario
(see “Hot and Dead Pixels”, see page <79>). If you shoot in hot climates, you might want to look for ways to keep the D300 cool. Be careful of introducing condensation problems by moving the D300 from very cool to very warm conditions, however.
Page 703: Humidity
• Batteries and Microdrives don’t like cold. Lithium-Ion batteries such as the ones the D300 use do have decent cold weather performance, but it’s still possible in extreme cold for the battery to fail quickly. Keep a fully charged spare warmed up in an inside coat pocket and swap batteries as needed.
Page 704: White Balance Color Temperatures
V1.02 White balance intersects with other digital imaging color issues on a D300. First, the photosites covered with blue filters are effectively less sensitive to light than the green or red ones. In low light conditions, this can be troublesome, especially if you’re shooting in a situation where little or no...
Page 705 Personally, I like having a reference setting, regardless of how I set my D300. With a reference, I can use Photoshop’s color controls to correct any remaining bias. How do you establish a reference? I carry a Kodak gray card and an xRite Mini...
Page 706 In this case, you set white balance for the ambient lighting and then pick an appropriate filter for the flash head so that it (nearly) Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 706...
Page 707 Photoshop’s layering to select the background and color correct it after the fact. In short: set up the shot so that you have distinct areas that can be selected and color corrected. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 707...
Page 708: After You Ve Taken Pictures With Your D300
CompactFlash card full of images you’ve shot. What’s next? The primary things you do with your images boil down to: Modify them. The D300 has a built-in capability to make • some basic modifications of images you shoot. See “The Retouch Menu”...
Page 709: The Retouch Menu
Normally, you’d use a computer and a photo editing program—such as Photoshop—to make changes to your images, but the D300 brings a set of basic editing tools to the camera. Before I get to describing each of these tools, let me give you a word of advice: for the most part, I’d tend to avoid them.
Page 710: D-Lighting
To use D-Lighting, you must first take a picture. That picture needs to be color (i.e. you can’t apply this to black and white images shot with the D300), and can be NEF or JPEG. D- Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 711 Use the Zoom In button (h) to see the currently selected image in full screen size. c. Press the OK button to select the image you wish to change. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 711...
Page 712 After a few moments, you’ll see an Image saved message and be returned to normal image review. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 712...
Page 713: Red-Eye Correction
To use Red-eye correction, you must first take a picture using flash. That picture also needs to be color (i.e. you can’t apply this to black and white images shot with the D300, nor can you apply it to images that weren’t taken with flash), and can be NEF or JPEG.
Page 714 After a few moments, you’ll see the new image and be offered to review and/or save it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 714...
Page 715: Trim
Eventually, you’ll want to crop that image to get rid of the extraneous parts. The D300 allows you to do that in camera (though with some size constraints that might not match what you want to do).
Page 716 Use the Zoom In button (h) to see the currently selected image in full screen size. c. Press the OK button to select the image you wish to change. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 716...
Page 717 After a few moments, you’ll see an Image Saved message and be returned to normal image review. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 717...
Page 718: Monochrome
The modified version of your image will appear with a special icon (paintbrush): Monochrome While the D300 has the ability to shoot black and white images directly (via Picture Controls), you can also create them after the fact using this function.
Page 719 Press the OK button to select the image you wish to change. 6. The camera now shows an example of the converted image. Press the OK button to begin the change Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 719...
Page 720: Filter Effects
• Warm filter—this option places a slight “warm” color cast on the image, again with an emphasis on the slight. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 720...
Page 721 To use Filter effects, you must first take a picture. That picture needs to be color (i.e. you can’t apply this to black and white images shot with the D300), and can be NEF or JPEG. 1. Press the MENU key to show the menu system.
Page 722 After a few moments, you’ll see an Image saved message and be returned to normal image review. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 722...
Page 723: Color Balance
To use Color balance, you must first take a picture. That picture needs to be color (i.e. you can’t apply this to black and white images shot with the D300), and can be NEF or JPEG. 1. Press the MENU button to show the menu system.
Page 724 Direction pad to move the black square that marks the color shift you wish (here taken deep into the purple near the bottom of the control), then press the OK Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 724...
Page 725: Image Overlays
The modified version of your image will appear with a special icon (paintbrush): Image Overlays The D300 has an in-camera facility for creating composite images. Things to note about this function: Number of shots: 2 only Image Format:...
Page 726 (paintbrush icon tab) and press the > key on the Direction pad to enter the menu. 5. Use the Direction pad to navigate to Image overlay and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 726...
Page 727 Use the " and % keys on the Direction pad (or Rear Command dial) to adjust the “gain” for Image 1. A value of 1.0 means use the exposure as is. A value of 0.5 would mean to Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 727...
Page 728 NEF images on your card. g. Navigate to the image you want to use as your second image (Image 2). h. Press the OK button to use that image as Image 2. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 728...
Page 729 9. It’ll take a few seconds to combine the images, and during that time an hourglass appears over the screen to indicate that the camera is working at combining Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 729...
Page 730 Usually you’ll want detail in one picture where there is only a plain area in the other (and vice versa), but that’s not universally true, so experiment. One thing this function is Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 730...
Page 731: Transferring Your Images To Your Computer
Same trick works for JPEG, too. Transferring Your Images to Your Computer Images are stored in your D300 on a CompactFlash card. You can get those images off the card into your computer in three basic ways: 1.
Page 732 If you plug the camera into your computer, the CompactFlash card in the D300 will show up as a “drive” on your computer (on Windows that’s true if you’ve set the USB function to Mass storage or MTP/PTP ).
Page 733: Connecting To A Computer
D300 gets out of the way and acts basically like a (very Nikon warns that high-speed transfers don’t work if you use a hub. Put another way, Nikon disclaims support beyond the usual 15 feet (5m) when the camera is directly connected to a computer USB port.
Page 734 The only thing the computer can access is the data on that card. This is the default USB mode for the D300, and what you should use if your computer is running an older version of Windows (98, Me, 2000) or Macintosh OS (9.x).
Page 735: Turn The Camera Off
4. The computer should recognize the camera and start up a transfer operation if you have everything If the D300 is connected to the computer and turned on when you boot (or reboot) your PC running Windows XP or Windows 2000, the computer may see the camera as a mass storage device and perform an integrity check of the “drive”...
Page 736: Printing Your Images
Nikon designed the D300 so that it would continue to operate normally while connected to a computer. That means that you can take pictures while the camera is connected to the computer.
Page 737 AdobeRGB Color Space you must transfer your images to a computer and process them correctly before sending the image out to print. Select the images to print. The D300 has a feature—Print • set (DPOF)—that allows you to automate this process in the camera.
Page 738: Selecting Images To Print
(see “Printing Resolution” on page <744>). Selecting Images to Print The D300 supports the DPOF specification (Digital Print Order Format), which allows you to insert your CompactFlash card into a DPOF enabled printer and automatically get prints of images pre-marked for printing (called the “print set”). Most inkjet printers that allow you to insert a CompactFlash card support DPOF (e.g.
Page 739 " copies. A small 1 icon indicates that the image will be printed and the number tells you how many copies you’ve specified. Press the OK button when you’re Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 739...
Page 740 DPOF printers expect images using the sRGB color space. If you plan to use the Print set (DPOF) option, you should set the Color Space of your D300 to sRGB. See “Color Profiles and Color Spaces” on page <674>. So what have you done here? Essentially you’ve put data into the EXIF fields for the image that most digital camera aware Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300...
Page 741: Pictbridge Printing
4. Use the Direction pad to navigate to PTP and press the > key on the Direction pad to select it. 5. Ready the printer (insert media and cartridges and turn the printer on). Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 741...
Page 742 (DPOF) (some printers may also offer the option of an Index print. Navigate to either of them and press the > key on the Direction pad to continue (both work Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 742...
Page 743 11. If you printer has options for Page size, Border, and Time stamp, you can set them now. Otherwise, navigate to Start printing and press the > key on the Direction pad to start the printing: Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 743...
Page 744: Printing Resolution
Color Space of your D300 to sRGB. See “Color Profiles and Color Spaces” on page <674>. Note: The D300 stays powered and active the entire time that it is connected to a PictBridge printer. Batteries can get exhausted rapidly: in printing 36 images, for example, the battery in my D300 lost almost half its charge.
Page 745 Photoshop Elements Image Size command, you’ll see a entry called Resolution that’s specified in pixels/inch (or pixels/cm). For D300 JPEG images this value will normally be 72. This is an arbitrary assignment by the software program and sometimes controlled by a value in the EXIF data. Above this value you’ll see values for the width and height for the...
Page 746 4. Enter new dimensions in the Width and/or Height boxes. However, if you perform this step, you’ll no longer be dealing with the actual pixels you captured while shooting, but Photoshop’s interpolation of them at the new size. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 746...
Page 747: Output On Commercial Printers
Output on Commercial Printers While it’s a little bit out of the scope of this book, enough D300 users have asked me about professional printing options that it makes sense to give a brief set of tips here, especially since color issues are usually the biggest complaint.
Page 748: Viewing Your Images
9. Save all your images on a CD-R and take them to the printer. Viewing Your Images The D300 can be connected to a television so that what would normally appear on its color LCD appears instead on the TV. It can also present a “slide show” of all the images on the CompactFlash card inside your camera.
Page 749: Television Playback
The D300 also has an HDMI connector under this same cover, which can be used to connect to HD televisions and monitors. Before connecting the D300 to a television via the standard video out connector, you must tell the camera what kind of video standard to use: NTSC The video standard in the US, Canada, and Japan.
Page 750 8. When you’re done, turn the camera off before unplugging the video cable. You may also plug the D300 into a VCR’s Video In and Audio In connections. Depending upon your VCR and television, to see the image from the D300 you will either have to have the VCR feed the TV’s Aux (composite video)
Page 751 V1.02 If you’re going to connect the D300 to a modern HD õ television or monitor that supports input via HDMI cables: 1. Press the button to display the menu system. 2. Use the Direction pad to navigate to the SETUP menu...
Page 752: Slide Shows
Slide Shows The D300 has a crude slide show function built into it, allowing you to show one or more folders of D300 images in sequence, with a specific delay between each image (two to ten seconds). Since the D300 can be connected to a television (see “Television Playback”...
Page 753 Obviously, if you’re using the slide show option you probably are displaying images to others, perhaps in a review session. The D300 supports television display of the images for this very situation (see “Television Playback” on page <749>). Timeouts are handled a little differently in slide show mode, though.
Page 754: D300 Accessories
11.1 volts at 2500Ah. The EN-EL4a battery can power the D2 series, the D3, and the D300 (via the MB-D10, however this requires the optional BL-3 battery chamber door). Third party versions of this battery exist; some will work with the D300, some won’t.
Page 755 DK-5 eyepiece shutter, which goes into the viewfinder rails in place of the DK-21. One DK-21 is supplied with the D300. DG-2 Magnifier (requires, and usually comes with, DK-7 Eyepiece Adapter, which slides into the viewfinder rails). An...
Page 756 MC-30 Remote Cord. This 2.6’ (80cm) cord is the simplest remote shutter release for the D300 (plus D1, D2, D3, D200, and current 35mm film bodies, such as the F100, F5, and F6).
Page 757 GPS units that have optional cables. MC-36 Remote Cord. This 2.6’ (80cm) cord is a more complex shutter release for the D300 (plus D1, D2, D3, D200 and current 35mm film bodies, such as the F100, F5, and F6).
Page 758: Specifications
(single point, dynamic, or group) Autofocus Range -1 to 19 EV (at ISO 100) Autofocus Module Nikon CAM3500DX Autofocus Features AE/AF lock button, AF lock on partial shutter release, Auto Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 758...
Page 759 GN 39 feet (12m) in TTL GN 42 feet (13m) in Manual Flash Modes Balanced Fill Flash (i-TTL); Standard TTL; Commander Mode; Repeating Flash, Manual; Flash Options Red-Eye Reduction; Slow Sync; Rear Curtain Sync Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 759...
Page 760 Computer Interface USB 2 Size 5.8” wide x 4.5” tall x 2.9” deep (147mm wide x 114mm tall x 74mm deep) Weight 1 pound 13 ounces (825g) (w/o battery or card) Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 760...
Page 761: Getting Service
V1.02 Getting Service Assuming that you bought an officially imported camera and not a gray market one, getting service for the D300 should be relatively straightforward. In practice, both Nikon and users make it more difficult than it should be.
Page 762 V1.02 that Nikon knows that and that you expect them to fix that problem under warranty. • Slow service. With new products, service usually slows for all but NPS members (professional photographers). Even NPS pros sometimes encounter parts shortages that delay repairs.
Page 763 V1.02 Okay, now that I’ve scared you, how do you get quick and complete service out of Nikon? Here’s my list, compiled after talking and corresponding with dozens of users who’ve had troubles with NikonUSA service: • Document. Take the time to write a clear, complete, and if appropriate, illustrated letter that describes exactly the problem you’ve encountered.
Page 764 Usually you should wait for Nikon to ask for it. But if you want to expedite the process, write a note that says “I hereby authorize Nikon to make any repair of up to US$xxx and charge this to my Mastercard/Visa ####### expiration x/xx.”...
Page 765 1300 Walt Whitman Road Melville, NY 11747-3064 Nikon Inc. Attn: Service Dept. 841 Apollo St. Suite 100 El Segundo CA 90245 The Nikon service Web site for NikonUSA is at: http://www.nikonusa.com/template.php?goingto=inc_service. Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300 Page 765...
Page 766: Questions And Answers
Q: Are there different models of D300 in different parts of the world? A: No. A D300 sold in the United States is the same as the camera sold in Japan and Europe. The serial numbering method does seem to vary between regions, however (which is one way that Nikon can tell whether you’ve got an official...
Page 767 (The focus distance is not exact, but rather one chosen from a small set of possible distances.) Is it really important to use D-type lenses on a D300? If you use flash at close-in distances, yes. With a lens of less than 100mm in focal length and at focus distances of 15 feet (5m) or less, you’ll see small, but usually visible differences in flash...
Page 768 CD-ROM drive. In other words, an 8x CompactFlash isn’t necessarily half as fast as a 16x card, though it may be true on the D300 if the card itself can handle sustained peak writes. Virtually all of the actual...
Page 769 NEF file format? A: Yes. You can apply to Nikon for access to some key header files and other information, including DLLs that operate as “black boxes” between your software and the camera or NEF images.

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