Preface

The new Nikon Z6 is proof that a mirrorless full-frame camera can be highly affordable, too. This 24-megapixel camera packs a surprising number of high-end features into a compact body priced at less than $2,000. Although it’s all-new from sensor to lens mount, the Z6 looks and handles like a Nikon, with controls and menus that veteran Nikon owners will find comfortably familiar as they explore its exciting enhancements. Newcomers to the world of Nikon or the realm of mirrorless digital photography will easily master the Z6’s capabilities, even though the sheer number of features and options can be daunting. The only thing standing between you and pixel proficiency is the fat, but confusing book included in the box as a manual.

Everything you need to know is in there, somewhere, but you don’t know where to start, nor how to find the information you really need to master your camera. In addition, the Z6 camera manual doesn’t offer much guidance on the principles that will help you master digital photography. Nor does it really tell you much about how mirrorless shooting might differ from the kinds of digital photography you may already be used to. If you’re like most enthusiasts, you’re probably not interested in spending hours or days studying a comprehensive book on digital photography that doesn’t necessarily apply directly to the enhanced features of your Z6.

What you really need is a guide that explains the purpose and function of the Z6’s basic controls, available lens options, and most essential accessories from the perspective of mirrorless cameras. It should tell you how you should use them, and why. Ideally, there should be information about the exciting features at your disposal, how to optimize image quality, when to use exposure modes like aperture- or shutter-priority, and the use of special autofocus modes. In many cases, you’d prefer to read about those topics only after you’ve had the chance to go out and take a few hundred great pictures with your new camera. Why isn’t there a book that summarizes the most important information in its first two or three chapters, with lots of illustrations showing what your results will look like when you use this setting or that? This is that book.

If you can’t decide on what basic settings to use with your camera because you can’t figure out how changing ISO or white balance or focus defaults will affect your pictures, you need this guide. I won’t talk down to you, either; this book isn’t padded with dozens of pages of checklists telling you how to take a travel picture, a sports photo, or how to take a snapshot of your kids in overly simplistic terms. There are no special sections devoted to “real-world” recipes here. All of us do 100 percent of our shooting in the real world! So, I give you all the information you need to cook up great photos on your own!