2
Nikon D800 Roadmap
Most of the Nikon D800’s key functions and settings that are changed frequently can be accessed directly using the array of dials, buttons, and knobs that populate the camera’s surface. With so many dedicated controls available, you’ll find that the bulk of your shooting won’t be slowed down by a visit to the vast thicket of text options called Menu-land. That’s a distinct paradigm shift from early point-and-shoot cameras, which had only four or five buttons, and relied on menus to control virtually every setting you might want to make. With the D800, you can press specific buttons dedicated to image quality, white balance, ISO sensitivity, shooting mode, exposure compensation, and playback options, and then spin a command dial or make adjustments using the multi selector.
While it might take some time to learn the position and function of each of these controls, once you’ve mastered them, the D800 camera is remarkably easy to use. That’s because dedicated buttons with only one or two functions each are much faster to access than the alternative—a maze of menus that must be navigated every time you want to use a feature. The advantage of menu systems—dating back to early computer user interfaces of the 1980s—is that they are easy to learn. The ironic disadvantage of menus is that they are clumsy to use.
Imagine that you are familiar with digital SLRs in general, but know virtually nothing about the Nikon D800. Perhaps you’ve upgraded from a Canon EOS model, which uses a control and menu layout that’s much different from most Nikon cameras. You’ve decided that you want to format the memory card. A-ha! There’s a big ol’ MENU button on the left side of the camera. Press it, and you’ll see a series of different menu icons, which, when you scroll through them, have titles like Playback menu, Shooting menu, Custom Settings menu, and Setup menu. You might guess that the Setup menu is the likely repository for a Format command, but even if you guess wrong, it takes only a minute or two to check out the other menus and discover the Format command tucked away within the Setup menu. A couple more button presses (you’ll need to choose between which of the two memory card slots you want to format—if both contain cards) and you’ve successfully formatted your memory card.
You didn’t really need instructions—the menu system itself led you to the right command. If you don’t format another card for weeks and weeks, you can come back to the menus and discover how to perform the task all over again. The main cost to you was the time required to negotiate through all the menus to carry out the function; while menus are easy to learn, the multiple steps they call for (10 or more button presses may be required) can be cumbersome to use. Direct access buttons are the exact opposite: you have to teach yourself how to use them, and then remember what you’ve learned over time, but once learned, buttons are much faster to use.
For example, simple direct button presses can also format your memory card. It’s easy to just hold down the metering mode button and the trash can button simultaneously for about two seconds. When the characters For and the exposures remaining displays blink in the viewfinder and top control panel LCD, select the slot containing the memory card you want to format (rotate the main command dial), press the pair of buttons again, and the D800 formats your card. To cancel the format, press any other button. The sequence may be tricky to learn or remember (although red Format labels appear next to the pair of buttons), but it’s much faster to use than threading through a series of menu options.
If you want to operate your D800 efficiently, you’ll need to learn the location, function, and application of all these controls. What you really need is a street-level roadmap that shows where everything is, and how it’s used. But what Nikon gives you in the user’s manual is akin to a world globe with an overall view and many cross-references to the pages that will tell you what you really need to know. Check out the Getting to Know the Camera pages in Nikon’s manual, which offers four tiny black-and-white line drawings of the camera body that show front, back, two sides, and the top and bottom of the D800. There are about six dozen callouts pointing to various buttons and dials. If you can find the control you want in this cramped layout, you’ll still need to flip back and forth among multiple pages (individual buttons can have several different cross-references!) to locate the information.
Most other third-party books follow this format, featuring black-and-white photos or line drawings of front, back, and top views, and many labels. I originated the up-close-and-personal, full-color, street-level roadmap (rather than a satellite view) that I use in this book and my previous camera guidebooks. I provide you with many different views and lots of explanation accompanying each zone of the camera, so that by the time you finish this chapter, you’ll have a basic understanding of every control and what it does.
I’m not going to delve into menu functions here—you’ll find a discussion of your Playback, Shooting, Custom Settings, and Setup options in Chapters 11, 12, and 13. Everything here is devoted to the button pusher and dial twirler in you.
You’ll also find this “roadmap” chapter a good guide to the rest of the book, as well. I’ll try to provide as much detail here about the use of the main controls as I can, but some topics (such as autofocus and exposure) are too complex to address in depth right away. As much as I’d like to explain everything in just one place, 200-page chapters can be tiresome. So, I’ll point you to the relevant chapters that discuss things like setup options, exposure, use of electronic flash, and working with lenses with the occasional cross-reference.
Nikon D800: Full Frontal
This is the side seen by your victims as you snap away (Figure 2.1). For the photographer, though, the front is the surface your fingers curl around as you hold the camera, and there are really only a few buttons to press, all within easy reach of the fingers of your left and right hands. There are additional controls on the lens itself. You’ll need to look at several different views to see everything.
Figure 2.1 shows the front of the D800 with the lens removed. The D800E is virtually identical, except for a reduced-size uppercase E appended to the name badge on the upper-right corner of the camera. The components shown in this view include:
Aperture lever. This mechanical lever pivots to physically move the diaphragm inside the lens to the f/stop that will be used to take the picture. The actual size of the aperture is determined by the setting calculated by the D800’s exposure system, or specified by you in Manual exposure mode, and conveyed to the camera through the electrical contacts located at the top edge of the lens mount.
Electronic contacts. These eight contact points mate with matching points on the bayonet mount of the lens itself, and allow two-way communication between the camera and lens for functions like aperture size and autofocus information.
Lens indexing ring. This sliding lever mates with a notch on the edge of the lens barrel. Its position tells the camera the maximum aperture of the lens as well as the currently selected f/stop of lenses that have their own built-in aperture ring. Lens indexing allows the D800 to use older lenses (such as non-autofocus AI or AI-S lenses) for automatic exposure using Aperture-priority.
You’ll need to enter the maximum aperture and focal length of such lenses one time in the Non-CPU Lens Data entry of the Setup menu, and then tell the D800 when you have mounted this lens. (I’ll show you how to do this in Chapter 13.)
The presence of the lens indexing ring is the reason why you need to lock the aperture of your autofocus D-type lenses at the minimum setting (usually f/16 or f/22) using a lock switch on the lens itself, so that the lens can communicate aperture information electronically. The indexing makes no difference when using G-type lenses that lack an aperture ring.
Autofocus drive screw. This feature, along with the lens indexing ring, are two components lacking in Nikon’s most recent entry-level cameras, but present in more advanced models like the D800. The drive screw is connected to a motor in the camera body to allow the camera to adjust focus of lenses that lack an AF motor within the lens itself. These lenses are marked with an AF designation instead of AF-S (the S stands for Silent Wave motor). The D800 can autofocus any AF or AF-S lens, whereas entry-level models like the Nikon D3200 (which don’t have the camera-body motor and this drive screw) autofocus only the AF-S lenses. I’ll explain autofocus and lens features in more detail in Chapters 5 and 7.
Lens mounting index. Line up this dot with the matching dot on the lens barrel to mount your lens on the D800.
Lens mount. This precision bayonet mount mates with the matching mount on the back of each compatible lens. The mount configuration is basically unchanged since the original Nikon F was introduced in 1959, with only a few changes, such as the lens indexing ring introduced in 1977, and autofocus motor/pin in 1986.
Lens release button. Press this button to retract the locking pin on the lens mount so a lens can be rotated to remove it from the camera.
Locking pin. This pin slides inside a matching hole in the lens to keep it from rotating until the lens release button is pressed.
Quick Return mirror. This flip-up mirror directs the image seen by the lens upward to the viewing screen and exposure metering system, and thence onward to the eyepiece of the optical viewfinder. Semi-silvered locations on the mirror allow some illumination to be directed downward to the autofocus mechanism located on the floor of the compartment.
Figure 2.2 shows a view of the left side Nikon D800, as seen from the front. The main components you need to know about are as follows:
Shutter release. Angled on top of the hand grip is the shutter release button, which has multiple functions. Press this button down halfway to lock exposure and focus. Press it down all the way to actually take a photo or sequence of photos if you’ve changed the mode dial to either of the continuous shooting modes, CL or CH (Continuous shooting low speed and Continuous shooting high speed), or if you’ve redefined the behavior of the self-timer to take 1 to 9 exposures when its delay has expired. (I’ll show you how to take multiple shots with the self-timer in Chapter 11.) Tapping the shutter button when the D800’s exposure meters have turned themselves off reactivates them, and a tap can be used to remove the display of a menu or image from the rear color LCD monitor.
On/Off switch. Rotating this switch to the detent turns the camera on. Continuing to rotate past the detent to the farthest position illuminates the top control panel LCD lamp, so you can read settings in dim lighting.
Sub-command dial. This dial is used to change shooting settings. When settings are available in pairs (such as shutter speed/aperture), this dial will be used to make one type of setting, such as aperture, while the main command dial (on the back of the camera) will be used to make the other, such as aperture setting. Using the Custom Settings menu adjustments in CSM #f9, you can reverse the default rotational direction, swap the functions of the sub-command and main command dials, control how the sub-command dial is used to set aperture, and tell the D800 that you want to use the main command dial to scroll through menus and images. All these options are discussed in more detail in Chapter 12.
AF-assist illuminator/Red-eye reduction/Self-timer lamp. This LED provides a blip of light shortly before a flash exposure to cause the subjects’ pupils to close down, reducing the effect of red-eye reflections off their retinas. When using the self-timer, this lamp also flashes to mark the countdown until the photo is taken. It can also illuminate to provide assistance for the D800’s autofocus mechanism at fairly close distances.
Hand grip. This provides a comfortable hand-hold, and also contains the D800’s battery. Unlike some earlier Nikon models which had their electrical contacts inside the battery compartment, it’s not necessary to remove the battery of the D800 to mount the MB-D12 accessory battery/vertical grip. Its contacts are located on the bottom of the camera.
Fn (Function button). This conveniently located button has no function by default, but can be programmed to perform any one of 12 different actions, ranging from metering modes (Matrix, Center-weighted, Spot) to flash off or bracketing bursts. You can choose separate actions for both a standard Fn button press (17 options, plus Off), or the Fn button and command dial spin (5 options, plus Off).
Note that on some earlier Nikon cameras that have both a Fn button and depth-of-field preview (described next), the position of these two is swapped. If you’d rather have this button (the upper one) act as a DOF button, as on those earlier cameras, you can define it for that function. I’ll explain how to define a function using Custom Settings menu entry CSM #f3 in Chapter 12.
Depth-of-field (preview) button. By default, this button closes down the lens aperture to the opening that will be used to take the picture, as set by the D800’s light meters or by you (when in Manual or Aperture-priority modes). The DOF button can be redefined using the same functions offered for the Fn button. I’ll explain how to define a function using Custom Settings menu entry CSM #f4 in Chapter 12.
Memory card door. Your Secure Digital and/or Compact Flash memory cards can be inserted here when you slide the door toward the rear of the camera to open it.
DC power port. This opening on the inside edge of the hand grip provides a place for the optional AC adapter connector to exit.
You’ll find more controls on the other side of the D800, shown in Figure 2.3. In the illustration, you can see the mode dial on top, and the rubber covers on the side that protects the camera’s USB, HDMI, microphone ports, and headphone jack. The main points of interest shown include:
Neck strap eyelet. It comes with a split-ring attached that can be used to fasten a neck strap to the D800.
Microphone. The D800 has a microphone built into the front of the camera, seen as a trio of holes set in a horizontal line.
Port covers. These two rubber covers protect the USB, HDMI, microphone ports, and headphone connectors when not in use.
Focus mode selector switch. Rotate to change from autofocus to manual focus. You should remember that the modes selected with this switch and the autofocus/manual focus switch on the lens must agree. If you’ve chosen A (or M/A, which allows for manual fine-tuning of autofocus) on the lens, then the camera body switch must be set to AF. If either the lens or body switch (or both) are set to M, then the lens must be focused manually.
Focus mode button. Press this button and rotate the main command dial to change from Continuous-servo autofocus (AF-C) to Single-servo autofocus (AF-S) or Manual focus (M). Rotate the sub-command dial to change autofocus area selection modes. Both options were described in Chapter 1, and will be explained in more detail in Chapter 5.
Flash sync connector. This connector hides beneath a rubber cover, along with the 10-pin remote terminal. You can see the two connectors uncovered in Figure 2.4. Connect a standard PC/X-contact cable or other accessory to this connector. If you are connecting a non-dedicated flash unit to your Nikon D800 (say, a studio strobe or some other non-automatic non-Nikon flash), it would plug in here.
10-pin remote terminal. This connector is used for a variety of accessories, including cable release cords, remote releases of other types (including radio/IR receivers), GPS links (to the Nikon GP-1), and so forth.
LOSE THE RUBBER COVER
I don’t like the rubber cover over the flash sync and 10-pin remote connectors. I use studio flash and remote devices so often that the cover ends up dangling at the side of the camera 90 percent of the time. If you’re in the same boat, help is on the way. The rubber cover fastens to the D800 around the neck strap lug, so you can carefully remove it (it’s easier to do this when no neck strap is attached, obviously) and store the cover away for re-installation when you sell your D800. If you’d rather not leave your connectors “naked” (or just want to protect them when shooting in rain and other harsh conditions), the plastic PC connector and 10-pin terminal covers provided for earlier Nikon pro cameras screw into the connectors just fine. They can be purchased for a few dollars each from www.bocaphoto.com, which offers many other inexpensive Nikon replacement parts. I buy a bunch of them at a time, because the tiny covers are easy to lose, but I find the inconvenience of screwing one of these covers on and off from time to time (say, when I’m shooting in rain or snow), or replacing a lost one is much less of a hassle than dealing with that floppy rubber cover installed at the factory.
Controls for using the D800’s built-in electronic flash (also called a strobe or speed-light) are shown in Figure 2.5. These components include:
Pop-up flash. The flash elevates from the top of the camera, theoretically reducing the chances of red-eye reflections, because the higher light source is less likely to reflect back from your subjects’ eyes into the camera lens. In practice, the red-eye effect is still possible (and likely), and can be further minimized with the D800’s red-eye reduction lamp (which flashes before the exposure, causing the subjects’ pupils to contract), and the after-shot red-eye elimination offered in the Retouch menu. (Your image editor may also have anti-red-eye tools.) Of course, the best strategy is to use an external speedlight that mounts on the accessory shoe on top of the camera (and thus is even higher) or a flash that is off-camera entirely.
Flash pop-up button. This button releases the built-in flash so it can flip up and start the charging process. If you decide you do not want to use the flash, you can turn it off by pressing the flash head back down.
Flash mode/Flash compensation button. This button is held down while spinning the main command dial (to choose flash mode) or sub-command dial (to add or subtract exposure using flash compensation). I’ll explain how to use the various flash modes (red-eye reduction, front/rear curtain sync, and slow sync) in Chapter 9, along with some tips for adjusting flash exposure.
The main feature on the side of the Nikon D800 is a rubber cover that protects the connector ports underneath from dust and moisture. The ports, shown in Figure 2.6 with the rubber cover removed, are as follows:
Microphone connector. Although the D800 has a built-in microphone on the front, if you want better quality (and want to shield your video clip soundtracks from noises emanating from the camera and/or your handling of it), you can plug in an accessory mic here.
USB port. Plug in the USB cable furnished with your Nikon D800 and connect the other end to a USB port in your computer to transfer photos, to upload Picture Control settings, or to upload/download other settings between your camera and computer.
HDMI port. You need to buy an accessory cable to connect your D800 to an HDTV, as one to fit this port is not provided with the camera. If you have a high-resolution television, it’s worth the expenditure to be able to view your camera’s output in all its glory.
Headphone port. Serious movie shooters will want to connect an earphone or headphone to this port so they can monitor exactly what sound is being recorded by the camera during video capture. I’ll have more audio recommendations in Chapter 15.
The Nikon D800’s Business End
The back panel of the Nikon D800 (see Figure 2.7) bristles with more than a dozen different controls, buttons, and knobs. That might seem like a lot of controls to learn, but you’ll find, as I noted earlier, that it’s a lot easier to press a dedicated button and spin a dial than to jump to a menu every time you want to change a setting.
You can see the controls clustered along the top edge of the back panel in Figure 2.8. The key buttons and components and their functions are as follows:
Playback button. Press this button to review images you’ve taken, using the controls and options I’ll explain in the next section. To remove the displayed image, press the Playback button again, or simply tap the shutter release button.
Trash/Format #1. Press to erase the image shown on the LCD monitor. A display will pop up on the LCD asking you to press the Trash button once more to delete the photo, or press the Playback button to cancel. Hold down this button and the metering mode button on the top-right surface of the camera (both are marked with red Format labels). “For” will appear in the monochrome control panel LCD. Choose which memory card you want to erase (rotate the main command dial). Press the buttons again to begin formatting your memory card.
Viewfinder eyepiece. You can frame your composition by peering into the viewfinder. It’s surrounded by a soft rubber frame that seals out extraneous light when pressing your eye tightly up to the viewfinder, and it also protects your eyeglass lenses (if worn) from scratching.
Viewfinder shutter switch. You should ensure that light coming from the back of the camera doesn’t venture inside and possibly affect the exposure reading when taking pictures while not looking through the viewfinder (say, the camera is mounted on a tripod). Flip this switch to block off illumination coming from the rear. Shielding the viewfinder with your hand may be more convenient (unless you’re using the self-timer to get in the photo yourself).
Diopter adjustment control. Pull it out, and then rotate this to adjust the diopter correction for your eyesight, as described in Chapter 1. Push it back in to lock your setting.
Metering mode switch. Rotate to change among Matrix, Center-weighted, and Spot metering, as described in Chapter 4.
AE-L/AF-L (autoexposure/autofocus) lock. This button can be programmed by you to provide a variety of autoexposure/autofocus locking functions, which I’ll explain in Chapter 12. By default, it locks the exposure or focus that the camera sets when you partially depress the shutter button. The exposure lock indication (AE-L icon) appears in the viewfinder. If you want to recalculate exposure or auto-focus with the shutter button still partially depressed, press the button again. The exposure/autofocus will be unlocked when you release the shutter button or take the picture. To retain the exposure/autofocus lock for subsequent photos, keep the button pressed while shooting.
AF-ON. Press this button to activate the autofocus system without needing to partially depress the shutter release. This control, used with other buttons, allows you to lock exposure and focus separately: Lock exposure by pressing the shutter release halfway, or by pressing the AE lock (AE-L) button; autofocus by pressing the shutter release halfway, or by pressing the AF-ON button. There are lots of cool ways you can use the AF-ON button, and I’ll explain them in detail in Chapter 12.
Main command dial. This is the main control dial of the D800, used to set or adjust most functions, such as shutter speed, bracketing sequence, white balance, ISO, and so forth, either alone or when another button is depressed simultaneously. It is often used in conjunction with the sub-command dial on the front of the camera when pairs of settings can be made, such as image formats (main command dial: image format; sub-command dial: resolution); exposure (main: shutter speed; sub: aperture); flash (main: flash mode; sub: flash compensation); or white balance (main: WB preset; sub: fine-tune WB). You can swap functions of the main and sub-command dials, reverse the rotation direction, choose whether the aperture ring on the lens or the sub-command dial will be used to set the f/stop, and activate the main command dials to navigate menus and images. You’ll learn about these Custom Settings menu options in Chapter 12.
You’ll be using the five buttons to the left of the LCD monitor (shown in Figure 2.9) quite frequently, so learn their functions now.
MENU button. Summons/exits the menu displayed on the rear LCD monitor of the D800. When you’re working with submenus, this button also serves to exit a submenu and return to the main menu.
Help/Protect/Picture Controls button. When viewing most menu items on the monitor, pressing this button produces a concise Help screen with tips on how to make the relevant setting. This triple-duty button also can be used to protect an image from accidental erasure when reviewing a picture on the LCD monitor. Press once to protect the image, a second time to unprotect it. A key symbol appears when the image is displayed to show that it is protected. (This feature safeguards an image from erasure when deleting or transferring pictures only; when you format a card, protected images are removed along with all the others.) The button also summons the setting screen for Picture Controls (explained in Chapter 11).
Thumbnail/Zoom Out button. Use this button to change from full-screen view to six, nine, or 72 thumbnails, or to zoom out. I’ll explain zooming and other playback options in the next section. The button also accesses ISO sensitivity settings.
Zoom In button. Press to zoom in on an image.
OK button. Press to confirm your choices.
More buttons reside on the right side of the back panel, as shown in Figure 2.10. The key controls and their functions are as follows:
Live View selector switch. Rotate this switch clockwise to select either Live View (for still images) or Live View (for movie shooting).
Lv button. Press the Live View button to activate live view, again to stop live view.
Multi selector. This joypad-like button can be shifted up, down, side to side, and diagonally for a total of eight directions, or pressed. It can be used for several functions, including AF point selection, scrolling around a magnified image, trimming a photo, or setting white balance correction. Within menus, pressing the up/down arrows moves the on-screen cursor up or down; pressing toward the right selects the highlighted item and displays its options; pressing left cancels and returns to the previous menu.
Multi selector center button. The button in the center of the multi selector can be pressed to choose a highlighted selection in a menu and to confirm choices.
Focus selector lock switch. Rotate this switch to the L position to disable changing the focus point with the multi selector.
Ambient brightness sensor. Detects the amount of light in your shooting environment, enabling the D800 to automatically adjust the LCD monitor brightness to suit.
Speaker. Sound emitted by your D800 emerges here.
Memory card access lamp. When lit or blinking, this lamp indicates that a memory card is being accessed.
Info button. Press this button to activate the shooting information display. Press again to change any of the parameters in the bottom rows of the display, using the multi selector to highlight the option. (See Figure 2.11.) Then, press OK to summon a screen that lets you make the changes. Or, press a third time to remove the information display (or simply tap the shutter release button). The display will also clear after the period you’ve set for monitor display (the default value is 20 seconds). The information display can be set to alternate between modes that are best viewed under bright daylight, as well as in dimmer illumination. I’ll describe the use of the shooting information display in more detail later in this chapter.
Playing Back Images
Reviewing images is a joy on the Nikon D800’s big 3.2-inch monitor. The display is big and bright, and there is abundant detail on that 920,000-dot, VGA-resolution screen.
Here are the basics involved in reviewing images on the monitor screen (or on a television/HDTV screen you have connected with a cable). You’ll find more details about some of these functions later in this chapter, or, for more complex capabilities, in the chapters that I point you to. This section just lists the must-know information.
Start review. To begin review, press the Playback button at the upper-left corner of the back of the D800. The most recently viewed image will appear on the LCD monitor.
Playback card. If you have two memory cards installed in your D800, you can change which card is used for playback by pressing the Zoom Out/Thumbnails button until the 72 thumbnails view (described later) is shown. Press the button one more time, and the Playback Slot and Folder screen will appear. If images are on both cards, you can highlight either SD Card Slot or CF Card Slot. Press the right button to see a list of available playback folders. Choose the folder/card you want to use. You can also select the folder using the Playback Folder option (choose a named folder, All, or Current folder) in the Playback menu. See Chapter 11 for more information.
View thumbnail images. To change the view from a single image to four, nine, or 72 thumbnails, follow the instructions in the “Viewing Thumbnails” section that follows.
Zoom in and out. To zoom in or out, press the Zoom Out/Thumbnail key, following the instructions in the “Zooming the Nikon D800 Playback Display” in the next section. (It also shows you how to move the zoomed area around using the multi selector keypad.)
Move back and forth. To advance to the next image, press the right edge of the multi selector pad; to go back to a previous shot, press the left edge. When you reach the beginning/end of the photos in your folder, the display “wraps around” to the end/beginning of the available shots.
See different types of data. To change the type of information about the displayed image that is shown, press the up and down portions of the multi selector pad. To learn what data is available, read the “Using Shooting Data” section later in this chapter.
Remove images. To delete an image that’s currently on the screen, press the Trash button once, then press it again to confirm the deletion. To select and delete a group of images, use the Delete option in the Playback menu to specify particular photos to remove, as described in more detail in Chapter 11.
Cancel playback. To cancel image review, press the Playback button again, or simply tap the shutter release button.
Zooming the Nikon D800 Playback Display
The Nikon D800 zooms in and out of preview images using the procedure that follows:
1. When an image is displayed (use the Playback button to start), press the Zoom In button to fill the screen with a slightly magnified version of the image.
2. A navigation window appears in the lower-right corner of the monitor showing the entire image. Keep pressing to continue zooming in to the maximum of 31X enlargement (with a full resolution large image).
3. A yellow box in the navigation window shows the zoomed area within the full image. The entire navigation window vanishes from the screen after a few seconds, leaving you with a full-screen view of the zoomed portion of the image. (See Figure 2.12.)
4. To detect faces, rotate the sub-command dial while an image is zoomed. Up to 35 faces will be detected by the D800, indicated by white borders in the navigation window. Rotate the sub-command dial to move highlighting to the individual faces.
5. Use the main command dial to move to the same zoomed area of the next/previous image.
6. Use the Zoom Out/Thumbnail button to zoom back out of the image.
7. Use the multi selector buttons to move the zoomed area around within the image. The navigation window will reappear for reference when zooming or scrolling around within the display.
8. To exit zoom in/zoom out display, keep pressing the Zoom Out button until the full screen/full image/information display appears again.
Figure 2.12 The Nikon D800 incorporates a small thumbnail image with a yellow box showing the current zoom area.
Viewing Thumbnails
The Nikon D800 provides other options for reviewing images in addition to zooming in and out. You can switch between single image view and either four, nine, or 72 reduced-size thumbnail images on a single monitor screen. (Note: The D800 lacks the “calendar view” found in Nikon mid- and entry-level models, which shows images grouped by the date they were shot.)
Pages of thumbnail images offer a quick way to scroll through a large number of pictures quickly to find the one you want to examine in more detail. The D800 lets you switch quickly from single- to four- to nine- to 72-image views, with a scroll bar displayed at the right side of the screen to show you the relative position of the displayed thumbnails within the full collection of images in the active folder on your memory card. Figure 2.13 offers a comparison between the three levels of thumbnail views. The Zoom In and Zoom Out/Thumbnail buttons are used.
Add thumbnails. To increase the number of thumbnails on the screen, press the Zoom Out button. The D800 will switch from single image to four thumbnails to nine thumbnails to 72 thumbnails. (The display doesn’t cycle back to single image again.)
Reduce number of thumbnails. To decrease the number of thumbnails on the screen, press the Zoom In button to change from 72 to nine thumbnails to four thumbnails, or from four to single-image display. Continuing to press the Zoom In button once you’ve returned to single-image display starts the zoom process described in the previous section.
Change slot and folder. When viewing 72 thumbnails, if two memory cards are installed in the D800, then pressing the Zoom Out button one additional time produces a screen that allows you to choose the memory card slot and folder that contains the images you want to view. Press the Playback button to back out of this option and return to the 72-thumbnail view.
Switch between thumbnails and full image. When viewing thumbnails, you can quickly switch between thumbnail view and full image display by pressing the button in the center of the multi selector.
Switching to Retouch menu. When viewing thumbnails or a full screen image, press the OK button located to the left of the monitor until the Retouch menu, described in Chapter 13, appears. If you want to return to thumbnail views instead, press the Zoom In button.
Change highlighted thumbnail area. Use the multi selector to move the yellow highlight box around among the thumbnails.
Figure 2.13 Switch between four thumbnails (top), nine thumbnails (center), or 72 thumbnails (bottom), by pressing the Zoom Out and Zoom In buttons.
Protect and delete images. When viewing thumbnails or a single page image, press the Protect button to preserve the image against accidental deletion (a key icon is overlaid over the full-page image and thumbnails; press Protect again to remove protection).
Exit image review. Tap the shutter release button or press the Playback button to exit image review. You don’t have to worry about missing a shot because you were reviewing images; a half-press of shutter release automatically brings back the D800’s exposure meters, the autofocus system, and cancels image review.
Working with the Shooting Information/Photo Data Displays
Your Nikon D800 can display two types of information on the color monitor as you are reviewing or taking pictures:
Shooting information display. This is the screen of information (illustrated by Figure 2.10 earlier) that provides a readout of various settings for the D800’s shooting parameters, called the information edit screen. It appears when you press the Info button on the back of the camera, just to the right of the bottom edge of the color monitor. The shooting information display partially duplicates some of the data shown on the top control panel LCD, but has an additional feature: you can change any of the parameters listed in the bottom two rows of the display, without the need to press a function button or visit the menus. I’ll describe exactly how to do this next.
Photo Data. These are a series of up to eight screens (including GPS data, which appears only if you used a GPS device to take the picture) that provide various types of shooting and other information about a particular image that you are reviewing. The data shown applies only to that image, and does not reflect your D800’s current shooting settings (unless you’re viewing an image you’ve just taken). I’ll show you each of these screens, too, and explain how you can use them.
Using the Shooting Information Display
The shooting information display appears when you press the Info button to the lower right of the color monitor. This display shows for about 10 seconds by default, but you can change this to a period of up to 10 minutes using Custom Setting CSM #c4, as described in Chapter 12. Hide this display by pressing the Info button twice, or by tapping the shutter release button. (The D800 will always clear the monitor screen when you depress the shutter release button, and activate the exposure meter at the same time, so you’ll be ready to take a shot if you want.)
The shooting information display provides a lot of basic shooting data. Figures 2.14 and 2.15 show a color-coded version. It does not appear colored like this on your LCD monitor, and, for clarity, I’m showing some options that don’t appear on the screen at the same time; for example, your display will have only some of the flash information that I’ve coded in pink in my illustration.
I’ve applied some labels highlighting the basic kinds of settings you’ll find on this screen. I’ve simplified the labels here; you’ll find similar callouts of the individual icons later in this chapter in the section on the top-panel monochrome display, which largely duplicates the information you see here. As I noted, this rendition just provides an overview of the kind of data you’ll find on the color monitor; not every readout will appear on your screen, and certainly not all at once.
Figure 2.14 The shooting information display has this kind of information, color-coded here for simplicity.
Figure 2.15 Shooting information display continued.
When the shooting information display is shown, press the Info button a second time, and you’ll be able to change the parameters in the bottom two rows, shown in the yellow highlighted area in Figure 2.16. Use the multi selector buttons to navigate to the parameter you want to adjust and press the OK button or the multi selector center button to produce a menu with your options. If you’ve set Custom Setting CSM #d8 to On (the default), a handy tool tip appears near a highlighted entry, so you can easily tell what each of the parameters does. Once you’ve learned the functions, you can turn the tool tips off in the Custom Settings menu.
Figure 2.16 The information edit display allows changing many settings quickly.
The specs you can change include the following. (I’ll describe the options for each of them in Chapters 11, 12, and 13.)
Shooting menu bank. Choose from Banks A, B, C, or D.
Custom Settings bank. Choose from Banks A, B, C, or D.
ISO Noise Reduction/Long Exposure Noise Reduction. You can turn each of these two types of noise reduction off, or to high, normal, or low settings.
Active D-Lighting. Choose to extend the dynamic range of your image to one of four levels (Low, Normal, High, Extra High), plus Auto or Off. I’ll explain the pitfalls/advantages of Active D-Lighting in Chapter 4.
Picture Control. Choose a Picture Control style, or make adjustments to an existing style.
Color Space. Switch between Adobe RGB and sRGB color spaces.
AE-L/AF-L button, Function button, Depth-of-field preview button assignment. Change the function of each of these three buttons, so that pressing them performs a function of your choice (such as locking the flash off, changing metering mode, or triggering a burst of bracketed shots). You’ll find out how to use these (seemingly) infinite combinations of useful shortcuts in Chapter 12.
Using the Photo Data Displays
When reviewing an image on the screen, your D800 can supplement the image itself with a variety of shooting data, ranging from basic information presented at the bottom of the LCD monitor, to three text overlays that detail virtually every shooting option you’ve selected. There is also a display for GPS data if you’re using a GPS device, and two views of histograms. There’s actually a third histogram view that can be summoned when you reprogram the center button of the multi selector. I’ll explain how to do that and how to work with histograms in the discussion on achieving optimum exposure in Chapter 5. However, this is a good place to provide an overview of the kind of information you can view when playing back your photos.
You can change the types of information displayed using the Display Mode entry in the Playback menu. There you will find checkboxes you can mark for both basic photo information (overexposed highlights and the focus point used when the image was captured) and detailed photo information (which includes an RGB histogram and various data screens). I’ll show you how to activate these info options in Chapter 11, and provide more detailed reasons why you might want to see this data when you review your pictures. This section will simply show you the type of information available. Most of the data is self-explanatory, so the labels in the accompanying figures should tell you most of what you need to know. To change to any of these views while an image is on the screen in Playback mode, press the multi selector up/down buttons.
Information display. The basic full image review display looks like Figure 2.17. Press the multi selector down button to advance to the next information screen.
Highlights. When highlights display is active (after being chosen in the Display Mode entry of the Playback menu, as described in Chapter 11), any overexposed areas will be indicated by a flashing black border. As I am unable to make the printed page flash, you’ll have to check out this effect for yourself. You can visualize what these “blinkies” look like in Figure 2.18.
RGB histogram. Another optional screen is the RGB histogram, which you can see in Figure 2.19. I’m going to leave the discussion of histograms for Chapter 4. Note that while using this view you can press the Zoom In and Zoom Out buttons to get a closer look at the large thumbnail of the image in the upper-left corner. A small navigation window with a yellow position box appears to the lower right of the large thumbnail to show you what portion of the image is being zoomed.
Shooting Data 1. This is the first in a series of four screens that collectively provide everything else you might want to know about a picture you’ve taken. I’m not providing any labels in Figure 2.20, because the information in the first seven lines in the screen should be obvious.
Shooting Data 2. This screen shows white balance data and adjustments, the color space you’ve selected, and lists any Picture Control tweaks you’ve entered. (See Figure 2.21.)
Shooting Data 3. The next screen shows any noise reduction you’ve specified, Active D-Lighting status, and any Retouch menu changes you may have made. Although none of them apply to the background image shown in Figure 2.22, I’ve added a few entries to show the kind of changes that can be made. You’ll learn more about the Retouch menu in Chapter 13, which also will tell you how to create an image comment, like the one shown in the figure.
Shooting Data 4. This screen appears only if you’ve entered artist and/or copyright information in the Copyright Information setting of the Setup menu, as described in Chapter 13. I’m not providing an illustration for this screen, because it shows nothing except the name of the photographer (artist) and the copyright.
GPS data. This screen appears only if the image was taken using the GPS device. It includes latitude, longitude, altitude, and time information, as shown in Figure 2.23.
Overview data. This screen, shown in Figure 2.24, provides a smaller image of your photo, but more information, including a luminance (brightness) histogram, metering mode used, lens focal length, exposure compensation, flash compensation, and lots of other data that’s self-explanatory.
Figure 2.17 File information screen.
Figure 2.18 Highlights screen.
Figure 2.19 RGB histogram screen.
Figure 2.20 Shooting Data 1 screen.
Figure 2.21 Shooting Data 2 screen.
Figure 2.22 Shooting Data 3 screen.
Figure 2.24 Overview data screen.
Going Topside
The top surface of the Nikon D800 (see Figure 2.25) has its own set of frequently accessed controls. I’m going to divide them into two parts: those to the left side of the camera, and those on the right side. The left side controls offer some settings that you may change frequently, perhaps even during a shooting session (white balance and ISO sensitivity), and one that you’ll probably change once at the beginning: image quality (when you choose whether to shoot RAW, JPEG [and which compression level you want], or a combination of the two). Also on the left side of the camera is the release mode dial itself, which you’ll use to flip among Single frame, Continuous shooting, Self-timer, Quiet shutter, and Mup modes. Figure 2.26 shows the left top side of the D800 up close.
Release mode dial lock release. Before you can choose any of the release mode dial’s settings, you must hold down this button to free the dial so it can rotate.
Release mode dial. Your choices include S (Single frame), CL (Continuous low speed), CH (Continuous high speed), Quiet shutter release, Self-timer, and Mup (Mirror Up).
Accessory shoe. Slide an electronic flash into this mount when you need a more powerful speedlight. A dedicated flash unit, like the Nikon SB-910, can use the multiple contact points shown to communicate exposure, zoom setting, white balance information, and other data between the flash and the camera. There’s more on using electronic flash in Chapter 9. You can also mount other accessories on this shoe, such as the Nikon GP-1 GPS adapter or Nikon ME-1 microphone.
On the right side of the camera is another batch of controls and a display panel, as shown in Figure 2.27:
Power switch. Rotate this switch clockwise to turn on the Nikon D800 (and virtually all other Nikon dSLRs). Continue past the ON position to illuminate the monochrome control panel’s backlight for a few seconds. If you’d rather have the backlight remain on for the length of time the exposure meters are active, you can specify this using the Custom Settings menu CSM #D11 (set to On). For this setting to be useful, you’ll need to set the automatic meter-off delay to something other than the default six seconds. If you’re carefree about battery usage, you can specify meter-off delays of four seconds to 10 minutes using CSM #c2, as described in Chapter 12.
Shutter release button. Partially depress this button to activate the exposure meter (and the main and sub-command dials that adjust metering settings), lock in exposure, and focus (unless you’ve redefined the focus activation button, as outlined in Chapter 12). Press all the way to take the picture. Tapping the shutter release when the camera has turned off the autoexposure and autofocus mechanisms reactivates both. When a review image is displayed on the back-panel color monitor, tapping this button removes the image from the display and reactivates the autoexposure and autofocus mechanisms.
Metering mode button/Format #2. Press this button and rotate the main command dial while watching the top control panel LCD to change to Center-weighted (top), Matrix (middle), or Spot metering. If you’d like to switch back and forth between one metering mode and another rapidly, set your default mode, such as Matrix metering, with this switch, then program the Fn or depth-of-field preview button to provide your alternate mode (say, Spot metering) with a simple press. You can hold this button down at the same time as the Trash button on the back of the camera (which I call Format #1) to reformat a memory card.
Exposure compensation button/Reset #1. Hold down this button and spin the main command dial to add or subtract exposure when using Program, Aperture-priority, or Shutter-priority modes. (In Manual mode, the exposure remains the same, but the “ideal” exposure shown in the electronic analog display [more on that in the next section] is modified to reflect the extra/reduced exposure you’re calling for.) The exposure compensation amount is shown on the monochrome status panel as plus or minus values. This button is also used in conjunction with the QUAL button to provide a quick two-button reset of the camera to many of the factory default settings, as described in Chapter 3. (Any reassignment of the AE-L/AF-L button you made using Custom Settings menu CSM #f6 is unaffected.) Hold down the two buttons, each marked with a green dot, for about two seconds to effect the reset.
Focal plane indicator. This indicator shows the plane of the sensor, for use in applications where exact measurement of the distance from the focal plane to the subject is necessary. (These are mostly scientific/close-up applications.)
Control panel. This useful indicator shows the status of many settings. Unfortunately, because it’s on top of the camera, you may not be able to see those settings when the camera is elevated (especially on a tripod). In that case, use the shooting information display, described earlier in this chapter, which can show much of the same information on the back-panel color LCD monitor when you press the Info button.
Control Panel Readouts
The top panel of the Nikon D800 (see Figure 2.28) contains a monochrome LCD readout (the “control panel”) that displays status information about most of the shooting settings. All of the information segments available are shown in Figures 2.29 and 2.30. I’ve color-coded the display and divided the figure into two parts to avoid drowning you in labels for this intensely dense readout. The information does not appear in color on the actual D800, and all of these indicators will not appear at once. Many of the information items are mutually exclusive (that is, in the white balance area at lower right, only one of the possible settings illustrated will appear).
Lens Components
The lens shown at left in Figure 2.31 is a typical lens that might be mounted on a Nikon dSLR. Components found on this lens include:
Filter thread. Most lenses have a thread on the front for attaching filters and other add-ons. Some also use this thread for attaching a lens hood (you screw on the filter first, and then attach the hood to the screw thread on the front of the filter). Some lenses, such as the AF-S Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8G ED lens, have no front filter thread, either because their front elements are too curved to allow mounting a filter and/or because the front element is so large that huge filters would be prohibitively expensive. Some of these front-filter-hostile lenses allow using smaller filters that drop into a slot at the back of the lens.
Lens hood bayonet. Lenses like the 17-35mm zoom shown in the figure use this bayonet to mount the lens hood. Such lenses generally will have a dot on the edge showing how to align the lens hood with the bayonet mount.
Focus ring. This is the ring you turn when you manually focus the lens, or fine-tune autofocus adjustment.
Focus scale. This is a readout found on many lenses that rotates in unison with the lens’s focus mechanism to show the distance at which the lens has been focused. It’s a useful indicator for double-checking autofocus, roughly evaluating depth-of-field, and for setting manual focus guesstimates. Chapter 7 deals with the mysteries of lenses and their controls in more detail.
Zoom setting. These markings on the lens show the current focal length selected.
Zoom ring. Turn this ring to change the zoom setting.
Autofocus/Manual switch. Allows you to change from automatic focus to manual focus.
Aperture ring. Some lenses have a ring that allows you to set a specific f/stop manually, rather than use the camera’s internal electronic aperture control. An aperture ring is useful when a lens is mounted on a non-automatic extension ring, bellows, or other accessory that doesn’t couple electronically with the camera. Aperture rings also allow using a lens on an older camera that lacks electronic control. In recent years, Nikon has been replacing lenses that have aperture rings with versions that only allow setting the aperture with camera controls.
Aperture lock. If you want your D800 (or other Nikon dSLR) to control the aperture electronically, you must set the lens to its smallest aperture (usually f/22 or f/32) and lock it with this control.
Focus limit switch. Some lenses have this switch (shown in Figure 2.32), which limits the focus range of the lens, thus potentially reducing focus seeking when shooting distant subjects. The limiter stops the lens from trying to focus at closer distances (in this case, closer than 2.5 meters).
Vibration reduction switch. Lenses with Nikon’s Vibration Reduction (VR) feature include a switch for turning the stabilization feature on and off, and, in some cases, for changing from normal vibration reduction to a more aggressive “active” VR mode useful for, say, shooting from moving vehicles. More on VR and other lens topics in Chapter 7.
Figure 2.32 Some lenses have focus limit switches and controls for vibration reduction (VR) features.
The back end of a lens intended for use on a Nikon camera has other components that you seldom see (except when you swap lenses), shown in Figure 2.33, but still should know about:
Lens bayonet mount. This is the mounting mechanism that attaches to a matching mount on the camera. Although the lens bayonet is usually metal, some lower-priced lenses use a rugged plastic for this key component.
Automatic diaphragm lever. This lever is moved by a matching lever in the camera to adjust the f/stop from wide open (which makes for the brightest view) to the taking aperture, which is the f/stop that will be used to take the picture. The actual taking aperture is determined by the camera’s metering system (or by you when the D800 is in Manual mode), and is communicated to the lens through the electronic contacts described next. (An exception is when the aperture ring on the lens itself is unlocked and used to specify the f/stop.) However, the spring-loaded physical levers are what actually push the aperture to the selected f/stop—even with advanced cameras like the D800 or D3. The aperture lever is also activated when you press the DOF (depth-of-field) button.
Electronic contacts. These metal contacts pass information to matching contacts located in the camera body allowing a firm electrical connection so that exposure, distance, and other information can be exchanged between the camera and lens.
Lens type signal notch. This is a machined groove in the lens mount, designed to tell older (non-dSLR) cameras that the aperture stops were linear. Today, this information would be conveyed electronically, except that all current lenses already have linear f/stops.
Indexing cutout. The base of any Nikon lens made after 1977 that has an aperture ring includes a cutout notch that mates with a ring around the lens mount of Nikon’s advanced cameras. It tells the camera what the maximum aperture is and what f/stop has been set. For a D800 owner, this means that older manual focus lenses (including pre-1977 lenses that have been converted to this system) can be used for automatic metering with the Aperture-priority exposure mode, and for manual metering in Manual exposure mode.
Autofocus drive screw slot. (Not shown in the figure.) As you’ll learn in Chapter 7, older autofocus lenses (given the AF designation in Nikon nomenclature) lack an internal autofocus motor. Focus is set using a screw drive built into the camera body of every Nikon autofocus camera (film or digital) except (at the time I write this) the entry-level models including the Nikon D40/D40x, D60, D3000, D3100, D3200, D5100, and D5000. Lenses given the AF-S designation lack this connection, because autofocus is achieved internally using a tiny motor.
Looking Inside the Viewfinder
Much of the important shooting status information is shown inside the viewfinder of the Nikon D800. As with the control panel LCD up on top, not all of this information will be shown at any one time. Figure 2.34 shows what you can expect to see. These readouts include:
Focus points. Can display the 51 areas used by the D800 to focus. The camera can select the appropriate focus zone for you, or you can manually select one or all of the zones.
Active focus point. The currently selected focus point can be highlighted with red illumination, depending on focus mode.
AF area bracket. Shows the area covered by the autofocus sensors.
Focus indicator. This green dot stops blinking when the subject covered by the active autofocus zone is in sharp focus, whether focus was achieved by the AF system, or by you using manual focusing. Left and right arrows show whether focus is set ahead of or behind the subject.
Autoexposure (AE) lock/Flash value lock indicator. Shows that exposure or flash exposure has been locked.
Flash sync. Shows that the shutter speed has been locked in S or M modes at the x250 (1/250th second) setting (located, not between 1/125th and 1/500th second, but as the speed past bulb and 30 seconds).
Shutter speed. Displays the current shutter speed selected by the camera, or by you in Manual exposure mode.
Aperture. Shows the current aperture chosen by the D800’s autoexposure system, or specified by you when using Manual exposure mode.
Automatic ISO indicator. Is shown as a reminder that the D800 has been set to adjust ISO sensitivity automatically.
Flash compensation indicator. Appears when flash EV changes have been made.
Exposure compensation indicator. This is shown when exposure compensation (EV) changes have been made. It’s easy to forget you’ve dialed in a little more or less exposure, and then shoot a whole series of pictures of a different scene that doesn’t require such compensation. Beware!
Electronic analog exposure display. This scale shows the current exposure level, with the bottom indicator centered when the exposure is correct as metered. The indicator may also move to the left or right to indicate over- or underexposure (respectively). The scale is also used to show the amount of exposure compensation dialed in and the exposure compensation and degree of horizontal tilt.
Exposures remaining/maximum burst available/other data. Normally displays the number of exposures remaining on your memory card, but while shooting it changes to show a number that indicates the number of frames that can be taken in continuous shooting mode using the current settings. This indicator also shows other information, such as ISO sensitivity, exposure compensation value, and Active D-Lighting amount.
Thousands of exposures. Displayed when more than 999 exposures remain; the readout to the left will then show number of shots remaining in thousands.
Flash ready indicator. This icon appears when the flash is fully charged.
Battery status. Shows amount of remaining power.
Bracketing indicator. Shows when Active D-Lighting, exposure, flash, or white balance bracketing is underway.
ISO sensitivity. This useful indicator shows the current ISO setting value. Those who have accidentally taken dozens of shots under bright sunlight at ISO 1600 because they forgot to change the setting back after some indoor shooting will treasure this addition.
Underneath Your Nikon D800
There’s not a lot going on with the bottom panel of your Nikon D800. You’ll find the battery compartment access door, and a tripod socket, which secures the camera to a tripod. The socket accepts other accessories, such as quick release plates that allow rapid attaching and detaching the D800 from a matching platform affixed to your tripod. The socket is also used to secure the optional MB-D12 battery grip, which provides more juice to run your camera to take more exposures with a single charge. Figure 2.35 shows the underside view of the camera.
Using the MB-D12 Multi-Power Battery Pack/Vertical Grip
One optional accessory that you might want to consider is the Nikon MB-D12 battery pack/vertical grip, which attaches to the underside of the D800 and provides extra power for those long shooting sessions. It also adds a vertically oriented shutter release, main command dial, sub-command dial, an AE-L/AF-L button, and a miniature joystick-like version of the multi selector, all arranged for easier shooting when the camera is rotated to a vertical position. There’s a terminal connector under a rubber cover to provide a connection between the D800 and accessories that fasten to the underside.
This accessory (see Figure 2.36 for front and back views) is available for about $450. Recently, Nikon has been making these grips compatible with succeeding cameras, so if you buy one for your D800, it may be compatible with your next one, too. I used my MB-D10 with my Nikon D300, D300s, and D700, so I consider my purchase to have been a real bargain. Let’s hope the same compatibility carries over to the D800.
Figure 2.36 The Nikon MB-D12 Multi-Power Grip can double the length of your battery-powered shooting session, while adding convenient vertically oriented controls.
FALSE ECONOMY
Yes, the MB-D12 costs $450 or more, and you can expect serviceable knock-offs to be available soon from several Asian sources for a lot less. I’ve checked out previous models carefully. They’re made of lightweight plastic, don’t look especially durable, and are probably not a serious option for anything other than light-duty use. If you plan on giving your battery/grip a real workout, I’d recommend springing for the real thing. I don’t know what would happen to a D800 if one of these units shorted out, and don’t plan to find out. Keep in mind that the MB-D12 may work with future cameras as well, now that Nikon has stopped giving its grips nomenclature linked to the camera model. But, even if it does not, you’ll have a grip that can be re-sold to owners of compatible models, so the resale value is likely to be higher. A battery pack/grip is one place that I recommend not cutting corners.
To use the MB-D12, just follow these steps:
1. Expose contacts. Remove the rubber protective cover over the contacts on the bottom of the D800 body. (See Figure 2.35, earlier.) Don’t worry about losing the cover: it fits in a matching well inside the MB-D12. Retrieve the cover from that safe location when you remove the grip. Next, remove the white plastic protective cover from the terminal contacts on the MB-D12.
2. Line up the camera and grip. There are two holes on the underside surface of the D800 that mate with matching pins on the MB-D12. Line up those components, the tripod socket and tripod screw, and the contacts and slide the MB-D12 onto the underside of the camera.
TIP
Unlike some earlier battery grips, you don’t need to remove the battery in the camera; the D800 can use both, in the order you specify (use CSM #d12, described in Chapter 12). I recommend using the battery in the MB-D12 grip first; as it poops out, you can replace it with a fresh EN-EL15 or set of AA batteries without the need to remove the grip. (You do own several back-up batteries, don’t you?) Use the D800’s internal battery only when you have no other replacements available.
3. Tighten the connection. When the grip and D800 are fit snugly together, rotate the large wheel under the base of the MB-D12 to lock the device onto the D800.
4. Add batteries. The MB-D12 is furnished with two trays to hold batteries. You can add a second EN-EL15 battery to one tray to double your available power. Or you can use eight AA alkaline, nickel-metal hydride, nickel-manganese, or lithium batteries with the supplied holder. Slide the battery tray inside the base of the grip, and rotate the locking knob. Use CSM #d11 to tell the D800 which type of AA batteries you are using.
5. Fire away. To use the shutter release on the vertical grip, you must turn the rotating switch so the dot aligns with the line on the grip, indicating that the shutter release is unlocked. If you’re holding the camera in horizontal orientation and using the regular shutter release, it’s easy to accidentally trip the vertical release with the palm of your right hand. (This accounts for the “phantom” shutter releases that mystify new users of this grip.)
6. Remove the grip. To remove the grip, reverse these steps.