Nikon D3100 User Manual
CHAPTER
1
Exploring the
Nikon D3100
his chapter covers the key components of the Nikon D3100. These are the fea-
T
tures that are most readily accessible because they are situated on the outside of
the camera: the buttons, knobs, switches, and dials.
Although most Nikon dSLRs are relatively similar to each other, because D3100 has
had an extensive redesign, even if you’re familiar with other Nikon dSLR cameras you
may want to read through the chapter to acquaint yourself with all of the new features
of the D3100.
COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL
Getting to know all your camera’s menus, buttons, and dials allows you to capture your
images just as you envision them.
Nikon D3100 Digital Field Guide
Key Components of the D3100
If you’ve gone through the Quick Tour, you should be fairly familiar with the buttons
and switches that you use to change the most basic settings on your D3100. In this
section, you look at the camera from all sides and review the layout so that you know
what everything on the surface of the camera does or controls.
This section doesn’t cover the menus, only the exterior controls. Although there are
many features you can access with just the push of a button, oftentimes you can
change the same setting inside of a menu option. Knowing exactly what these buttons do can save you loads of time and help you to not miss out on getting a shot.
Top of the camera
The top of the D3100 is where you fi nd some of the most important buttons and dials.
This is where you can change the Shooting mode and press the Shutter Release button to take your photo. Also included in this section is a brief description of some of
the things you fi nd on the top of the kit lens.
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Shutter Release button. In my opinion, this is the most important button on the
camera. Halfway pressing this button activates the camera’s autofocus and light
meter. When you fully depress this button, the shutter is released and a photograph is taken. When the camera has been idle and has “gone to sleep,” lightly
pressing the Shutter Release button wakes up the camera. When the image
review is on, lightly pressing the Shutter Release button turns off the LCD and
prepares the camera for another shot.
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On/Off switch. This switch, located concentric to the Shutter Release button, is
used to turn the camera on and off. Push the switch all the way to the left to turn
off the camera. Pull the switch to the right to turn your camera on.
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Mode dial. This is an important dial. Rotating this dial allows you to quickly
change your Shooting mode. You can choose one of the scene modes, one of
the semiautomatic modes, or you can choose Manual exposure mode, which
lets you pick the exposure settings.
For a detailed description of all of the exposure modes, see Chapter 2.
CROSS REF
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Release Mode switch. The D3100 is the fi rst camera to have this feature and I
expect to see it migrate to some of Nikon’s high-end cameras as well. This
allows you to change the Release mode very quickly with a simple fl ick of a
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Chapter 1 Exploring the Nikon D3100
switch, whereas on previous cameras such as the D3000 you had to enter a
menu screen. The Release mode controls how the shutter is released when the
button is pressed. For more information see Chapter 2.
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Info button. Pressing this button brings up the Information Display (Info display), which is discussed in more detail later in this chapter.
Zoom ring
Focus ring Focal length indicators
Shutter Release button
Focal plane mark Hot shoe Mode dial
Image courtesy of Nikon, Inc.
1.1 Top-of-the-camera controls
On/Off switch
Info button
Release Mode switch
Exposure Compensation/
Aperture button
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Nikon D3100 Digital Field Guide
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Exposure Compensation/Aperture button. Pressing this button in conjunction with spinning the Command dial allows you to modify the exposure that is
set by the D3100’s light meter when set to P, S, or A mode. Turning the
Command dial to the right decreases exposure while turning the dial to the left
increases the exposure. This button also doubles as the Aperture button when
the camera is set to Manual exposure mode. Pressing the button while rotating
the Command dial allows you to adjust your lens aperture. Additionally, when
pressing this button in conjunction with the Flash mode, you can adjust your
Flash Exposure Compensation by rotating the Command dial.
The Exposure Compensation/Aperture button serves no functions when shoot-
ing in the automatic or scene modes.
NOTE
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Focal plane mark. The focal plane mark shows you where the plane of the
image sensor is inside the camera. The sensor is directly behind the shutter.
When doing certain types of photography, particularly macro photography using
a bellows lens, you need to measure the length of the bellows from the front
element of the lens to the focal plane. When measuring distance for calculating
fl ash output you measure the subject to focal plane distance. These are a couple
of instances where the focal plane mark comes in handy.
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Hot shoe. This is where an accessory fl ash is attached to the camera body. The
hot shoe has an electronic contact that tells the fl ash to fi re when the shutter is
released. There are also a number of other electronic contacts that allow the
camera to communicate with the fl ash to enable the automated features of a
dedicated fl ash unit such as the SB-700.
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Focus ring. Rotating the focus ring allows you to focus the lens manually. The
location of the focus ring varies by lens. With old AF (non AF-S) lenses, and even
older manual focus lenses, just turn the ring to focus the lens. With newer AF-S
lenses, such as the kit lens, there’s a switch on the lens labeled A and M. Select
M before attempting to manually focus. If you don’t switch it over fi rst, you can
damage the lens. Some higher-end AF-S lenses have a switch labeled A/M and
M. With these lenses set to the A/M position, you can manually override the
autofocus at any time without damaging the lens.
For more information on lenses and compatibility, see Chapter 5.
CROSS REF
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Zoom ring. Rotating the zoom ring allows you to change the focal length of the
lens. Prime lenses do not have a zoom ring.
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Focal length indicators. These numbers indicate which focal length in millimeters your lens is zoomed to.
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Chapter 1 Exploring the Nikon D3100
Back of the camera
The back of the camera is where you fi nd the buttons that mainly control playback and
menu options, although there are a few buttons that control some of the shooting
functions. Most of the buttons have more than one function — a lot of them are used
in conjunction with the Command dial or the multi-selector. On the back of the camera
you also fi nd several key features, including the all-important viewfi nder and LCD.
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LCD. This is the most obvious feature on the back of the camera. This big 3-inch,
230,000-dot liquid crystal display (LCD) screen is a very bright, high-resolution screen.
The LCD is where you view all your current camera settings, review your images
after shooting, and display the video feed for Live View and video recording.
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Viewfi nder. This is what you look through to compose your photographs. Light
coming through the lens is refl ected from a series of fi ve mirrors (called a
pentamirror) enabling you to see exactly what you’re shooting. Around the viewfi nder is a rubber eyepiece that serves to give you a softer place to rest your eye
and to block any extra light from entering the viewfi nder as you compose and
shoot your images.
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Diopter adjustment control. Just to the right of the viewfi nder (hidden behind
the eyecup) is the Diopter adjustment control. Use this control to adjust the
viewfi nder lens to suit your individual vision differences (not everyone’s eyesight is the same). To adjust this, look through the viewfi nder, and press the
Shutter Release button halfway to focus on something. If what you see in the
viewfi nder isn’t quite sharp, slide the Diopter adjustment up or down until everything appears in focus. The manual warns you not to put your fi nger or fi ngernail
in your eye. I agree that this might not be a good idea.
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AE-L/AF-L/Protect button. The Auto-Exposure/Autofocus Lock button is used
to lock the Auto-Exposure (AE) and Autofocus (AF). When in Playback mode this
button can be pressed to lock an image to protect it from being deleted. A small
key icon is displayed in the upper left-hand corner of images that are protected.
This button can be customized in the Setup menu (under Buttons) to provide AE
Lock only, AF Lock only, AE Lock (hold), or AF-ON. AE Lock (hold) locks the
exposure with one press of the button; the exposure is locked until the button is
pressed again or the shutter is released. AF-ON engages the AF in the same
way that half-pressing the shutter does.
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Command dial. This dial is used to change a variety of settings depending
on which button you are using in conjunction with it. By default, it is used to change
the shutter speed when in Shutter Priority and Manual mode or the aperture when
in Aperture Priority. It is also used to adjust exposure compensation and change
the fl ash mode. When in Manual exposure mode pressing the Exposure
Compensation/Aperture button and rotating the dial changes the aperture settings.
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Nikon D3100 Digital Field Guide
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Live View switch/Movie Record button. This is a brand new button introduced with the D3100 and sure to follow on all subsequent cameras. This is a
great feature that makes switching to Live View and recording video a breeze.
Flipping the switch to the right activates Live View and pressing the button
starts recording video. To end recording simply press the button again. To exit
Live View, fl ick the switch to the left. Quick and easy!
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Multi-selector. The multi-selector is another button that serves a few different
purposes. In Playback mode the multi-selector is used to scroll through the photographs you’ve taken, and it can also be used to view image information such
as histograms and shooting settings. When in certain shooting modes the multiselector can be used to change the active focus point when in Single-point or
Dynamic-area AF mode. It also serves to navigate through the menu options.
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OK button. When in the Menu mode, press this button to select the menu item
that is highlighted.
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Memory card access lamp. This light blinks when the memory card is in use.
Under no circumstances should you remove the card when this light is on or
blinking. You could damage your card or camera and lose any information in the
camera’s buffer.
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Delete button. When reviewing your pictures, if you fi nd some that you don’t
want to keep, you can delete them by pressing this button marked with a trashcan icon. To prevent accidental deletion of images, the camera displays a dialog
box asking you to confi rm that you want to erase the picture. Press the Delete
button a second time to permanently erase the image.
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Speaker. This small speaker enables you to hear the audio recorded with the
video you have shot. I must admit that the fi delity of the speaker isn’t that great
and it’s quite hard to get an accurate representation of what the sound is going
to be like when played back through your TV or computer speakers.
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Playback button. Pressing this button activates the Playback mode and by
default displays the most recently taken photograph. You can also view other
pictures by pressing the multi-selector left and right.
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Menu button. Press this button to access the D3100 menu options. There are a
number of different menus, including Playback, Shooting, Custom Settings, and
Retouch. Use the multi-selector to choose the menu you want to view and press
OK to enter the specifi c menu screen.
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Zoom out/Thumbnail/Help button. In Playback mode, pressing this button
allows you to go from full-frame playback (or viewing the whole image) to viewing
thumbnails. The thumbnails can be displayed as 4, 9, or 72 images on a page. You
can also view images by calendar date. When viewing the menu options, pressing
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