Nikon Z 7II, Z 6II Setting Guide (For Still Photography)

Professional

Setting Guide

— For Still Photography —

En

Table of Contents

Landscapes 5Landscapes 5

Basic Settings for Landscape Photography ................... 6

• Focus Mode: Choose “Single AFSingle AF” (AF ‑S) and

“Single-Point AFSingle-Point AF”! ........................................................................7

• Vibration Reduction: Choose “NormalNormal” for

Hand‑Held Photography! ..............................................................7

• Silent Photography: Choose “OnOn”! ..............................................9

• Low‑Light AF: Choose “OnOn”! .......................................................10

• Exposure Delay Mode: Choose “1s1s”! ........................................10

• Monitor Mode: Choose “Monitor OnlyMonitor Only”!...............................11

Custom Controls for Landscape Photography ............ 12

• qPreview ......................................................................................13

• bFraming Grid Display ..............................................................13

• KSelect Center Focus Point ...................................................13

• bLive View Info Display Off ..................................................13

• Shooting Mode> pZoom On/Off ...........................................14

• Playback Mode> pZoom On/Off ............................................14

Portraits 15Portraits 15

Basic Settings for Portrait Photography .......................16

• Set Picture Control: Choose “PortraitPortrait”! ..................................16

• Focus Mode: Choose “Continuous AFContinuous AF” (AF ‑C)! ....................16

• AF‑Area Mode: Choose “Wide-Area AF (L-People)Wide-Area AF (L-People)”! .......17

• Vibration Reduction: Choose “NormalNormal”!.................................18

• Store Points by Orientation: Choose “Ye sYe s”! .............................19

• Monitor Mode: Choose “Prioritize ViewnderPrioritize Viewnder”! ...............20

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Custom Controls for Portrait Photography .................. 21

• KPlayback .....................................................................................21

• KSelect Center Focus Point ...................................................21

• yActive D ‑Lighting .....................................................................22

• Shooting Mode> pZoom On/Off ...........................................22

• Playback Mode> pZoom On/Off ............................................22

Sports 23Sports 23

Basic Settings for Sports Photography ......................... 24

• Focus Mode: Choose “Continuous AFContinuous AF” (AF ‑C)! ....................24

• AF‑Area Mode: Choose “Dynamic-Area AFDynamic-Area AF”!......................25

• Vibration Reduction: Choose “SportSport”! .....................................25

• Monitor Mode: Choose “Prioritize ViewnderPrioritize Viewnder”! ...............26

Custom Controls for Sports Photography ....................27

• KPlayback .....................................................................................27

• gProtect ......................................................................................27

• KSelect Center Focus Point ...................................................28

• zFocus Mode/AF‑Area Mode ...............................................28

• Shooting Mode> pZoom On/Off ...........................................28

• Playback Mode> pZoom On/Off ............................................28

Split-Second Shots ............................................................ 29

“Continuous H” Versus “Continuous H (Extended)” .... 32

• The Shooting Display ....................................................................33

• Frame Advance Rate .....................................................................34

AE with Constant Shutter Speed and Aperture ..........36

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Table of Contents

Tips and Tricks 39Tips and Tricks 39

Recalling Saved Settings via the Mode Dial................. 40

Using the Viewnder Without Fatigue .......................... 41

Flicker Reduction .............................................................. 42

Subject-Tracking AF .......................................................... 44

Assigning Focus and Release to Separate Controls .... 46

Animal-Detection AF ........................................................ 47

• Basic Settings for Animal Portraits ............................................47

• AF‑Area Mode: Choose “Wide-Area AF (L-Animals)Wide-Area AF (L-Animals)”! ....47

Protecting and Rating Pictures ......................................50

• Protecting Pictures ........................................................................50

• Rating Pictures ...............................................................................52

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Landscapes

Learn basic techniques and help­ful features for capturing land­scapes more vividly and with
greater ease.

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Basic Settings for Landscape Photography

The following are the recommended settings for photo­graphing landscapes:

Photo shooting menuPhoto shooting menu

Focus mode Single AF
AF-area mode Single-point AF
Diraction compensation On
Vibration reduction • Hand-held photography: Normal

• Tripod photography: O

Silent photography On

Custom Settings menuCustom Settings menu

a6 AF activation Shutter/AF-ON
a10 Low-light AF On
d4 Exposure delay mode 1s

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Other settingsOther settings

Release mode Single frame
Monitor mode Monitor only

1. Settings for lenses with on-board vibration reduction vary with
the lens (

page page 88).

2. We recommend that, where available, an optional remote
control be used in place of [Exposure delay mode].

1

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Focus Mode: Choose “Single AFSingle AF” (AF ‑S) and

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“Single-Point AFSingle-Point AF”!

Choose [Single AF] (AF‑S) for [Focus
mode] and select [Single-point
AF] for [AF-area mode]. This is the

standard combination of settings
for landscapes and other static sub­jects: focus will lock once you have
chosen a focus point and pressed
the shutter-release button halfway.

Vibration Reduction: Choose “NormalNormal” for Hand‑Held
Photography!

Choose a vibration reduction option
according to whether the camera
is mounted on a tripod. [ Normal],
which oers a comparatively high
level of vibration reduction, is rec­ommended for hand-held shots of static subjects. Note
that if an F mount lens with a vibration reduction switch
is attached via an optional FTZ mount adapter, the [Vibra-
tion reduction] item in the camera menus will be grayed
out and unavailable, and vibration reduction options will
instead have to be selected using the switch.

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Tripod PhotographyTripod Photography

The recommended settings for tripod photography vary
with the lens:

• Z mount lenses: Choose [Normal] for lenses with on-board

vibration reduction, [O] for other lenses.

• F mount lenses: If you are using one of the lenses listed be-

low, slide the lens vibration reduction switch to “NORMAL”.
Users of other lenses should consult the lens manual.

‣ AF-P DX NIKKOR 10–20 mm f/4.5–5.6G VR
‣ AF-P DX NIKKOR 18–55 mm f/3.5–5.6G VR
‣ AF-P DX NIKKOR 70–300 mm f/4.5–6.3G ED VR
‣ AF-P NIKKOR 70–300 mm f/4.5–5.6E ED VR
‣ AF-S DX NIKKOR 16–80 mm f/2.8–4E ED VR
‣ AF-S NIKKOR 24–70 mm f/2.8E ED VR
‣ AF-S NIKKOR 70–200 mm f/2.8E FL ED VR
‣ AF-S NIKKOR 120–300 mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR
‣ AF-S NIKKOR 180–400 mm f/4E TC1.4 FL ED VR
‣ AF-S NIKKOR 200–500 mm f/5.6E ED VR
‣ AF-S NIKKOR 500 mm f/4E FL ED VR
‣ AF-S NIKKOR 500 mm f/5.6E PF ED VR
‣ AF-S NIKKOR 600 mm f/4E FL ED VR

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Basic Settings for Landscape Photography

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FTZ Mount Adapter Firmware

Support for the Z 7II/Z 6II is available from FTZ mount adapter
rmware version 1.10. The current mount adapter rmware
version can be viewed by selecting [Firmware version] in the
camera setup menu when the adapter is attached. For more
information, visit the Nikon website for your country or region.

Silent Photography: Choose “

Choosing [On] for [Silent photog­raphy] in the photo shooting menu

enables the electronic shutter, help­ing prevent blur caused by vibra­tions from the mechanical shutter.

Silent Photography

Select [O] for [Silent photography]:

• during ash photography,

• when using long-exposure noise reduction or icker reduc­tion,

• to shoot at high ISO sensitivities (Hi 0.3–Hi 2.0), or

• if you notice distortion in photos of moving subjects.

In these cases, we recommend that you select [Auto] for Cus­tom Setting d5 [Shutter type]. The camera will automatically
switch between the front-curtain and electronic front-curtain
shutters according to shutter speed, helping prevent blur
caused by camera motion.

OnOn”!

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Low‑Light AF: Choose “OnOn”!

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When photographing sunsets, night
scenes, and other dimly-lit subjects
with AF‑S selected for focus mode,
choose [On] for Custom Setting a10
[Low-light AF] to help the camera
focus.

Exposure Delay Mode: Choose “1s1s”!

Custom Setting d4 [Exposure delay
mode] is used to delay release of the

shutter for a set time after the shut­ter-release button is pressed. A de­lay of a second or more helps reduce
blur caused by the camera moving when you press the
shutter-release button. z appears in the display when
an option other than [O] is selected.

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Basic Settings for Landscape Photography

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Monitor Mode: Choose “Monitor OnlyMonitor Only”!

To prevent the monitor turning o
should you accidentally trigger the
eye sensor with your face or hands
while composing photographs, use
the monitor mode button to select
“monitor only” mode.

“Prioritize Viewnder”

When “prioritize viewnder” is selected for monitor mode, the
camera behaves much like a traditional digital SLR: in pho­to mode, putting your eye to the viewnder turns it on and
displays the view through the lens, but the shooting display
does not appear in the monitor when you take your eye away.
Menus and pictures can still be displayed in the monitor us-

G

ing the
recommended for current or former users of digital SLR cam­eras who prefer to frame hand-held shots in the viewnder.

and K buttons. “Prioritize viewnder” mode is

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Custom Controls for Landscape Photography

The following custom control settings are recommended
for landscape photography:

Fn1 button

w

Fn2 button

y

AF‑ON button

V

Sub-selector center

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Movie record button

z

J

Roles can be assigned to the J but­ton via Custom Setting f3 [OK but-
ton] and to other controls via Cus­tom Setting f2 [Custom controls].

Shooting mode

button

Playback modepZoom on/o; zoom ratio 1:1 (100%)

Preview

q

Framing grid display

b

AF-ON

A

K

Select center focus point
Live view info display o

b

Zoom on/o; zoom ratio 1:1 (100%)

p

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Preview

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q

Hold the selected control to preview color, exposure, and
depth of eld while shooting landscapes.

Framing Grid Display

b

Use the selected control to quickly view the framing grid
for landscape shots that keep verticals vertical and hori­zontals horizontal.

K

Select Center Focus Point

If you typically use the sub-selector for focus-point selec­tion, assigning this role to the center of the control lets you
use it to quickly choose the center focus point.

Live View Info Display O

b

Use the selected control to hide icons and shooting infor­mation so that you can see everything in the frame.

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Custom Controls for Landscape Photography

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Shooting Mode>

Use the J button to quickly zoom the display in on the
area around the current focus point and check focus before
shooting. You’ll nd this particularly useful for improved
focus when using manual focus in situations in which the
camera has diculty focusing using autofocus. To choose
the zoom ratio, select Custom Setting f3 [OK button]>
[Shooting mode], highlight [Zoom on/o], and press 2.

Playback Mode> pZoom On/O

Use the J button to quickly zoom in on the active focus
point during playback and check whether your photos are
in focus. To choose the zoom ratio, select Custom Setting
f3 [OK button]> [Playback mode], highlight [Zoom on/
o], and press 2.

Zoom On/O

p

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Portraits

Learn basic techniques and help­ful features that free you to con­centrate on your subject during
portrait photography.

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Basic Settings for Portrait Photography

The following settings are recommended for portrait pho­tography:

Photo shooting menuPhoto shooting menu

Set Picture Control Portrait
Focus mode Continuous AF
AF-area mode Wide-area AF (L-people)
Vibration reduction Normal
Silent photography O

Custom Settings menuCustom Settings menu

a5 Store points by orientation Yes
d5 Shutter type Auto

Other settingsOther settings

Monitor mode Prioritize viewnder

Set Picture Control: Choose “

Choose this option for portraits in
which your subject’s complexion
looks smooth and natural.

Focus Mode: Choose “Continuous AFContinuous AF” (AF ‑C)!

Choose AF ‑C for shots of mobile sub­jects. The camera adjusts focus con­tinuously while the shutter-release
button is pressed halfway or the
AF‑ON button is pressed.

PortraitPortrait”!

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AF‑Area Mode: Choose “Wide-Area AF (L-People)Wide-Area AF (L-People)”!

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When this option is selected, the
camera detects and focuses on the
faces or eyes of human portrait sub­jects in the active focus area (face/
eye-detection AF), making this a
good choice when you want to focus on a particular human
portrait subject. On detecting a human portrait subject, the
camera will automatically keep the focus point (indicated
by a yellow border) positioned over the subject’s face, or if
the eyes are detected, over one or the other of their eyes,
letting you concentrate on composition and your subject’s
expression even when your subject is in motion.

Auto‑Area AF (People)

Face/eye-detection is also available
with human portrait subjects when
[Auto-area AF (people)] is selected.
If more than one human face or eye is
detected, e and f icons will appear
on the focus point, which can then be
positioned over a dierent face or eye
by pressing 4 or 2.

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