d300 custom settings

[pj]

Hello all,

I'm awaiting the arrival of a d300 (patiently, I promise....yeah, right).

Can anyone suggest some setting tweaks that I should consider when the body arrives? I remember with my d70, there were some recommended adjustments people were supposed to make right out of the box, plus we all used the custom camera curves back then.

The majority of my shooting will likely by my 3 yr. old playing, and our pending new arrival. I also like to shoot landscapes.

Anyone have any suggestions to help me set it up for great shots right out of the camera?

Thanks for any help you can give me.

PJ

[ovimo]

3yo playin', eh?
I would set my auto ISO to what ever high value I am comfortable with (probably 1200-1600) and try to avoid flash when possible. I would use the continuous high speed at 5 (or8 if you got the vertical grip). I would get the vertical grip ASAP and fill it with something. Eneloops are cheap. EnELs are better.
I would use AF-C focus priority, dynamic area 3D 51 points, focus tracking with short lock-on, battery order MB D10 first, ALWAYS shoot RAW, active D lighting on normal, long exposure NR off, high ISO NR on normal.

Oh, wait, I do have all those settings on for my kiddo.

Good luck and have fun with your camera and your family.

[pj]

Thanks!

[Phototx]

Check out http://www.dtowntv.com/. It has a number of videos with tips for specific camera's including the D300. The put out a new video every week.

Glen
www.phototx.net

[RKEnnis]

This thread talks about setting up continuous auto focus (AF-C) and the AF-ON button to do the focusing instead of shutter half-press.

You can hold down the AF-ON button for continuous autofocus, or press and release for focus then recompose. Works great for me - I've been shooting this way for months. It did take a couple of hours to get used to it. This is the single best tip I've seen for shooting with the D300.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/re...0277768&page=1

The main other biggie I can think of is to set the camera to NOT trip the shutter when no CF card is inserted ("Disable Release"). I still can't figure out why Nikon defaults this setting to "Enable Release".

[Schlitz]

PJ - send me a PM with your e-mail address, and I'll send you a spreadsheet I picked up with a lot of suggested settings for your new D300.

[TXFZ1]

Originally Posted by RKEnnis

This thread talks about setting up continuous auto focus (AF-C) and the AF-ON button to do the focusing instead of shutter half-press.

You can hold down the AF-ON button for continuous autofocus, or press and release for focus then recompose. Works great for me - I've been shooting this way for months. It did take a couple of hours to get used to it. This is the single best tip I've seen for shooting with the D300.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/re...0277768&page=1

The main other biggie I can think of is to set the camera to NOT trip the shutter when no CF card is inserted ("Disable Release"). I still can't figure out why Nikon defaults this setting to "Enable Release".

Dtown just talked about that and the reason is....for Demo in the store, allows the customer to shoot and chimp in the store without a card.

David

[mramos]

Here are 2 sites I've used to give me a starting point. Both sites really good for photography stuff also.
http://www.moosepeterson.com/gear/d300.html
http://www.planetneil.com/tangents/2...ings/#more-120

[pj]

Thanks everyone!

PJ

PS Keep'em coming....I'm always looking for ways to improve.