Nikon D5100 Experience - Douglas J. Klostermann Photography
Contents
1. IME I found the camera s manual good for understanding how to set things up but not much on the why this book really focuses on the why The guide helped me understand why to use specific settings for specific needs The Custom Settings sections helps to make firm decisions on how to apply settings by understanding the usage of each in addition to knowing how to set them up I would like to thank you for saving me time now I m confident that my camera is well tuned Benoit A This manual is a clearly written concise and useful explanation of the rationale for the seemingly infinite and often confusing settings options Used in conjunction with the camera s manual I feel a bit more confident in understanding how to at last proceed in getting better photographs WLS It s clear concise and gets to the heart of the camera s multiple and often confusing options Very highly recommended for experienced user and beginner alike As previous reviewers have remarked the official manual is very good on what to do but not so clear on why Perhaps Nikon should just hire Doug to write their manuals it would be so much simpler for all concerned GSA Brilliant just what i was looking for A manual for the D7000 that was exciting clear to follow had examples and was used by a professional who gave just the right amount of technical info with explanations of why you use those settings when to use those settings and so on all properly2. explained Doug s book is a joy to follow well thought through and well written Nikon should be employing Doug to write every one of their cameras manuals Robert D Purchase Nikon D5100 Experience at http www dojoklo com Full_ Stop Nikon _D5100 Experience htm 90
3. Nikon D5 100 Experience The Still Photographer s Guide to Operation and Image Creation with the Nikon D5 100 an eBook by Douglas J Klostermann 2 KA s a x A dl e fil stop good writing for better photograph Nikon D5100 Experience Nikon D5 100 Experience The Still Photographer s Guide to Operation and Image Creation with the Nikon D5 100 by Douglas J Klostermann Full Stop good writing for better photography Nikon D5100 Experience All rights reserved This e book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only and may not be re sold distributed file shared or given away No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronically or in print without expressed permission from the author Every effort has been made to make this e book as accurate as possible but no warranty of fitness is implied The information is provided on an as is basis The author shall have no liability or responsibility with respect to any loss or damages arising from the information provided in this e book including but not limited to the use of any of the materials or methods described the products retailers Internet web sites or links provided All contents including cover design text and photographs with the exception of products logos and content shown in Internet screenshots are copyright by the author All products logos and content of screenshots are proper
4. Since this guide is intended to help you get the most out of your D5100 will not go into detail about all of the automatic features or Auto and Scene Modes The D5100 is a sophisticated tool that deserves to be used to its full potential and that involves taking control of the camera and its functions which means taking it off Auto off Program off automatically selected auto focus points off Auto ISO While this may be more challenging at first these are the techniques that are necessary to take full advantage of the capabilities of any dSLR including the D5100 and will lead you to having more control and consistency over your image making Hopefully this will inevitably lead to better images Nikon D5100 Experience As you have probably discovered by now the camera s User s Manual is brief and basic There is a more detailed Reference Manual on the Reference CD included with your camera Nikon D5100 Experience will expand on the two manuals and explain not only the features controls and menus of the D5100 but more importantly when and why you might want to use them in your photography However this guide is not intended to completely replace the manuals but to be used in conjunction with them so every bit of information in those manuals will not be repeated here Among the official manuals often brief descriptions and sometimes frustratingly incomplete explanations there is some very valuable information as well as the basics fo
5. d the dark suit will become a medium grey suit and the bride will disappear into a blown out blob of white This is just an example to help you realize the differences and importance of metering modes It is quite possible that Matrix Metering will properly evaluate the entire scene and capture this situation just fine But be aware that there are situations where it is critical that you know how the metering modes of the D5100 work and make a decision for which one will serve you best So how would you ensure proper exposure of the above situation Using Center Weighted or Spot Metering meter on the bride s or groom s face since that is the most critical part that you want properly exposed and then lock in that exposure setting see 57 Nikon D5100 Experience What readers are saying about Doug s previous guide Nikon D7000 Experience This book together with the manual that came with your camera is all you need to start discovering all the potential of this camera Max M I would recommend this to anyone who wants to get a quick start to using their camera Manuals are nice but this e book highlights the important information and gives a quick easy to understand explanation of most all of the functions and controls Ray M This e book is helping me actually understand the camera at my own pace and best of all is that the book isn t hard to understand It s a great book that I carry on my iPad wherever I take my camera
6. eaned a a a E aa a aa 28 5 2 FOCUS MOG CS siise oannaam ios 32 5 3 Autofocus Area Modest 33 5 4 OG KG FOCUS a ee eii 36 5 5 Focus Points and Image Composit Of id ade 37 5 6 Live View and MOVIE FOCUSING sisi lil it dt epaia piiat 40 6 RELEASE MODES citan dated avvsassunmeuscudecdsdaswsuteeties 41 Ti EXPOSURE id a 42 7 1Apert re shutter Speed and SO nic iia coil 43 7 2 Aperture Priority Auto Mode and Shutter Priority Auto Mode ooccccconocccccconoccnccnanccnnnnnnnnos 45 A EA o E Tce re oO ee eee ee 48 7 4 Manual Exposure Mode Mii eden torches caves pales 49 9 METERING MODES cocina crias 52 8 1 Matix Metering y esnie odia 52 8 2 Center Weighted Metering e ernier rotre ia 53 8 3 SPp0t Meterihg noresi rn e erry ee eye eee eee 55 8 4 ManUal Metering ai tirai a os 56 8 5 Metering Modes and EXPOSU E arupi polis cdta idea 57 8 6 Exposure LOG ratios 59 9 ADDITIONAL CAMERA CONTROLS and FUNCTIONS ccssseseeeeeeeeeeseeeeesseeeees 61 9 1 HistograMS sssri ieu esd ocd agutuadegia eee ai ea EEA A AE So Ea tenders 61 9 2 Exp s re COMpens latas 62 9 3 AUto Bracketing Tor EXPOS UNG ainen e a a aa a Basa 64 GA Active D Lighting ADE cti a 65 9 5 High Dynamic Range HDR di acl ete ole take ak ee eat al 66 9 56 White Bal ce cosa e tegen abe eee iia 66 ITESO CONTO See tandil 69 99 Fasa by tends a a A Ea EE aoaaa Ei 71 9 9 Sensor IAN deta a see Aad ade dedica 73 10 COMPOSITION a 74 11 THE IMAGE TAKING PROCESS 6s ccs sncssvcsssssses
7. eceestctvesseceensansensacsnersseesanseenceenseens 82 12 VIDEO AN INTRODUCTION sivisssciectccetsceeececsetectenstvdvsncseascacasscecaccuvavstensanaecceesebecss 84 13 PHOTOGRAPHY ACCESSORIES ouvir 85 14 CONCLUSI N oi a ieee 89 Nikon D5100 Experience 1 INTRODUCTION The introduction of the Nikon D5100 brings forth a worthy successor to its popular predecessor the D5000 By incorporating the high quality 16 2 megapixel sensor great low light performance and full HD video of the pro sumer D7000 the D5100 puts these advanced features in the hands of the dedicated enthusiast plus includes a fully adjustable high resolution rotating LCD screen With its 420 pixel RGB exposure metering sensor accurate 11 point autofocus system 4 frames per second continuous shooting speed and easy to navigate information display the D5100 offers the capability and features required for dedicated photographers who wish to continue to grow The Nikon D5100 is clearly an advanced digital SLR and offers the potential to capture professional quality images in most any situation you wish to use it But it is merely a tool 4 ar ENT E D5100 Figure 1 Detail of the Nikon D5100 digital SLR It is up to you to make use of its features and capabilities to create the images you envision Every button menu item and Custom Setting of the D5100 is there for a reason to help you capture the images you want Some of them are more useful to different t
8. ed data you can view the image with data and or histograms and other options see Figure 5 recommend that you select most of these options and then you can click through these various views when reviewing your images on the rear Monitor The option None will show just the image without any additional information Highlights will show if you have overexposed the highlights a situation that you typically want to avoid and thus want to be alerted to by having those areas of the image blink during playback RGB Histogram will also help show if an image s exposure is correct or if you have overexposed or underexposed it through the use of graphs Unless you make use of RGB histograms this view option is not absolutely necessary Shooting Data will display detailed data of the camera s settings used for each image This view too may be optional since essential information 10 Nikon D5100 Experience consecutive shots the AE L AF L Button can be used to do this More about this in the Custom Setting f2 and Exposure Lock sections below c2 Auto off timers This is for setting how long the displays on the rear Monitor and in the Viewfinder stay on if no other camera buttons or controls are used see Figure 9 This applies to the Information Display Menus image playback image review and Live View Image playback is when you press the Playback Button to review an image image review is the automatic display of an image immediately after tak
9. essing the OK Button However some settings of the Nikon D5100 can be controlled in multiple ways including using the buttons and controls on the camera body while reading the settings on the rear LCD Monitor or accessing the settings in the Menus after pressing the Menu Button Explore the options and find the ways that work most quickly and intuitively for you Any time capitalize something in the text it is a proper term that can be looked up in the Nikon D5100 manuals will capitalize the names of actual buttons controls camera parts and menu items such as Delete Button Command Dial Monitor and Format Again please review the camera body and display diagrams in your D5100 manuals to familiarize yourself with the names of various parts controls and displays as will use these proper names in this text Words and phrases that are capitalized and bold refer to chapters and sections within this guide Turn on the bookmarks navigation or contents panel or menu in your PDF viewer or e reader to quickly navigate to these different sections i Button Menu Button Information Edit Button Information Display Figure 3 i Button and Information Display Many of the functions and controls of a dSLR such as the D5100 are closely inter related such as the shooting mode exposure and the metering mode As a result of this must sometimes refer to previous or upcoming sections of the text for further explanation of related funct
10. gs manually and photograph the situation or scene You can then adjust the settings to increase or decrease the exposure based on the results and your desired creative intentions If you wish to use manual metering and shoot in Manual Exposure Mode M finish reading this chapter to learn more about exposure and metering modes and then return to the Manual Exposure Mode M section to review and better understand the relationships between Manual metering exposure and shooting in M Mode 56 Nikon D5100 Experience a LK 2 Figure 34a Egyptian Artifact challenging lighting Use the Spot Metering mode to determine the exposure settings of a critical area or multiple areas and set the exposure settings manually using M mode Shutter speed 1 60 aperture f 6 3 ISO 800 8 5 Metering Modes and Exposure An example of a critical exposure that will vary depending on which metering mode you use and where you meter in the scene is an image of a bride and groom The bride is typically dressed in all white and the groom may be in a black tux or dark suit If you are using Center Weighted or Spot Metering and meter the exposure on the bride s dress the camera will most likely under expose the image and the nice white dress will turn to grey in the photos and the groom s suit will turn into a pool of deep dark black If you use Center Weighted or Spot Metering and meter on the groom s outfit the camera will most likely over expose an
11. ing the photo It also determines how long the exposure meter remains on after metering has begun with a half press of the Shutter Release Button A shorter time will help prevent draining the battery but may also prove to be annoying Try setting for NORM Normal and adjust if necessary You can also adjust each setting individually in the Custom option My recommendations are Playback menus 20s or 1 min Image review 4s or 8s Live View 3 min or 5 min Auto meter off 20s or 1 min Adjust these settings to your preferences c2 Auto off timers Done winds Playback menus Image review Live view Auto meter off Figure 9 Custom Setting c2 Auto Off Timers Menu c3 Self timer These are the self timer settings Use this to set the Self timer delay between when you press the Shutter Release Button and when the shot is taken and the Number of shots taken each time with the self timer Pretty much self explanatory c4 Remote on duration If you are using the optional remote shutter release you will need to set how long you want the camera to be on stand by before turning off remote mode and reverting back to the previous release mode Although shorter times will save battery life 5 minutes or even 10 minutes will most likely prove to be a more reasonable time for setting up shots and working with the remote Shooting Display d1 Beep This is used to customize the beep volume that the camera makes for various operations including
12. ion It is best to read through the entire text in the order it is organized before returning to specific sections for further study It may take multiple readings and experimentation with your camera to fully understand both the individual functions and the relationships between functions Nikon D5100 Experience Some of these items are self explanatory or are discussed later in the text and thus won t go into detail about them here 2 1 Menu Settings Playback Shooting PLAYBACK MENU rert rrr A alata Playback folder Playback display options Image review Rotate tall Slide show DPOF print order Figure 4 Playback Menu Playback Menu Delete Use this to delete a single image a selected group of images all images taken on a specific date or all images in the current folder However if you are deleting all the images on a card it is better to use Format Memory Card see Setup Menu below Playback Folder This sets which images will be visible during Playback Leave on the default setting Current and all the images taken with this camera will be visible unless you create additional folders see Shooting Menu If you are sharing memory cards between different cameras which is not at all recommended or creating additional folders then you can select All Playback Display Options This is used to select what information can be viewed with your image during playback You can view the image without any superimpos
13. ll not much larger than the brackets you see in the viewfinder surrounding the center focus point For advanced users Spot Metering is used to determine the exposure values of several important parts of the scene and then the desired exposure is determined and then manually set using Manual Exposure Mode In this way Spot Metering Mode is used to turn your camera into a light meter as a tool to determine proper exposure of a subject or scene before switching the camera to Manual Mode M for a controlled studio shot a critical shot or a series of shots where the lighting is not going to change 8 4 Manual Metering Manual Metering isn t actually a mode in your camera but is a method of metering This is where you use a light meter or use your camera as a light meter such as described at the end in the Spot Metering section above and then manually set your exposure based on the meter readings This is used when you want ultimate control of the metering and exposure Manual Exposure mode M and manual metering is best put to use in a situation or scene with consistent and possibly challenging lighting such as a wide range of lights and darks throughout the scene such as landscape or portrait photography on a sunny day macro photography or studio work see Figure 34a You determine the exposure settings you wish to use by metering a midtone or critical area or areas of the scene Then adjust the aperture shutter speed and ISO settin
14. r buttons controls and how to change all the settings Note that the D5100 Reference Manual can also be obtained as a PDF file from the Nikon website http support nikonusa com app answers detail a_id 17325 This guide is intended to be used with the camera in your hands That is the best way to directly see and understand what is being explained As you can see there is a lot to make sense of regarding terminology and controls so recommend that you familiarize yourself with the controls and displays of the camera body as shown on pages 2 7 of the D5100 User s Manual and pages 1 10 of the D5100 Reference Manual see Figure 2 aS well as read through the manuals and attempt to understand as much as possible Yes much of it may be complicated and confusing at first but this guide will explain the uses of the numerous buttons controls menus and settings and concentrate on the essential ones to help you begin taking great images Shutter Release Button Exposure Compensation Button Aperture Button Movie Record Button Information Info Button Live View Switch Mode Dial Command Dial Figure 2 Controls on the top of the D5100 The majority of your settings can be changed with the i Button and Information Display see Figure 3 Press the i Button once to view your settings and a second time to enable you to navigate to a specific setting with the Multi Controller and access its Nikon D5100 Experience options by pr
15. stently attaining before If you are new to dSLR photography you will soon find that using a more versatile camera such as the D5100 can be initially challenging but ultimately more rewarding by offering you more responsiveness and greater control over your shooting and your results And don t worry this book will help guide you through its features controls and capabilities Be sure to take it slowly and patiently and start with the basic features and concepts that will explain With practice and experience you will soon be shooting with confidence and can begin to take advantage of the camera s more advanced functions Using This Guide There are many different ways to use a digital SLR dSLR camera and its controls to capture images and lm not going to attempt to explain them all am going to concentrate on the ways that believe are the most practical useful and effective The settings and techniques discuss apply to many types of general photography including most travel photography will point out other options for users who might wish to work differently and encourage you to experiment and find the techniques that work best and are most comfortable or intuitive for you If you typically shoot very specifically say macro photography or studio photography with complex lighting some of what discuss may not apply But if you are that specialized I m sure you are skilled enough to know when and how to adapt what say
16. ty of the respective companies and websites Use of terms which are trademarks or service marks in this e book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark Douglas Klostermann is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon com Copyright 2011 Douglas J Klostermann Cover design and photograph by the author Nikon D5100 Experience The Still Photographer s Guide to Operation and Image Creation with the Nikon D5100 by Douglas J Klostermann ISBN 978 1 4524 7264 5 Version 3 0 February 2012 Author s website www dojoklo com Author s blog http blog dojoklo com Published by Full Stop good writing for better photography A division of Douglas J Klostermann Photography Cambridge MA 02138 USA http www dojoklo com Full_Stop Nikon D5100 Experience CONTENTS CONTENTS Dead osea 3 INTRODUCTION a dead 4 2 MENUS and CUSTOM SETTINGS oi nuoiiii 9 2 1 Menu Settings Playback Shooting serios ile 10 22 Custom SOMOS dle 16 2 3 Menu Settings pp dd dias 21 24 My Men tc dias 24 3 IMAGE FILE FORMATS li 24 a VS ON ER CEA ea a e a A E eG E a a e aa E 24 3 2 FIl6 Sizes and Maxim m Burst AC psico 26 4 CAMERA OPERATION INTRO oiciiicinasanianida anadir nenita 27 By POCUSIN Go ad ind 28 Bl USING AULOIOCUS pi etse ease cet Sacked loth aucnner
17. when focus is achieved and when the self timer is counting down You may prefer to turn this Off if you find the beeps unnecessary or distracting 18 Nikon D5100 Experience 8 3 Spot Metering This mode meters exclusively on a 3 5mm circular area approximately 2 5 of the frame area centered on the selected focus point Note that the spot is not necessarily in the center of the frame as with Center Weighted Metering unless you or the camera has selected the center AF point So when do you want to use Spot Metering Figure 34 Singer Use Spot Metering in high contrast situations to meter for the area you want properly exposed and do not want the camera to take the background into account when determining exposure Here meter an area of skin tone then lock exposure and recompose if necessary for final image Shutter speed 1 60 aperture 1 4 5 ISO 1600 55 Nikon D5100 Experience This again is useful for scenes with great variation in light and shadow or in very critical situations and where you do not want the camera to take the background into account when determining exposure as it does with Center Weighted Metering One of the most common ways to use it is when metering for proper exposure on a dramatically lit face or subject where the proper exposure of that part of the image is critical see Figure 34 Be aware that the area the camera is metering does not take into account any other parts of the scene and is very sma
18. ypes of photographers and shooting situations and you don t need to learn and use them all immediately but this guide should help to give you the knowledge to confidently use the ones that turn your Nikon D5100 into an image capturing tool that works best for you Nikon D5100 Experience Learning to use and get the most out of a dSLR camera like the D5100 takes time practice patience mistakes and experimentation If you are not yet familiar with all the controls of a dSLR and the exposure concepts of digital photography don t expect to just pick it all up at once in one or two readings of a single book In fact you wouldn t want to as the never ending journey of learning and mastering photography is a big part of what it s all about Try not to become frustrated when you don t quite understand something or aren t yet getting the results you desire Instead learn the controls functions settings and concepts little by little try them out in real life shooting situations and return to this guide the manual and other photography books to address questions and problems you encounter Continue to learn and to photograph often and it should all begin to come together sometimes slowly and sometimes in rapid spurts of discovery and understanding If you have upgraded from an older dSLR to the D5100 its improved features and capabilities should more easily help you to capture high quality images that you may have been limited in consi
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