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| D800/D800E TIPS

Quick Tips

The following sections introduce useful techniques and camera functions applicable to a variety of situations.

1. High ISO Sensitivity

The D800/D800E keeps noise to a minimum for high-resolution results at even the highest ISO sensitivities.

The High ISO NR option in the shooting menu reduces the randomly spaced bright pixels, fog, and lines characteristic of high sensitivity noise, but may leave edges less sharp. A setting of Off or Low may offer a good balance between sharpness and noise even at high ISO sensitivities. The setting can later be changed using Capture NX 2 (available separately) for images recorded in NEF (RAW) format.

Use Capture NX 2 for more precise adjustment of noise reduction Intensity and Sharpness. For NEF (RAW) images, select the Noise Reduction tool in the Develop section of the Edit List. For JPEG and TIFF images, select Noise Reduction from the Adjust menu.

Detailed views of the same subject shot at different High ISO NR settings. Higher settings reduce the noise visible in the sky but also reduce the sharpness of edges in the main subject.

2. Auto ISO Sensitivity Control

Auto ISO sensitivity control automatically adjusts ISO sensitivity if optimal exposure cannot be achieved at the value selected by the photographer. If Auto is selected for Minimum shutter speed, the camera will also adjust the threshold for auto ISO sensitivity control according to the focal length of the lens (CPU lenses only), a feature you will find particularly convenient when using zoom lenses (see sample photos at right).

To enable auto ISO sensitivity control, select On for ISO sensitivity settings > Auto ISO sensitivity control in the shooting menu.

Maximum sensitivity
Choose the maximum value available for auto ISO sensitivity control (200–Hi2). The minimum is ISO 100.
Minimum shutter speed

In exposure modes and , sensitivity will only be adjusted if shutter speed would otherwise be slower than this value (1⁄4,000–1 s or Auto).

Highlight Auto and press to choose whether the camera gives priority to shutter speed (Slower) or ISO sensitivity (Faster) when Auto is selected.

Focal length: 24 mm
Shutter speed: 1⁄25 s
ISO sensitivity: 900
Focal length: 50 mm
Shutter speed: 1⁄50 s
ISO sensitivity: 2500
Focal length: 70 mm
Shutter speed: 1⁄80 s
ISO sensitivity: 4500
Focal length: 100 mm
Shutter speed: 1⁄100 s
ISO sensitivity: 6400

The ISO Button

Auto ISO sensitivity control can be turned on or off by pressing the button and rotating the sub-command dial.

3. Improving Optical Performance

Stopping down the aperture increases depth of field, making both the foreground and background sharper. Stop the aperture down too far, however, and diffraction will actually cause the image to be less defined. The effects of diffraction are partly influenced by the size of the pixels on the camera's image sensor, but with the high resolution offered by the D800/D800E, the effects generally become noticeable at around f/11. When greater depth of field is needed, don't immediately apply the minimum aperture; instead, determine the aperture setting that offers the best balance between sharpness and depth of field. The sample images on this page show how definition in the metal grating is lost when an aperture smaller than f/11 is used.

f/8
f/11
f/16
f/22

4. Backlit Portraits

The RGB sensor with approximately 91K (91,000) pixels built into the D800/D800E offers more accurate face detection. When used with viewfinder framing in exposure modes other than , the camera balances exposure between a portrait subject and the background, even when the subject is backlit.

D800/D800E: The camera uses face detection to ensure optimal exposure of the subject's face.
Earlier cameras: The subject's face is underexposed, requiring exposure compensation.

Flash Photography

The D800/D800E also automatically optimizes flash output for portrait subjects.

D800/D800E: Flash output is adjusted according to the brightness of the subjects' faces, producing optimal results even with bright backgrounds
Earlier cameras: Flash output is adjusted according to the brightness of the background; as a result, the subjects' faces are underexposed.

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