Upgrading D5600 to D7200 (1 Viewer)

Apodidae49 said:

Having trouble connecting the camera to my iPhone 6 via WiFi using Nikon Snap Bridge. Following all the steps (and watched YouTube Help videos) but it’s hanging at the Connecting screen. Any ideas gents?

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Sorted that, after a fashion, by installing a different Nikon App. Now I want to get AF Beep enabled and I can’t get it to work. Chosen a Volume & Tone but it won’t show as enabled in the Custom AF Menu. One step forward, two steps back!

Apodidae49 said:

Sorted that, after a fashion, by installing a different Nikon App. Now I want to get AF Beep enabled and I can’t get it to work. Chosen a Volume & Tone but it won’t show as enabled in the Custom AF Menu. One step forward, two steps back!

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Should have mentioned that I’ve enabled Back Button Focus on the AE-L/AF-L button so does that have a bearing on not being able to enable Beep?

Apodidae49 said:

Should have mentioned that I’ve enabled Back Button Focus on the AE-L/AF-L button so does that have a bearing on not being able to enable Beep?

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I have the D7200 and also use back button focus. I usually have the focus confirmation beep off, but I've just turned it on to test this, and it doesn't work with back button focus. It must be linked to the shutter button.

Malcolm

Glad you are enjoying the D7200.....it's a great camera capable of superb images.
This image was taken from a long distance with the 200-500mm and heavily cropped.......it's down to 2.5 mp but still shows great feather detail.Some of the full sze images i have shot with this set up have amazing detail and have to be seen to be appreciated.

Thanks for the confirmation Malcolm, thought it might be something to do with Back Button Focus being enabled.

That’s a great shot Neil!

A tutorial I watched about Back Button Focus said that you keep the back button depressed when shooting moving objects (using AF-C) so I suppose if you were using AF with the shutter button you’d use 3D Tracking?

I’ve had a day out with the camera with Back Button Focus enabled and I must say I’m not that fond of it. Where the Back Button is on the D7200 is a bit of an awkward thumb reach and an unnatural grip.

Is it possible to program the FN button on the front lower right of the camera to Autofocus?

Looking at the manual, this doesn't appear to be possible. It looks like you can assign depth of field preview, flash exposure and exposure/focus lock to this button.

If I understand it correctly, this last won't allow you to acquire focus, just lock it once it has been acquired via the shutter button or the rear AE-L/AF-L button.

By the way, you may find that if you persist with back button focus it will come to seem less awkward and more comfortable.

Malcolm

Apodidae49 said:

Is it possible to program the FN button on the front lower right of the camera to Autofocus?

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Yes it is. It's MENU > CUSTOM SETTING MENU > f-Controls > f2-Assign FN button > Press > (Scroll to) AF-ON

I've been using back button focusing (BBF) since it was pointed out to me about a year ago. It was awkward at first but I eventually got the hang of it. I personally think it's the only way to go, especially when trying to photograph birds in flight.

I also tried using the FN button but for my hand/fingers it just wasn't as comfortable as the AE-L/AF-L button.

I agree with MalR - you need to practice BBF for a while before giving up on it.

Cheers

3d tracking is a mode of AF-C. It is unrelated to using AF-ON button.

Personally, I find AF-ON (back button) focusing impractical for hand-held shots of moving things. It's too many buttons to be pressing at the same time while holding a heavy camera. I almost always use shutter release focusing.

AF-ON focusing is useful in these circumstances, IMO:

• You want to focus and recompose. Not useful for moving things, but for stationary things could work.
• You want to focus-trap. This is super useful for fast movers like hummingbirds that you want to try and photograph taking off or landing. You turn off AF w/ shutter release (i.e. turn on back button), set to AF-C, set to an area focus mode (e.g. 72-point), and make sure the AF-C shutter priority is set to focus. Then you can focus on something like a perching branch with AF-ON, recompose the focus slightly off the branch, and then depress the shutter. The camera will not release until a bird flies into the focus area. I use a remote shutter release. This is, of course, all done on a tripod.

Otherwise, I find it too clumsy to try and hand hold the camera and use my thumb and index finger for buttons.

Marc

bflginidx said:

Yes it is. It's MENU > CUSTOM SETTING MENU > f-Controls > f2-Assign FN button > Press > (Scroll to) AF-ON

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Sorry, I forgot another setting that should be made when switching from shutter to back button focus:

CUSTOM SETTINGS MENU > Autofocus > AF activation. Under this option, select AF-On only.

I think that it will help with my grip if I assign the Fn button to AF-ON and use my third finger to activate it, I can give it a go, anyway.

Anyhoo, if I’m using AF-C shutter-activated, the camera will track and focus moving objects with the shutter button depressed until I fully press the button down?

I’ve had a go of 3D Tracking on my D5600 and had some decent results.

Yesterday I had it set to Manual and set aperture fully open and 1000th shutter and Auto ISO. I think I’m gradually getting to grips with the camera basics. The myriad of videos on YouTube are a great help.

Thank God I’m not shooting film! 3

Apodidae49 said:

I think that it will help with my grip if I assign the Fn button to AF-ON and use my third finger to activate it, I can give it a go, anyway.

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Yes, good idea to try the various options until you find one that's the most comfortable for you.

Apodidae49 said:

Anyhoo, if I’m using AF-C shutter-activated, the camera will track and focus moving objects with the shutter button depressed until I fully press the button down?

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Yes, but if you accidentally release the shutter button, which is easy to do, the camera will stop tracking. Then when you press the shutter button again the camera will refocus. This can be time-consuming and distracting. That's why I use BBF, which detaches the focusing process from the shutter button.

Keep in mind that you can use BBF for still subjects as well. Simply press and release the BBF button when focus is made; the focus is then locked. If you need to refocus, repeat as necessary.

I also set the Custom Settings Autofocus > AF-C Priority Selection to Release. That will snap the picture regardless of whether the camera thinks the subject is in focus. I also set the Release Mode dial to Continuous High Speed so I can take a burst of images if warranted.

These are the settings that work for ME. You'll need to research and experiment with these and others in order to get the camera configured to your needs.

Apodidae49 said:

I’ve had a go of 3D Tracking on my D5600 and had some decent results.

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I've never tried it. Once I became comfortable with AF-C and BBF I didn't want to change. I use Single Point and Dynamic Area and vary the number of focus points depending on the subject.

Apodidae49 said:

Yesterday I had it set to Manual and set aperture fully open and 1000th shutter and Auto ISO. I think I’m gradually getting to grips with the camera basics. The myriad of videos on YouTube are a great help.

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I switch between aperture and shutter priority depending on the subject. I've only tried the manual setting briefly but it seemed to work pretty well. But I do use Auto ISO which I find to be a very nice feature.

Apodidae49 said:

Thank God I’m not shooting film! 3

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Those were the days!