Nikon Auto-Focus Explained

NOTE: This is not an official Nikon USA show. This is a podcast first and foremost, and Nikon was kind enough to allow my guest, Mark Cruz, to come speak about the Nikon AF system options. This is not intended to be a technical training, but a conversation with Mark to better understand the choices you have in customizing the current line of Nikon camera AF systems. Obviously, there are still some constraints here. I try to keep the shows at a reasonable length – for some behind the scenes reasons related to the podcast versions of the show – and my guests often have limited time as well. I have a lot of people that listen to the audio only version of the show, and so there will be times I inject myself into the conversation to be sure the topic we are discussing is absorbable by those without video, as well as to moderate time so that we can at least get to all of the planned topics. Still, my hope is that explaining the AF options one-at-a-time in some detail will help you to get more out of the camera system you have.

I recently did a special episode taking a detailed look at the current Canon Auto-Focus systems, and now it’s time to do the same for the Nikon users.

As I explained in the first show in this series, my relationship with auto-focus systems hasn’t always been a great one. Like most photographers, it’s so easy to say “the camera missed focus”, or “it front or back focused”. The problem is that’s not the case more often than not. Don’t misunderstand me, these issues are real. Cameras and lenses are not perfect, and the software that runs anything today can have issues, but focus issues often relate to the end user not having the AF system configured correctly, or not understanding how the system really works.

Cameras today are complex electronic systems, and for many end users the process of customizing the AF systems is a daunting task. This results in many users leaving the camera at it’s default settings, and while for many that may end up working, with a bit of customization these AF systems are capable of amazing speed and accuracy.

Camera manuals are written by people that already understand the tech involved, and as “plain English” as they try to be, there just isn’t enough detail in the text to make the menu options useful to many end users. My goal with these two shows is to demystify the camera AF system options available to you.

For this show I am joined by Mark Cruz, a Senior Manager, Product Digital Cameras with Interchangeable Lenses (DCIL) at Nikon USA. Mark is responsible for bringing new digital imaging products to market, including the latest Nikon Z series mirrorless cameras and NIKKOR Z lenses. He also helps manage marketing and educational efforts for Nikon products across a variety of platforms and social media channels. Previously he was a Senior Technical representative for Nikon Canada, responsible for spearheading business development through technical sales and services. In 2019, he moved to the U.S. to join the Marketing department at Nikon USA.

Together we are going to go through the auto-focus menu options available to you to better customize the AF system for your shooting style and needs. Our example camera for this show will be a Nikon Z9, and while you may have a different camera body, most of the options will apply to most of the current Nikon mirrorless lineup. For those that use older Nikon DSLRs there will still be some overlap to help you, and if you use non-Nikon gear it’s my hope that the concepts we discuss will help.

Join Mark Cruz, a Senior Manager, Product Digital Cameras with Interchangeable Lenses (DCIL) at Nikon USA, and me as we take a deep dive into the amazing auto-focus systems available in the current line of Nikon cameras, using the Z9 as the example, on this Behind the Shot.

Nikon USA

Website: nikonusa.com
Instagram: @NikonUSA
Facebook: >@NikonUSA
Twitter: >@NikonUSA
YouTube: >@NikonUSA

Connect with Mark:

Instagram: @summacruzlaude

Mark’s Photographer Pick

Andrew Hancock: andrewhancock.com | @hancockphoto

Thanks to Troy Miller for letting me use your Z9:

Website – Business: imageryconcepts.com
Instagram – Business: @imageryconcepts
Website – Personal: spicyjello.com
Instagram – Personal: @spicyjello
Instagram – Personal, BW: @spicyjello_bw