Nikon Camera D610 Users Manual

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6Name the Picture Control.
The text-entry dialog shown at right will be 
displayed.
 By default, new Picture Controls 
are named by adding a two-digit number 
(assigned automatically) to the name of the 
existing Picture Control; to use the default 
name, proceed to Step 7.
 To move the cursor in the name area, hold the 
W (S ) button and press  4 or  2.
 To enter a new letter at the current cursor 
position, use the multi selector to hi ghlight the desired character in the 
keyboard area and press  J.
 To delete the character at the current cursor 
position, press the  O(Q ) button.
Custom Picture Control names can be up to nineteen characters long.
 Any 
characters after the nineteenth will be deleted.
7Press  X (T ).
Press the  X (T ) button to save changes 
and exit.
 The new Picture Control will 
appear in the Picture Control list.
AManage Picture Control > Rename
Custom Picture Controls can be renamed at any time 
using the  Rename option in the  Manage Picture 
Control  menu.
AManage Picture Control > Delete
The  Delete  option in the  Manage Picture Control  
menu can be used to delete selected custom Picture 
Controls when they are no longer needed.
AThe Original Picture Control Icon
The original preset Picture Control on which the 
custom Picture Control is based is indicated by an icon 
in the top right corner of the edit display. Original Picture Control icon
Keyboard 
area
Name area
X
 (T ) button 
						

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Sharing Custom Picture Controls
Custom Picture Controls created using the Picture Control Utility available with 
ViewNX 2 or optional software such as Capture NX 2 can be copied to a memory card 
and loaded into the camera, or custom Picture Controls created with the camera can 
be copied to the memory card to be used  in other D610 cameras and software and 
then deleted when no longer needed.
To copy custom Picture Controls to or from the 
memory card, or to delete custom Picture Controls 
from the memory card, highlight  Load/save in the 
Manage Picture Control  menu and press2.
 The 
following options will be displayed:
• Copy to camera : Copy custom Picture Controls from the 
memory card to custom Picture Controls C-1 
through C-9 on the camera and name them as 
desired.
• Delete from card : Delete selected custom Picture 
Controls from the memory card.
 The confirmation 
dialog shown at right will be displayed before a 
Picture Control is deleted;  to delete the selected 
Picture Control, highlight  Ye s and press  J.
• Copy to card : Copy a custom Picture Control (C-1 
through C-9) from the camera to a selected 
destination (1 through 99) on the memory card.
ASaving Custom Picture Controls
Up to 99 custom Picture Controls can be stored on the memory card at any one time.
 The 
memory card can only be used to store user-created custom Picture Controls.
 The preset 
Picture Controls supplied with the camera ( 0129) can not be copied to the memory card, 
renamed, or deleted.
The options in the  Manage Picture Control  menu apply only to the memory card in Slot 1. 
Custom Picture Controls can not be deleted from or copied to or from the card in Slot 2. 
						

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Preserving Detail in Highlights and 
Shadows
Active D-Lighting
Active D-Lighting preserves details in highlights and shadows, creating photographs 
with natural contrast.
 Use for high contrast scenes, for example when 
photographing brightly lit outdoor scenery through a door or window or taking 
pictures of shaded subjects on a sunny day.
 It is most effective when used with 
matrix metering ( 0109).
Active D-Lighting off Active D-Lighting:  YAuto
D“Active D-Lighting” Versus “D-Lighting”
The  Active D-Lighting  option in the shooting menu adju sts exposure before shooting to 
optimize the dynamic range, while the  D-Lighting option in the retouch menu optimizes 
dynamic range in images after shooting.
(P, S, A, and M Modes Only) 
						

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To  u s e  A c t i v e  D - L i g h t i n g :
1Select Active D-Lighting  in the 
shooting menu.
To display the menus, press the  G button.  
Highlight  Active D-Lighting  in the shooting 
menu and press  2.
2Choose an option.
Highlight the desired option and press J. 
IfY Auto  is selected, the camera will 
automatically adjust Active D-Lighting 
according to shooting conditions (in mode 
M , however,  YAuto  is equivalent to 
Q Normal ).
DActive D-Lighting
Active D-Lighting can not be used with movies.
 Noise (randomly-spaced bright pixels, fog, 
or lines) may appear in photographs taken with Active D-Lighting.
 Uneven shading may be 
visible with some subjects. Active D-Lighting can not be used at ISO sensitivities of Hi 0.3 or 
above.
ASee Also
When  ADL bracketing  is selected for Custom Setting e6 ( Auto bracketing set, 0 241), the 
camera varies Active D-Lighting over a series of shots ( 0158).
 For information on using the 
Fn  button and main command dial to select an Active D-Lighting option, see page 242.
G  button 
						

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High Dynamic Range (HDR)
Used with high-contrast subjects, High  Dynamic  Range (HDR) preserves details in 
highlights and shadows by combining tw o shots taken at different exposures.
 HDR is 
most effective when used with matrix metering ( 0109; with other metering 
methods and a non-CPU lens, an exposure differential of  Auto is equivalent to about 
2EV).
 It can not be used to record NEF (RAW ) images. Movie recording ( 057), flash 
lighting, bracketing ( 0153), multiple exposure ( 0160), and time-lapse 
photography ( 0168) can not be used while HDR is in effect and a shutter speed of 
A  is not available. 
1Select  HDR (high dynamic range) .
Press the G button to display the menus. 
Highlight  HDR (high dynamic range)  in 
the shooting menu and press 2.
+
First exposure (darker) Second expo sure (brighter) Combined HDR image
G button 
						

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2Select a mode.
Highlight HDR mode  and press 2.
Highlight one of the following and press  J.
• To take a series of HDR photographs , select 
6 On (series) .
 HDR shooting will 
continue until you select  Off for  HDR 
mode .
• To take one HDR photograph , select On 
(single photo) .
 Normal shooting will resume automatically after you have 
created a single HDR photograph.
• To exit without creating additional HDR photographs , select Off.
If  On (series)  or On (single photo)  is selected, a k icon 
will be displayed in the control panel. 
3Choose the exposure differential.
To choose the difference in exposure 
between the two shots, highlight  Exposure 
differential  and press 2.
The options shown at right will be 
displayed.
 Highlight an option and press  J. 
Choose higher values for high-contrast 
subjects, but note that choosing a value 
higher than required may not produce the 
desired results; if  Auto is selected, the 
camera will automatically adjust  exposure to suit the scene. 
						

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4Choose the amount of smoothing.
To choose how much the boundaries 
between the two images are smoothed, 
highlight Smoothing  and press2.
The options shown at right will be 
displayed.
 Highlight an option and press  J. 
Higher values produce a smoother 
composite image.
 Uneven shading may be 
visible with some subjects.
5Frame a photograph, focus, and shoot.
The camera takes two exposure s when the shutter-release 
button is pressed all the way down.
 l  k  will be 
displayed in the control panel and  l u  in the 
viewfinder while the images are combined; no 
photographs can be taken until recording is complete.
 
Regardless of the option currently selected for release 
mode, only one photograph will be taken each time the 
shutter-release button is pressed.
If  On (series)  is selected, HDR will only turn off when  Off is 
selected for  HDR mode; if On (single photo)  is selected, HDR turns off 
automatically after the photograph is taken.
 The  k icon clears from the display 
when HDR shooting ends.
DFraming HDR Photographs
The edges of the image will be cropped out.
 The desired results may not be achieved if the 
camera or subject moves during shooting.
 Use of a tripod is recommended. Depending on 
the scene, shadows may appear around bright objects or halos may appear around dark 
objects; this effect can be reduced by adjusting the amount of smoothing.
AInterval Timer Photography
If  On (series)  is selected for  HDR mode before interval timer shooting begins, the camera 
will continue to shoot HDR photographs at the selected interval (if  On (single photo) is 
selected, interval timer shooting will end after a single shot).
Control panel
Viewfinder 
						

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Flash Photography
The built-in flash has a Guide Number (GN) 12/39 (m/ft, ISO 100, 20 °C/68 °F) and 
provides coverage for the angle of view of 24 mm lens, or a 16 mm lens in DX format.
 
It can be used not only when natural lighting is inadequate but to fill in shadows and 
backlit subjects or to add a catch light to the subject’s eyes.
❚❚Using the Built-in Flash:  i, k , p , n , o , s , and  w Modes 
1Choose a flash mode ( 0144).
2Ta k e  p i c t u r e s .
The flash will pop up as required when the 
shutter-release button is pressed halfway, and fire 
when a photograph is taken.
 If the flash does not 
pop up automatically, 
DO NOT attempt to raise it by 
hand.
 Failure to observe this precaution could 
damage the flash.
❚❚ Using the Built-in Flash: P, S, A, M, and  0 Modes 
1Raise the flash.
Press the  M (Y ) button to raise the flash.
2Choose a flash mode ( P,  S,  A , and  M modes 
only;  0144).
3Ta k e  p i c t u r e s .
The flash will fire whenever a picture is taken.
Using the Built-in Flash
AMetering
Select matrix or center-weighted metering to ac tivate i-TTL balanced fill-flash for digital SLR.
 
Standard i-TTL flash for digital SLR is activated automatically when spot metering is selected.
M (Y ) button 
						

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Flash Mode 
The flash modes available vary with shooting mode:
To choose a flash mode, press the M (Y ) button and rotate the main command dial 
until the desired setting is di splayed in the control panel.
i, k , p , n , s , wo0
Auto Auto + slow sync +
red-eye reductionFill flash
Auto +red-eye reduction Auto + slow sync
j Off jOff
P,  AS, M
Fill flash Fill flash
Red-eye reduction Red-eye reduction
Slow sync + red-eye reduction Rear-curtain sync
Slow sync
Rear curtain + slow sync
*
* S  is displayed when setting is complete.
M (Y ) button Main command dial Control panel
ALowering the Built-in Flash
To save power when the flash is not in use, press it gently downward 
until the latch clicks into place.