Nikon D4s focus selection

[Paul C]

Currently shoot with a D500 and D4s. The D500 focus customization option is great for action photography. Being able to allocate a different focus system to buttons makes life a lot easier. However with the D4s, am I missing something? I find it very difficult to change a focus system, say from single point to dynamic 25, while holding a 500mm lens. Having to push the AF-Mode button is not possible while hand holding? I have looked to customize some features like a button and command dial combo, but am unable to find a solution? Any ideas would be most welcome. @Steve

 

[Paul C]

That’s not possible Paul.
My daughter uses a D4s plus D500 too and she wanted to do the same, so we looked for a solution too.

Thanks Thern. It seems impossible to believe that the only way is to set the camera and lens down and change it. Only plausible if shooting off a tripod!

 

[Woodpecker]

Currently shoot with a D500 and D4s. The D500 focus customization option is great for action photography. Being able to allocate a different focus system to buttons makes life a lot easier. However with the D4s, am I missing something? I find it very difficult to change a focus system, say from single point to dynamic 25, while holding a 500mm lens. Having to push the AF-Mode button is not possible while hand holding? I have looked to customize some features like a button and command dial combo, but am unable to find a solution? Any ideas would be most welcome. @Steve

Well, it might not be as comfortable as having a relocated AF mode button giving you full control with the wheels, but there is something that might help you, becasue you particularly mention long lenses:

Goto the CONTROLS menu and select option f19 "Lens focus function buttons". There you can select a number of functions to be allocated to the four buttons at the front barrel of your lens. I just tried it with my 500 5.6 PF and the 500 f4 G. I have set AF-C D9 as my default via AF mode button and I selected "AF-area mode --> Dynamic area AF (51 points)" for the menu option mentioned before. Now I have AF-C D9 in normal operation and as long as I hold one of the four buttons on the lens I get AF-C D51 as long as I hold the button. As soon as I release it I am back to D9 again. My small and my big 500 are the only lenses that have the buttons, but IMHO with shorter lenses handheld it should be possible to use the normal button anyway. It should workk with any pro grade lens from the 70-200 upwards - unless they are so small that the buttons wouldn't make sense - like with 300PF.

Oh, I forgot to mention: The switch on the lens must be set to AF-L, in position "Memory Recall and "AF-On" the function mentioned on the switch is overruling the setting of option f19.

Hope this helps a bit

Just saw that @Thern came up with the same, so at least you know it seems to be normal for D4(S) to behave that way

 

[Paul C]

Well, it might not be as comfortable as having a relocated AF mode button giving you full control with the wheels, but there is something that might help you, becasue you particularly mention long lenses:

Goto the CONTROLS menu and select option f19 "Lens focus function buttons". There you can select a number of functions to be allocated to the four buttons at the front barrel of your lens. I just tried it with my 500 5.6 PF and the 500 f4 G. I have set AF-C D9 as my default via AF mode button and I selected "AF-area mode --> Dynamic area AF (51 points)" for the menu option mentioned before. Now I have AF-C D9 in normal operation and as long as I hold one of the four buttons on the lens I get AF-C D51 as long as I hold the button. As soon as I release it I am bacl to D9 again. My small and my big 500 are the only lenses that have the buttons, but IMHO with shorter lenses handheld it should be possible to use the normal button anyway. It should workk with any pro grade lens from the 70-200 upwards - unless they are so small that the buttons wouldn't make sense - like with 300PF.

Oh, I fogot to mention: The switch on the lens ust be set to AF-L, in position "Memory Recall and "AF-On" function mentioned on the switch is overruling the seting of option f19.

Hope this helps a bit

Just saw that @Thern came up with the same, so at least you know it seems to be normal for D4(S) to behave that way

Thanks Woodpecker...it certainly helps! I have always wondered why some wizz kid has not figured out a way to change the software. It seems unfortunate that you must spend huge money to make use of a programming change

 

[Woodpecker]

Now she tells me you can assign another AF mode to

Thanks Woodpecker...it certainly helps! I have always wondered why some wizz kid has not figured out a way to change the software. It seems unfortunate that you must spend huge money to make use of a programming change

Well, I think for things like Jailbreaks on Nikon DSLRs like we know it from smartphones the niche it a bit too small .
But there is something good to it as well, because helping each other is much easier if all work on the same basis.
Also software tweaks of this kind usually end up inflationary appearance of what I call rabbit problems (Shoot one, get six new ones).
Another point is that you usually get cut off of official updates which can cause other problems.

Loving this good old imaging brick comes at a price .
We have to live with what it's there, because certainly nobody at Nikon is interested too much in spending time and anergy for software changes for a camera that has been discontinued and that they really would like to see being replaced by more modern ones. They love to make us spending money

 

[Woodpecker]

@Woodpecker I agree, but imo a camera gets discontinued the moment the user says so, NOT Nikon.
Marketing may want us to believe every little incremental update to be a real upgrade but irl it’s often not much more than ‘a bit more of the same’

I see a lot of guys and gals outthere still shooting D90s, D300s, D3s, D700s aso aso with great results and lots of fun.

Yep, agree ! But unfortunately that's the way this crazy world works more and more. Long living and sustainably made products are not so much in focus any more as they should be. Some time ago the first generation of Z series cameras would never had reached the market, because Nikon would have done a "first time right". But there are two alternatives: Catch up with the speed of markets and follow the quick and dirty rat race or ... die. I don't like it, but that's the way things go. And this is my no means specific to photography. It applies to more or less all areas of technology - even if it comes to software systems used for operating and managing the factories that make the products we are buying ...

I must admit I have been playing around with quite ab bit of gear in the last couple of years, but I needed to find what fits me. Now after getting my good old imaging brick a couple of weeks ago I feel like I got where I wanted to get ... Let's see how long the feeling remains dominant .

If I got back one of my old Fuji S5 pro I am sure I would get much better images with it today compared with 200x , not because of the camera is up to date, but because I know so much more today about how to do it ... and there is still sooooo much headroom to improve .