Suggestions for U1 and U2 Settings on my D7200

Danno

Senior Member
I have what may be a strange question... I upgraded from a D3200 to the D7200 just a few weeks ago and I shoot mostly in Manual, Aperture or Shutter Priority. I understand what U1 and U2 are capable of, but I am struggling a bit trying to figure out what to use them for. I am just asking for suggestions. Stuff like this gets me stuck and I just need a little kick start...

Any suggestions would be appreciated...

Thanks in advance.

Dan
 
It all depends on what you like to shoot. For me I have U2 set for Bird In Flight BIF. So many times you are out shooting whatever and you see a beautiful bird flying overhead and need to be able to shoot it fast. It takes to long to switch over all the setting you need for BIF but only a few seconds to switch over to U2. After a recent shooting trip where I forgot to switch over to JPEG so that I could shoot 50 or more shots fast I think I think I will set U1 up to go high speed stop action using JPEG fine and shutter priority with a fast shutter speed. I will have to see it this is possible.

But you get the idea. It just needs to be something you need to swap over to fast without haveing to think about it to much.
 

rocketman122

Senior Member
itd be nice if they had it in the high end ff cameras. at times when I shoot weddings the venue is partly outside, and partly inside. it be great to have one for each. higher iso for inside different kelvin different shutter/aperture. pain in the ass to constantly configure each of these when going in and out. and I do
 

Danno

Senior Member
But you get the idea. It just needs to be something you need to swap over to fast without haveing to think about it to much.

That helps Don. most of the time I am used to landscapes and such... still stuff. but my dog is always with me and she will occasionally go nuts running around me. I never can get the setting changed quick enough before she is back to slow. I will be making that change for U1... Might work for birds too... Thank you!
 

nickt

Senior Member
I struggle to remember what my U's are set to, so I don't like to get too fancy. Another problem for me is that I will likely tweak some parameters and forget to save them, so the changes will be lost when changing modes. Or maybe I will save the changes and then I am back to forgetting what they are set to, lol. So my current thinking is one is set to emergency BIF settings in case something cool suddenly flies by. The other is set to general purpose shutter button focus in case I need to hand the camera to someone to take a picture. I normally use back button focus.
 

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
Pretty sure I have either U1 or U2 (I forget which) configured with my preferred settings for shooting JPG. Since it's not something I do very often, it's nice to be able to flip a switch that turns on known good settings without having to stop and think about it.
 

Ironwood

Senior Member
I have U1 set for my base settings for my 150-600, shutter 1000, f8, auto iso, af-c, etc. U2 has my settings that I always use for macro insects.
Everything else gets set up for the particular shot I am taking. If I had U3 and U4 I would find a reason to use them too.
 

Danno

Senior Member
Pretty sure I have either U1 or U2 (I forget which) configured with my preferred settings for shooting JPG. Since it's not something I do very often, it's nice to be able to flip a switch that turns on known good settings without having to stop and think about it.
That would work for church stuff when I am taking jpeg for kids events. Thanks

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Danno

Senior Member
Man these are all very helpful. Thank you all. Now I need to do some set up. Much appreciated.

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nikonpup

Senior Member
for me it is "let a sleeping dog lie" i do not use u1 u2. I just try and shot what i see the best i can, if i miss a shot
no big deal. I had enough job related stress when i was working, in retirement i just want to have fun.
 

Danno

Senior Member
for me it is "let a sleeping dog lie" i do not use u1 u2. I just try and shot what i see the best i can, if i miss a shot
no big deal. I had enough job related stress when i was working, in retirement i just want to have fun.
Ya work stress sucks. Had to much as well. Retirement is good...

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cwgrizz

Senior Member
Challenge Team
Well, I will chime it on this. I have U1 set for BIF and that is what I start out with on my daily walks with the dog. U2 is set for BIT (Birds in trees). Slower shutter setting, single point focus... With the U2 settings, I can also shoot other things that are pretty much stationary. For me it just lets me get off to a good start without forgetting to change something back after whatever I did yesterday. Basically, it is a starting point and then changed throughout the day as needed. I will also say that it is a changing process (settings) as I decide it needs tweaked here and there. Ha!
 

Camera Fun

Senior Member
U1 as Shutter Priority; U2 as Aperture priority; Both with Auto ISO; Both RAW. If I'm not using U1 or U2 (mainly use U2) then I'm trying full manual.
 

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
I guess my way of thinking runs counter to most people... I set up U1 & U2 for settings I *don't* use very often so I don't have think about what those settings are when I need them. I can see the logic in setting things up this way but the settings I use routinely rarely vary, or are stuck in my head from regular use, so I don't need them stored in U1 or U2. I guess as we get older our needs change... *sigh*
 
I guess my way of thinking runs counter to most people... I set up U1 & U2 for settings I *don't* use very often so I don't have think about what those settings are when I need them. I can see the logic in setting things up this way but the settings I use routinely rarely vary, or are stuck in my head from regular use, so I don't need them stored in U1 or U2. I guess as we get older our needs change... *sigh*

That is basically the way I think also. I shoot is so many different modes normally end up changing to many things normally. My goal recently is to look at a subject and try and determine the very best mode to shoot in. Don't anyone say just shoot in Manual all the time. I really don't think that is the best mode foe everything. Sometimes you have changing light or you are shooing in different directions each shot and they are all the same conditions and you need to shoot fast. I try to shoot in every mode with the exception of AUTO which I think is pure evil.
 

cwgrizz

Senior Member
Challenge Team
That is basically the way I think also. I shoot is so many different modes normally end up changing to many things normally. My goal recently is to look at a subject and try and determine the very best mode to shoot in. Don't anyone say just shoot in Manual all the time. I really don't think that is the best mode foe everything. Sometimes you have changing light or you are shooing in different directions each shot and they are all the same conditions and you need to shoot fast. I try to shoot in every mode with the exception of AUTO which I think is pure evil.

I would agree with this if I was shooting different situations all of the time, but for me every day starts out about the same scenario. Walk around my property with the dog, looking for something to photograph. BIF are the most common and second is BIT (birds in trees). Dog running through the desert looking for something to get after, so he is almost like a BIF for shooting conditions. The U1 just keeps me from forgetting to change something back to where it should be. Ha! The U settings are starting points and usually not much more.
 

Ironwood

Senior Member
I started using my U1&U2 out of frustration, when I photograph my pens I use a custom white balance setting. On 2 occasions I forgot reset the WB back to auto the next time I went out with the camera, it makes for extra work to correct the WB in PP so I decided to use the user settings to save my sanity.
 

mikew_RIP

Senior Member
As 99% of the time i have my 150-600 on my normal settings cover most subjects, U1 and U2 are set for +1 and +2 EV for my birds in flight or shooting a bird in a dark bush.
 
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