Approaching the Scene 153: How to Easily Autofocus Action With Nikon’s Z Cameras

(LINKS BELOW) I spent Father’s Day kiteboarding at my local kite beach. Towards the end of the day I picked up my Z7ii and photographed the action for 17 minutes. I was blown away yet again by the accuracy and ease with which this camera nails autofocus without even selecting a point. I’ll show you the whole shoot here and spend some time taking you through my menus and viewfinder to show the action autofocus settings I use to get great results with all my Z cameras.

LINKED TABLE OF CONTENTS:
00:00 Intro to ATS 153
01 :44 Join our free Nikon Focused Office Hours session on July 6th.
02:45 All of the brands’ latest cameras are amazing!
03:21 Lume Cube’s big 21% off sitewide sale is live (see link below)
04:21 Linked Table of Contents in video’s full description
05:04 Photographing kiteboarding with the Z7ii on Fathers’ Day
07:20 The settings that I use for action and motion
08:41 Through the viewfinder release and AF settings explained
11:04 Through the viewfinder AF settings demo
15:30 What the rare circumstances I do use subject tracking
16:45 Examples from 15 minutes shooting kiteboarding father’s Day
29:20 Good F lenses on the FTZ also give great results (examples)

LINKS:

Using my links helps support this video series. Thank you!

I invite all of you who are Nikon users, or even Nikon curious to join Rick, Woody, David, Darren and me for our free live Office Hours Tuesday July 6th at 10AM Pacific. We’ve long promised a Nikon specific set of office hours and this is finally it. Be sure to submit a question when you sign up.

Thanks to everyone for the great questions you are sending in. Keep them coming either in the comments below or by emailing me directly. I hope to see you in the next Office Hours Session.

Stay safe and healthy.

[patrickmolloy]

good to see a "real live" review instead of some click baiter saying what he thinks and not shooting. Well done Hudson and thanks

[gerryphilpott]

Thanks, I've dramatically reduced my youtube surfing as just tired of the BS and camera bashing for no other reason than to get comments for $$. I love my Z 6ii and when something is out of focus, I look in the mirror. Plain and simple. Appreciate the tips!

[myfakeguuglaccount]

I'm 100% amateur photo hobbyist. Just bought a Z6ii. I was a little worried about the focus "issues" I've been seeing and reading about, but I can't give up the image quality and hardware build quality of Nikon.
Took it out for a dance photo shoot my daughter wanted. I warned her I had just taken this new camera out of the box and knew next to nothing about it, never mind setting it up in any way.
The Z6ii easily kept up with everything she did. If anything, I blew my A and S settings a couple of times. But focus was not an issue at all. And the shots we got are gorgeous.

[mikefurtek]

Thank you very much for these Chuck full of info vids. Got my z7ii recently and the 70-200 s. You have been very helpful and inspirational.

[genewhitney]

Extremely interesting. More videos like this, please.

[lindakarlin]

This video was absolutely fabulous. Thank you so much for the tutorial.

[ThePinoyAggie]

I agree that Nikon released the first-gen full-frame Z6 and Z7 not being ready. No doubt it's because of the pressure from Sony's mirrorless systems that are becoming on par or even better than DSLRs (user experience-wise). Canon did the same thing with the EOS R and EOS RP systems. The only difference is Canon eventually released the impressive EOS R5 and R6 on time to save their market share. Nikon on the other hand gave us firmware updates and the Z6 II and Z7 II that did not fully address its focusing shortcomings for wildlife and sports photography relative to Sony and Canon. I am a Nikon shooter. My very first DSLR was the Nikon D80. I then moved up to the D810. My favorite camera ever! The image rendition is amazing. A great landscape camera. I still have it as a dedicated Astro camera. I will never give it up. I never had the D850, and I'm sure that's even better. Since I hike for my photography hobby, I was looking at reducing the footprint of my system. Mirrorless is one of the solutions. With the promise of the Z lenses, and I loved Nikon's ergonomics and color science, I gave the Z a try. I got the Z6 as my second full frame with the D810. I enjoyed it. Tracking wildlife is difficult, but for other purposes, it was great. Way better video features. The Z lenses were amazing. I then upgraded to the Z6 II and bought the Z7 II for Image resolution similar to the D810. I am now transitioned from F-mount to Z-mount with a growing Z lens collection. I hope the Z9 will be the D3 moment for Nikon, and the Z8 as the D800/810/850 equivalent. Let's have that amazing focusing system, Nikon and you'll be back with a vengeance in the market!

[Lakefilms]

Thanks for this! I just got the Z6 and trying to learn the focusing system.

[CJGlynnPhotography]

HH, you are THE MAN. Another full year of ATS. Dude, you rock. Happy holidays to you, Stacey and the kids. Love you, Bro.

[davetv]

I have the R5 and Z7ii and Z6ii currently. Been through a lot of cameras to get to this point. I find myself buying more Z lenses due to their use and lower prices. Having the 24-70 f4, 85, 20, 50 1.2, 70-200 and hopefully soon, the MC 105 2.8…it is such a great system and more affordable than any system out there. The A1 looks great but not a fan of some of Sony’s outdated lenses. I might even sell the R5 for the Z9. Nikon really made a great system here. Thanks and look forward to more Nikon Z content

[score]

I've mainly been shooting my grandson's baseball games with my Z6ii and 70-200 S lens. I've been bouncing between Wide Area AF Small and Dynamic. Getting good keep rates but occasionally struggling with fast-tracking of a play. I never thought of using Auto Area AF People. I also think Subject Tracking, as you explained, would be useful for reaching across the infield (from near the dugout) to track and nail focus on a play or infielder. Probably the same for trying to capture a far-away center fielder on a play. Can't wait to try some of this strategy! Thanks for the tips!

[smkunder]

I am so thankful you do these, I love my Z6ll, but in many of my wildlife forums, I take so much heat for the Z6ll not having bird /eye af tracking.

[Gina_Michel]

Thank you, Hudson! Love these tutorials! They are such a help! Happy Belated Father's Day!

[allenbuyck]

You have become my source of information and inspiration as I learn more and more about my Z6ii. Thank you for your content and teaching style. Outstanding information and you seem to cover any question that I may come up with.

[suhail]

Great video and a real answer to all Youtubers who feel the need to dump on Nikon autofocus (including former shooters with strange hair!). And thanks for the kind words on your recent Office Hours!

[asphaltdancer]

This was extremely helpful. Thank you.

[martineudall]

One of the best videos on the subject I have seen. Very straightforward and clear. Waiting for my z6 ll to be delivered and getting as much info as possible beforehand. Thanks

[DarrenLloydPDX]

We're finally allowed back on the sidelines and the lion's share of photos I picked to edit from the match on Father's Day were from the Z6. I'm even getting used to the screen "blackout" in H+ release mode...

Subject tracking is great when I am trying to keep focus on a specific player!

[berniestang]

This video - very helpful. I’m still working on learning how to use the AF modes and which mode in which situation for the Z7ii and Z9 . When to use auto area, when to track, when to use wide L, and so on . Still setting up my mirrorless Nikons regarding AF .

[charlesmcfarren]

Great informative presentation, as usual. Happy Birthday!