Nikon Z9 Complete Setup Guide: Standard Setup / Bank A (Video 1 of 4)

[@lapo7568]

I had my Z9 for so long without fully setting it up. I feel like its a brand new camera after watching this video. Great One

[@radicalrenegade8528]

This was necessary. The algorithm did not send me to you. Someone made a comment about you in another channel which sent me here. Unfortunately, I had already paid a fee to someone else for a Z9 setup video. Yours was better.

[@mjames978]

Very vague comment

[@jz2450]

What an amazingly detailed tutorial. Nikon should pay you for this!

[@vanmeter-photography]

Thank you so much! The manual is great, but hearing your explanations and the reasoning behind them is very helpful.

[@toddleech1055]

This THE best explanation and set up of this camera i've seen, thanks for posting

[@goldenwestdrain]

As many others have said THANK YOU !!! yes by not just downloading a settings menu it allows you to really understand the menu and your camera much better. I wish you much happiness !

[@kevinblack644]

I just purchased the Nikon Z 9 and found this set of tutorials to be the best on the net! Thank you so much for putting this together and making it much easier than reading a 900+ page document. Now I'll use it for reference when I'm not sure about a setting. Great Info!

[@chocloditelensman]

it really is - don't try contacting Nikon customer support because one out of three reps I talked to knew the operation of this camera. I finally figured it out myself and by the help of this tutorial !

[@cheilmann]

Thank you for your setting guides! Excellent job!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Thank you so much for that! I appreciate it.

[@TCRONIN002]

Amazingly helpful! Thanks a ton.

[@scottbickford3654]

Hi Hudson, can't thank you enough.. easy to follow..

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Thanks Scott!

[@steveburdett7736]

Setting up my menu went totally over my head. I’ll watch it a few more times to try to understand what I missed. Fantastic video! Thank You.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

@@steveburdett7736 maybe watch that part of the Z8 one too. It's identical.

[@savagefrieze4675]

Just wanted to make sure I said thank you. For the most part I’ve used my Nikons like film cameras, and mostly manual at that.

[@kennethscheepers1616]

I finally took the plunge into mirrorless from my D850 with a Z9 and want to say the Z9 setup tutorials are an immense help and time saver, plus learning the menu system, what they do and how they work. THANK YOU!

[@yervantparnagian5999]

Fantastic videos on your channel. Totally professional looking.

[@chuckrogers1671]

By far, the very best help I've had to assist with setting up this wonderful camera. Thank you!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Glad it helped!

[@AlexAlex-uv8rg]

Hi. A very useful video. Thank you for the work you've done. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@gaperklake]

Hello Hudson, I watched all four of your Z9 setup videos before my Z9 arrived. I received it a week ago and I watched the videos once more from start to finish. Thank you again for this, for your time and the work you put into them. I not only got Banks out of them, but extended knowledge about the camera as well. Thank you, The Z9 is the most extraordinary camera I've ever had in my hands. It is a fine instrument for capturing and recording the world, and beyond.

[@blackiechann2118]

I really wish there was a new setup videos with the new updates involved for the Nikon Z9. These videos are great but out dated now. PLEASE do some updated videos. I used these banks and I love it and I have customised it to my use, but the backbones from these videos helped a LOT!! Thank you for your videos!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

If you search my channel for z9 you'll see several firmware update videos. 🤣 Thanks for the kind words!

[@blackiechann2118]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto I have watched the videos, but you don’t have the newest firmware updated and features for the banks. There is a lot more since your last update video. Yes I could customise myself, but not everyone else is good at it or has the right knowledge. The firmware 4.10 would be a great video with updates on the banks?

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I've discussed every firmware update and how it affects my settings and controls including a detailed explanation of using auto capture and an explanation that 4.1 does nothing that affects my settings or control choices. I detailed how I currently use autofocus with updated firmware and techniques just a couple of months ago in videos at my favorite kitesurfing beach. Look at those and you're up to date. :)

[@peterorr999]

Thank you for taking the trouble over these four set-up videos. Extremely helpful for newbie Z9ers. Aren’t we all?

[@luvfoto]

Best tutorial on youtube.. Thank you for slowing down and going over each setting.

[@bugeyesweb]

Thanks

[@jonathanclark1288]

Thanks!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I very much appreciate that Johnathan!

[@iandavidbrown7667]

Superb, just got my Z9 and this has been so valuable. Thank You. Ian (UK)

[@richparkinson2689]

Finally got my Z9. These 4 setup videos were so helpful especially for the banks and custom settings. Thank you for taking the time to go into this much detail.

[@vernwright5747]

Thank you Hudson. Watched your very informative Video with the Z9 on my Desk. Changed a few settings and look forward to viewing parts 2 thru 4.

[@leder1957]

Thanks for an informative video. I finally feel a little more comfortable navigating the Z9 beast.

[@johnz4412]

Incredibly thorough and helpful. Really appreciate the presentation. It would have taken me weeks to figure this out without your explanations and recommendations. Thanks so much!

[@akboyrich]

Hi Hudson-Thanks so much for doing all this legwork and making the entire setup guide available to the general public! It's informative, well done and greatly appreciated. It really does make setting up my Z9 so much easier!

[@lucyunsworth9108]

Agree😉

[@davearchbell9921]

I just bought a Z8. Absolutely amazing tutorial. Thanks very much for doing this.

[@patrickmolloy6994]

even though I'll never have the Z9, your talk through your settings is a terrific refresher whether you have the settings on your camera or not. Brilliant. Thank you!

[@wheatonimages]

Hi Hudson...thanks for this video. I had my Z9 set-up about 95% the way you did already except for a couple of the custom buttons. One huge feature I've found is being able to program a function button for recall shooting functions. For my Custom Bank A (I call it Normal) I set-up Fn Button 3 for recall shooting function where it's set to capture a quick action shot. It's set for S mode, 1/1600, Lowest aperture, AFC, Wide Area Large Auto focus, animal subject, ISO Auto, 20 FPS. For my Custom Bank B (Action) I set Fn button 3 for for recall shooting function for a still subject. It's set for A mode, F8, ISO auto, single shot, AFC, 3-d tracking auto focus and auto subject detect. Works great to change modes quickly with a single button press. The other day I was at the beach using my 24-70 taking shots of the blizzard aftermath. While there, 2 large swans flew overhead. Even though I was in my Normal shooing mode, I hit Fn3 and got some very nice action photos of the swans in flight. They were pretty close. Also, one other setting I've set is the video record button to go to the first listing in My Menu. I've set that to Subject Detection. I would think you would be able to select subject with a function button, but this is a pretty good workaround and easy to access. Thanks again for the video...this Z9 is great!!!

[@BadazzShovelhead]

Wow man what a legend! Huge effort on your part. I have been a tech exec for a long time and this is what I had wanted the internet to be about super smart people sharing good information. Thank you so much for doing this- Definitely my newest subscribe channel

[@Henrihalle]

massive appreciation my dude

[@savagefrieze4675]

Thanks Henry this very educational.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Thanks for the note. First name is Hudson, but no big deal.

[@savagefrieze4675]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto sorry, I knew that! Just recovering from Covid so brain not fully functioning, but good time to really get to know camera!

[@renaes5262]

Sir Henry!!. Been following you for a while along with others. Overtime, I've found that when I need equipment information and a complete full understanding of my tools. I go straight to you. Hudson, your set up series on Banks and custom settings in the Z9 sealed the deal for me. After watching your reviews and many others I ordered the Z9 directly from Nikon USA on 3/23.. I received my camera on 4/25. I Shoot wild life and knew exactly where to start.... with my new Z9. You have saved me months of trial and error, and perhaps a bit of frustration. Finally, a quick validation. I've been shooting since 1976. Always Nikon, wasn't sure about mirrorless, about EVF mostly. This Z9 is magnificent! Feels like home in my hand and focus and tracking using your action settings is..... Wow I'm at a loss for adjectives!!!

[@SShinesc]

I just used your video to set up my Z8, it’s has so many new features over my Z7ii. Thank you so much!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I'm working on the Z8 version now... :-)

[@SShinesc]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto oh awesome, I can’t wait!

[@BirdPhish]

Just took delivery of my Z9 yesterday and of course I came here to learn how to set it up! Thanks for the posts...great reference material.

[@Henrihalle]

Happy that they added exposure delay back in

[@Malk767]

Thank you for the informative video

[@Watch.doc3]

Fantastic video! Well organized and very very helpful. Thanks for doing this.

[@DBogey]

Thanks, Henry!! My Z9 just arrived. Long-time Nikon shooter and I gotta say you really helped in getting this beast set up. There's a ton of customization that can be done, which means I've gotta read and reread the manual. We're heading to Antarctica for a month and this camera (along with my past knowledge) is going to preserve some lifelong memories.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

You bet Daniel! Have a blast on that trip. I'm gonna do a small boat South Georgia trip in the not too distant future. First name is Hudson, but no big deal at all. :-)

[@DBogey]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto Sorry bout that. Keep those great videos coming and I look forward to your trip photos. If you're ever in the Pittsburgh area don't hesitate to contact me.

[@matthiasbaumuller4738]

Thank you very much, helped a lot, brilliant job.

[@Mr09260]

This is AWESOME >> So Detailed and yet easy to follow even for a Fossil like me

[@basudebch]

Very good analysis. I like it.

[@dansoto3791]

Great info! So much easier than the manual and things explained that I didn't pick up from the manual. Thank you.

[@NikCan66]

Excellent yet again and thoroughly enjoyed

[@henkheus]

Thanks for doing this. I copied most of your settings and will start shooting with it and take it from there.

[@MotoPhotoAdventures]

Killer video, Hudson! Thanks for all the great explanations.

[@foothills1008]

SOLID VIDEO! Super helpful, using Nikon for first time in a long time, normally sony shooter so this was super helpful :)

[@kshailen]

More than Excellent. That sums it up 👍

[@Govinkuna]

Just finished with this setup guide for my z9, thanks again for your great work

[@dorianaldyn]

Thank you so much for doing these setup videos!! I just upgraded to a Z9 & it was a huge upgrade for me, so I've got lots to learn. This is so helpful.

[@agrnbrg]

Thanks so much. Just got my Z9 and you are very helpful.

[@MikeJamesMedia]

Excellent, Hudson. Don't have my Z9 yet, but have downloaded and read the gigantic manual. Seeing it "in action" helps me absorb the information faster. Thank you!

[@steviejsmall]

Hudson, appreciate the guides! Patiently waiting for my Z9, hoping I’ll see it by end of March. I’ll probably be watching each of these 4 vids many times until it arrives so appreciate the time and energy spent to create these!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Thanks so much for that. There's a lot of ground to cover for this machine.

[@steviejsmall]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto Having watched all 4, I’d say you did a bang up job covering a lot of the ways to best customize it for the types of settings you laid out. Will be helpful to use these as a base and tweak to my taste once I’m able to get hands on but this is IMMENSELY helpful. Great work Hudson and the fact you’ve put this out without charge whereas many of your peers offer their setups guides behind a paywall is impressive. I would pay for your guidance gladly to be clear as I believe in supporting the efforts you and others put into these but appreciative that you offered it freely. Time to hit up your ATS store and get the Kase 82mm kit in the next couple of weeks! Also, Kirk has their Z 9 L-Bracket up for preorder if you didn’t already know. Reached out to Jeff today and he put it up pretty soon after, such great customer service. Now to see if the L-Bracket or Z 9 comes first, ha!

[@razzy1001]

Same! How far ago did you make the order?

[@bryceacd]

I can’t tell you how incredibly helpful this setup series has been. I’ve been shooting Nikon forever… still adore my D850. I shoot wildlife, landscapes and Milky Way with a balanced passion for all. You have made setting up my new Z9 seamless and fully comprehensible. Thank you so very much Hudson. As a side note…I met you years ago on Bandon beach. We were both photographing some seals and pups. You were incredibly friendly and we had a lovely conversation. You made a great first impression! 😊

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I remember that morning and the two of you out there. It was a lovely morning. So great to hear from you. I think you'll love the Z9! It's a fabulous machine.

[@bryceacd]

I am adoring the Z9!!

[@jaimeduncan6167]

How super complete, thanks a lot for sharing and taking the time.

[@byrona.martinproductionsin5578]

H, fantastic video, thank you! I'll go through videos 2-4 now and continue the set ups!

[@KristofMachiels]

You did a great job and it is very helpful. Thank you so much.

[@neilobrien7096]

Thanks so much Hudson! Your channel is full of incredible info. Really appreciate you sharing your knowledge and wisdom.

[@irenedp4947]

Thanks Hudson, it has really been helpful. I have another Nikon but it’s an older DSLR and so much has changed… I have done my own variations based on the kind of work I do, but your settings generally make sense.it’s an excellent guide!

[@MarshallFosterPhotography]

Thanks so much Hudson. I really enjoy your videos and appreciate all the work and effort you put into making them.

[@hansbenard237]

brilliant explanation! Well done and many Thanks.

[@olddogsnewkicks000]

Used your video to learn eye detection focus. Thanks for modeling.

[@KnightsandWeekends]

Nice to see that most of my choices were also yours (bias confirmation is such a comforting thing!). I too spent a lot of time looking for the exposure delay settings, and ranted a bit in a user group. I guess I'll wind up getting a 10-pin button, but under duress. Great video, sir. I'm sharing this one around.

[@chocloditelensman]

Finally someone that makes camera setup instructions clear and precise. Thank you. Just purchased a z9 and love it. I bought the lens adapter but I need to exchange it as its a lot tighter (too tight) with my legacy lenses - it might be made with slightly different tolerances than my prior Nikon lens adapter for my z6.

[@MIshaHaijtema]

This video is EPIC! Thankyou so much and also for the powerbank tip. Ive heard alot of powerbanks are not supporting the z 9 yet

[@jeremygreen8775]

Thank you for taking me through a very complicated process and explaining it clearly. It helped me to set up my Z9 & Z8 to be similar in most ways for the type of work that I do with these fantastic cameras. Like you, I was surprised to find that the Z9 wins out over the Z8 for me. Thanks again.

[@scovarrubias24]

Thanks Henry for an awesome setup video. My Z9 was affected by the TSA for the lens release button. When I received my camera back, I discovered that all of my setting were reset. Not a big deal, more of a pain. This video guided back to where I want to be and now my settings are saved.

[@stebobrown2893]

Hudson, thank you for taking the time to go into detail of the bank setup. I just got my Z9 and the banks are powerful settings. I wish Nikon would keep the original settings but your explanation of saving and loading from the memory card is useful. The problem I had is I like to format my card after each time I empty them. What I ended up doing is keeping a spare card with the "master settings" and I also save they on my working cards. Before I take the card out to download and reformat, I load the settings from the card. After I format the card I save it again. This uses your method of saving and lets me format after each download. Thanks for a difficult process much easier!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I keep Save and Load settings next to format in "My Menu" Load settings, format, save settings, every time.... :-)

[@BudBetz]

Hudson-you are a master! Z9 is a complicated beast. Your four setup videos make it seem so easy. Coming from a Z6, it’s so familiar yet so different. Your clarity on the bank’s set up brought a lot of understanding for me on the Z9. I have taken your information and applied it to my camera and will then adjust to my settings as I grow with this camera. Only had it a few days. Lots to learn. Thanks for your dedication and hard work! You rock!!!

[@peterleix]

It's probably the most helpful video I've watched in a long time. This camera is my first Nikon, I'm a professional cinematographer, and I hate red cameras and loved that Nikon took them on, and won so this camera can keep it's raw video. You seem like a guy that would like this pointed out if not then sorry. You should be using only raw or prores video and always shoot in N-log and put view assist as a custom button in all video banks so you can toggle between the log profile you're recording and the rec 709 estimations of what it looks like after grading the tonal curve in resolve. I also am a certified resolve colorist and the main reason more people like myself have never tried Nikon while shooting literally every other brand of camera is that they were not taking video and color science seriously. I was still a photographer before I transitioned to video I thought I knew settings but you really have expert-level knowledge of the still setting and options on Nikon cameras so I thought I mention the video parts I know. When I went from stills to video I resisted shooting in log because most NLE's make very hard or time-consuming to grade log footage to something they like. With resolve you don't even need a lut or apply contrast to get the footage to look good, you just change a few settings and you never see the washed-out image. It's like shooting stills raw, you see a decent-looking image right away but all that information in highlights and shadows is retained for you to use should you need it. I have not graded n-log yet but shot some 709/default stuff today and it looks really bad compared to what I'm sure you grade the n-log into and even if you don't really care about video right now it may be useful to know in the future. This being my first nikon I was surprised to see how buried the color space/gamma settings for the video were and that you could record raw video in anything but log is confusing. You shoot raw video to retain all that info and rec 709 is a tiny color space. Anyway I digress, thanks for the video you did a great job on it

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I have been really happy with 10-bit 4k oversampled from the Z9. I do shoot N-log when I have high contrast in landscape and wildlife scenarios I want to capture. I mostly shoot video for this channel and I just use my Z6ii in 8-bit 4k. Which is plenty for that purpose really. I'm very much an Adobe Permiere guy. I know Resolve makes sense. If I could just cram a few more hours in thed ay, I'd experiment more. I do love the video side and what Nikon's doing. I'll try out your settings. ;-) Thanks man. Much appreciated.

[@TerekkiTerekki]

A big thank you for this

[@HillCountryDemo]

Hudson, first let me say that you photography videos are outstanding. The reason I came to your channel was because I am new to the Nikon family and recently purchased a Z9. I have watched all 4 of your setup videos and others related to the newer firmware updates. These videos are very well done and extremely informative. Today I spent time on the Nikon web page and was disappointed that I was unable to find software which would allow me to "build out the 4 banks" on my computer and then upload these profiles via USB or memory card to the Z9. I don't understand why Nikon has not made such a piece of software available. It seems to me that it would be simpler and easier to make all of the changes to each individual bank on my PC instead of having to work off the touch screen on the back of the camera. Further I could save different profiles on my PC or NAS and not have to worry about whether or not I have a profile of my bank setup stored on a memory card. A stand alone software app on a PC or MAC could show more Bank options at a given time while you are "programming" the camera. A computer program could also allow you to stack all four banks side by side and compare your setup of each bank. You might also imagine comparing Bank A from a setup today from one that the user built 6 months ago and compare changes. I am amateur radio operator and all modern amateur radios can be completely programmed by a USB cable. This is an immense time saver when programming in repeater frequencies, squelch tones and other parameters necessary. Just a few thoughts. Maybe you could talk about this in an upcoming video. See you in Yellowstone in Sept 2023, I have paid my deposit. Rich

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

You can back up the settings to your NAS, by copying the non dcim files on your card with saved settings to it. The rest would be awesome, but no camera company yet comes close. Great dream list though! See you next year! Can't wait!

[@ambrosechiu2338]

thank you so much Hudson, just follow this video to setup my Z8.

[@auskhilood]

Thank you for all this. It's very helpful.

[@herbmitchell9150]

My 9 arrives Tuesday! This helps build the excitement. You have provided me with a plan of first action. Thank you for the continuing ed. Great stuff:

[@adityarrao]

I’m super impressed by the details and the know how. I appreciate you spending the time to make this very useful video

[@equinephotographer9881]

[f4] Control Lock :- Great feature when shooting a repetitive event (eg: Horse show jumping) using Manual Mode. Avoids the error of changing Shutter and/or f/stop... but allowing the ISO to auto correct as the only variable. Great feature on the Oly M1X (Lock and C-Lock) on and external switch. Great presentation, with rationale for settings. THANK YOU

[@Rubi747HVY]

Excellent video

[@vickymitchell5918]

Hey Hudson, thank you so much for this tutorial! I just got my Z9 today and it helps to go over these settings! Now to charge the battery for six hours!!!!

[@gaperklake]

Thanks so much for this. I'm looking forward to the next installments. Now all I need is a Z9.

[@berniestang2616]

Yayyy … I can’t wait to watch this !!! Thank you so much !!

[@MeniscusBiskits]

Thank you! Well thought out and presented.

[@rogercoaten7526]

Should read Z9 of course!

[@speedbumpmedia9584]

Appreciate the vid. The Z9 is a beast and your vid helped me tweak some settings I hadn’t gotten to. The manual is only 900+ pages and even then it isn’t always great at clarifying the info.

[@NikonJax]

Picking the 9 up tomorrow! Thanks for such a great video. Will be going through it again with the camera in hand :)

[@dac9404]

A brilliant set of videos. When I started working on the i menu I snapped a picture of what was already there with my phone so I don’t put the same item in twice. Then once I have all the choices in the i menu I snap a new phone picture so I can place the items in the grid spacing where I want them. It is quicker than writing everything down.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Great idea especially starting out. Having used just about every Z nikon camera now, I'm at a point where I just know what I want there and where. :)

[@kentervin9098]

Hey Henry, thank you so much for your time and wisdom. This helped to get some more info on setting uip my Z 9 to meet my needs. The action trick is very helpful and much apprecited. Again, thanks!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

You bet Kent. First name is Hudson, but everyone does that. :-)

[@mikeleski2757]

Very nice instructional video thanks!

[@jefrichards9137]

This is the video that should've come with the camera.

[@JohnCBauer-mj8ur]

Thank you for this video! My initial set up is now complete and I will start shooting and modify if and when needed. Far more efficient when compared to going through the manual - which I have now downloaded.

[@segercliffhanger]

Great help. Thanks much!

[@clarebblackmon]

Thanks a million for doing this video! Your explanations are super helpful!! Just got my Z9 and getting used to it from a D750. Already loving it!

[@SirIronJim]

Great Video Hudson, I'm still waiting for my Z9 to be shipped (latest rumors say that the next batch for the USA, Non NPS members is March 5th), this video provides a lot of user friendly information in advance for those who are currently waiting for their Camera.

[@thodorissiorikis8791]

Perfect-Τέλειο!!!!!

[@kingjames1970]

I can’t thank you enough for this! Brilliant and so much easier to follow than the 900+ page guide. 😀

[@josuetaveras9779]

Thank you!!

[@charlybread]

thank you in advance for your answer

[@lisak6472]

I have been making my way through the videos. Appreciate your concise albeit thorough videos. Will be buying products through your site/links, And now looking into your courses and workshops. Hope to be on one soon!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Thanks for that Lisa! Makes my day. ;-) Can't wait to meet up.