Menu Please

During photo workshops and tours I often hear this comment from a client:  “My camera doesn’t have that feature.”  When I take their camera and work through the menu choices, nine times out of ten the statement turns out to be not true.  If you want to get the most from your camera, I strongly suggest that you sit down and carefully go through each and every menu offering, including all sub-menus, and tailor the camera to your exact preferences.  If a menu item is not clear, look it up in the camera manual.  You do carry that with you, right?  I have manuals for my current Nikons with me at all times, as I have PDF copies (free to download from Nikon’s web site) on both my smartphone and my Kindle.  Since I’ve used Nikons my entire professional career (and that’s more than 40 years now!), I can usually solve problems without looking for answers, but as the cameras have become more sophisticated the manuals are now an absolute necessity.  Of course, sometimes camera manuals are not so easy to understand.  Then it’s Google to the rescue.  Type in your camera problem, and most likely you’ll find a solution.