The D60's menu system is organized along five lines: playback,
shooting, customization, setup and in-camera editing, or retouching.
From the playback menu you can delete
one or a number of images, chose a folder from which snaps will be played
back, toggle automatic rotation of displayed pictures, define slideshow
parameters, choose print settings and create stop-motion movies. The stop-motion
movie option allows you to string together stills into a video. A series
of shots captured in continuous shooting mode, for instance, might make
a good stop-action movie.
The shooting menu allows you to modify what a shot will look like when
you take it. Here are the options available from the shooting menu.
· Optimize image. Choices include "normal," softer, vivid,
more vivid, portrait, black-and-white and a setting that can be customized.
· Image quality. Choices include RAW or JPEG file format.
· Image size.
· White Balance.
· ISO sensitivity.
· Noise reduction.
· Active D-lighting.
Some 19 items are available from the custom
settings menu. They let you perform such tasks as:
· Resetting the camera
to its factory settings.
· Toggling the camera's beep.
· Choosing a focus mode.
· Choosing an autofocus area.
· Choosing a method of sequential shooting--one shot, multiple
shot or self-timer.
· Choosing a light metering method.
· Firing shutter without a memory card.
· Toggling image preview.
· Setting flash compensation.
· Enabling the autofocus assist light.
· Customizing the unit's automatic light sensitivity settings.
· Defining the Function button.
· Defining function of AE-L/AF-L button.
· Toggling auto exposure locking.
· Choosing between built-in or external flash.
· Configuring the camera's auto off timers.
· Configuring the DSC's self-timer.
· Synchronizing the shutter with an external remote.
· Imprinting images with a date.
Toggling rangefinder mode.
The settings menu permits you to define how
items will be displayed on the camera's LCD and other system management
functions. Here's what's available from the settings menu.
· CSM/ setup menu. Defines whether
to display all menu items, short menus or just frequently used items.
· Format memory card.
· Info display format--classic, graphic or wallpaper.
· Auto shooting information.
· Shooting info auto off. Toggles automatic turn-off of monitor when
eye is raised to viewfinder.
· World Time.
· LCD brightness.
· Video mode--NTSC or PAL.
· Language.
· Image comment. Lets you add text comments to images.
· Folders. Defines folders used by the system.
· File number sequence. Defines how files will be numbered.
· Clean image sensor. Lets you manually clean sensor or choose a
time for doing it.
· Mirror lock-up. Raises mirror so low-pass filter can be cleaned.
· Firmware version.
· Dust off ref. photo. Records location of dust on sensor. Information
can be used later by Nikon software to automatically remove evidence of
dust on images.
· Auto image rotation.
If you want to edit your images in the
camera, you can do so through the retouch menu. However, while the D60's
LCD is perfectly fine for displaying photos, it's less than an optimal size
for editing them. Here's what's available from the retouch menu.
· Quick retouch.
· D-Lighting. Allows you to improve the dynamic range of your images
after you've shot them.
· Red-eye correction.
· Trim. Lets you crop a photo.
· Monochrome. Permits you to turn in a color photo into a black-and-white,
sepia or cyanotype image.
· Filter effects. Lets you emulate the effects of filters, such as
a skylight filter, a red intensifier, a cross-screen filter, and so forth.
· Small picture. Reduces the size of an image in the camera.
Rather than package a limp software package
with its DSLR, as some camera makers are wont to do, Nikon includes a copy
of its professional grade photo editing program, Capture NX2, with the D60.
That's the good news. The bad news is that the copy of the program in the
box is only a 60-day trial version of the software. If you want to use it
permanently, you'll have to pony up $179.95.
The Windows version of Capture NX2 is
a robust editing program designed to give a photo editor precise control
over changes made in an image through "control points."
A control point can be placed anywhere on the screen and its tree of
slider controls used to alter characteristics such as contract, brightness,
hue, etc. The advantage of control points is they can make very localized
changes in an image without changing the entire image.
In addition to its editing abilities,
Capture NX2 can be used to organize photos.
The Macintosh version of Capture NX2 looks
very similar to its PC cousin. However, the floating palette arrangement
on the Mac can be initially disconcerting as well as annoying.
In addition to the Capture NX2 software, Nikon includes programs for
transferring and viewing images on a computer. Both the Windows and OS
X versions of the applications have similiar interfaces.
View NX lets you browse through image
files on your computer. It also alows you to organize images by quick
labeling them with numbers from one to nine and by rating them from one
to five stars. No tools are included with the program for editing images,
but Capture NX, which does contain editing tools, can be launched from
inside the application. Other features of View NX is the ability to play
back voice memos attached to photos and convert images between formats--NEF
to TIFF or JPEG, for example.
Ordinarily, I don't find transfer programs
very useful. I'd just as soon go directly from an SD card to my hard drive
via a card reader. However, there are some benefits to using Nikon Transfer.
For example, it allows you to label and rate photos during the transfer
process, as well as add creator and title information to incoming images.
What's more, it will permit you to create a second target folder on your
computer or elsewhere and store copies in it of images, essentially automating
the backup process during transfer.
Interface & Software
