Best Nikon D5300 Tips and Tricks to Get the Most Out of Your Camera

For anyone who is looking for a good mid-range camera, the Nikon D5300 makes up for an excellent offering. When Nikon announced the successor of the much-loved Nikon D5200, not everyone was a fan but to be honest, I really like this camera and after spending some time shooting on it, I realized just how good it was, to begin with.

However, many users who are just getting their hands on this camera often have difficulties using it because they are not sure how it needs to be done. Thankfully, we are here to help you with this guide in which we will explore the best Nikon D5300 tips and tricks, Now, there is nothing about this that you already do not know but if you are just looking to take good photos and enjoy your time with this camera, this guide is for you.

Nikon D5300 Tips and Tricks 

To be honest, I am not going to share anything with you that you do not already know but the tips and tricks can help make everyone’s experience a lot easier and simpler, too. The point here is to waste no time and get down to business because we want everyone to be able to get the best experience out of their camera.

1. Always Shoot in RAW

This is an unsaid rule that every photographer has to live by and honestly, after spending some time shooting in RAW, I have realized that it actually is one of the best formats out there. The pictures you get are always going to be amazing depending on your settings and you will not really run into any issues either. The reason for shooting in RAW is simple, you get to have all the uncompressed data found in the image and you can later import it into Lightroom and edit away. It is simple, effective, and works like a charm.

2. Understanding the Exposure Triangle

Another thing that I am going to suggest to every photographer with a Nikon D5300 or whichever camera they have, it is always important to understand the exposure triangle as it makes the whole photography experience all the better and easier, too. 

The exposure triangle refers to the shutter speed, ISO, and aperture and all of these settings combined to give you the exposure of the picture.

I would suggest that you keep the aperture as wide as possible, with the shutter speed as fast as possible and ISO as low as possible. However, in varying degrees, you can always go ahead and change these settings, but learning this is more important.

3. Manual Mode is Your Friend

I know this is going to sound odd to some because a lot of people are using automatic mode but if you truly want your images to look amazing, I would always suggest using manual mode as that will give you the best results without much of a hassle.

Now getting pictures in manual mode might become a hassle since there is a learning curve involved but the more patient you are, the better the results are likely to get and it is very important to get things done in the right way.

Take your time using and exploring manual mode as much as you want and once you are comfortable with it, you can go ahead and master your photography, too. I do understand that it is not for everyone but it will only make you a better photographer.

Additionally, I would also suggest that you go ahead and test out the mode dial. I know, many of us set it on manual and forget about it but mode dial helps you get better in a lot of ways, especially when you are using modes such as aperture priority.

4. Invest in a Good Lens 

The last suggestion that I am going to give to you is that you should always invest in a good lens and the reason why I am saying invest in a good lens instead of telling you to buy it is simple; whatever money you will be investing in a lens will end up coming back to you in one way or another and at the end of the day, you will be in safe hands, to say the least.

You can start with a prime lens if you want something that is cheap and reliable. Or you can get a standard zoom lens with a wide aperture. The point is that any good best lens for Nikon d5300 will be a lot better than a couple of bad or average lenses.

Following these would result in you getting access to some of the best settings for Nikon D5300. The best part is that you can recreate these in some other cameras, too. They will work just fine without a hitch that might come in the way.

Furthermore, you can easily take great pictures moving forward. You can check my roundup of the best lenses to get an idea.

Best Nikon D5300 for Outdoor Photography Tips

We are all aware of the fact that outdoor photography is a bit different than indoor photography. What’s even more interesting and to some extent, grueling, is that outdoor photography changes a lot based on the scenarios, and sometimes, you get excellent results, and other times, you do not get the same results that you were expecting, in the first place.

However, that does not mean that there are some universal laws of outdoor photography that we will not be mentioning. There are some settings that you can use just to ensure that your outdoor photography experience goes amazingly and without a hitch. So, for now, we are going to take a look at those.

• Keeping the ISO Low: The first goal is to make sure that you are keeping the ISO as low as possible. Considering how you already are outdoors, you will have access to a lot of light and that is going to help you a lot in achieving the type of pictures you want to achieve. This is something that always works fine and wonders, as well.
• High Shutter Speed: Again, when you are outside, you do not need a lot of time for the light to hit the sensor, and therefore, using a higher shutter speed is perfectly safe and possible, too. You can go as high as 1/500th of a second or even higher and you are good to go.
• Closed Aperture: Now, this might be a bit polarizing when you are talking about outdoor photography but to be honest, you would be a lot better with a closed aperture than you would be if you let the aperture be wide open. Why is that? Well, a closed aperture is going to help you get tack-sharp images without any issues, and considering how you already have a lot of light, stopping the aperture is not going to be an issue. You can go for f/2.8 and even f/5.6 based on how the light is. 
• Reflectors: Now, this is not a camera setting, but having reflectors is always better because there will be a lot of light outside, and having some of the light bounce off the reflectors is always a nice start as it will eliminate any issues that you might have. Using the reflectors is always a better decision thanks to the results you get.
• Always Shoot in RAW: This one is undoubtedly one of the most important settings for your Nikon D5300 and to be honest, you cannot go wrong with it. If you really want good results, you should always keep in mind that shooting in RAW is the way to go. Sure, you will also have to learn how to edit RAW pictures but after the learning curve, you will have another skill that you can use, and that too, without any complications.

If you want, you can always go ahead and set the camera to aperture priority and then test to work with the white balance on your own. The point here is that white balance along with aperture priority and various other options are only going to help you get the most out of your photography and DSLR camera, for that matter.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion 

Having a new camera that can deliver top of the line performance is something that can be confusing for a lot of people, to be honest. However, photography is something that is based on trial and error and the more you know, the better you will get at it.

If you have been looking for ways to ensure that you are getting the most out of your Nikon D5300, then this whole guide is just for you as it will help you turn things in your favour and have a great experience photographing your way through life.