Nikon Z8 Autofocus Setup for Wildlife: My Field Settings

How to Setup the Nikon Z8 for Wildlife Photography

In this video, Shem Compion shares five essential ways to customise the Nikon Z8 for wildlife photography, drawing on years of field experience across Africa. Learn how to set up practical camera functions that help you react quickly to fast wildlife moments, from using pre-capture for birds in flight to switching between FX and DX modes for tighter compositions. Shem also explains how to streamline autofocus controls, manage memory cards efficiently in the field, and build a camera setup that becomes second nature when photographing wildlife, travel, and landscapes.

What Lens Is Best for Safari?

In this Ultimate Safari Lens Guide, Ill reveal the 3 lenses I never go on safari without and why each one plays a vital role in capturing unforgettable wildlife images. Whether youre photographing predators on the prowl or insects in macro detail, these lenses are the foundation of my photographic approach.

How to Compose for Wildlife Filmmaking

In this video, Shem Compion, shares essential composition techniques for wildlife filmmaking. Drawing on more than 25 years of filming across Africa, Shem explains how to move beyond still photography and begin telling powerful visual stories through motion, sound, and thoughtful composition.

5 Critical Setups and Techniques for Wildlife Photography

In this video, Shem Compion shares five essential wildlife photography techniques developed through extensive time in the field. Drawing on more than 70 days of photography this year alone, Shem explains the key setups and decisions that consistently lead to sharp, compelling wildlife images.

How to Photograph Leopards

n this video, Shem Compion shares practical field techniques for photographing leopards, Africa’s most elusive and captivating big cats. Filmed in the Timbavati, one of the continent’s premier leopard destinations, Shem explains how to approach leopard photography with patience, awareness, and thoughtful composition.

ISO and Noise: A Practical Guide Using Lightroom and DXO

In this video, Darren Donovan explores ISO and noise in wildlife photography, explaining what ISO really means and how it affects image quality when light is limited. Learn why noise appears in low-light situations, how to make confident ISO decisions in real wildlife scenarios, and why modern cameras allow photographers to work at higher ISO settings than ever before.

Mastering Shutter Speed for Wildlife Photography

In this video, Darren Donovan explores how shutter speed shapes wildlife photography, explaining how the right settings can help you freeze action or create powerful motion in your images. Learn how a camera shutter works, what affects sharpness in the field, and practical rules for choosing the right shutter speed for mammals, birds, and fast-moving wildlife.

The impact of low-angle photography on wildlife images

In this video, Aubrey Tseleng explores low-angle photography, showing how this perspective can elevate your wildlife photography. Learn about the importance of perspective and how it affects depth of field and engagement, as well as valuable tips to optimise your hide photography.

Nikon firmware update

Feeling intimidated by the idea of updating your Nikon camera's firmware? Fear not! In this Tutorial, Darren Donovan explains everything you need to know about firmware updates. He covers what they are, why they're essential for optimizing your camera's performance, and walks you through the update process step by step.

Low Key Photography

Uncover the art of low-key photography with Darren Donovan in this tutorial. Whether you're a novice or a photography enthusiast seeking to enhance your skills, this tutorial offers a brief and user-friendly introduction to the nuances of low-key photography.

Silver Efex Pro creating beautiful black and white images

In this Atelier, Darren Donovan will walk you through his process of editing in black and white using Lightroom and the plugin tool Silver Efex Pro creating beautiful black and white images.

Noise and Noise Reduction

In this tutorial, Darren not only uncovers the secrets behind identifying noise but also guides you through the process of minimizing its presence using the powerful tools available in Lightroom. Learn step-by-step techniques to rescue grainy images, bringing out their true potential and restoring clarity.

High Key Photography

Discover the secrets to creating stunning high key photographs with Photographer Darren Donovan in this C4 Atelier tutorial. Whether you're a beginner or an enthusiast looking to refine your skills, this tutorial provides a quick and accessible introduction to the world of high key photography.

The basic panel in the Develop mode of Lightroom

The basic panel of the develop mode is the foundation for all editing done in Lightroom. For this tutorial Janet Kleyn explains and demonstrates step by step each of the sliders in this panel.

A Guide to Using Histograms in Photography and Editing

Histograms are a powerful tool in photography and editing, allowing you to quickly evaluate the exposure and tonal distribution of your images. By understanding how histograms work and how to read them, you can make informed decisions about adjusting your camera settings or editing your images to achieve the desired look and feel. In this tutorial Darren Donovan will be discussing histograms and how they can be used in photography and editing.

Image Stabilisation

This tutorial is about image stabilisation on lenses. Janet Kleyn explains how image stabilisation works, the different modes and when to use them when shooting wildlife.

Lightroom masking tool

In this tutorial Janet Kleyn demonstrates using the new Lightroom masking tool in post processing.

Camera metering modes and understanding exposure.

Janet Kleyn explains the different metering modes on DSLR cameras in detail and when to best use each of them. Janet also explains her preferred metering mode and how she uses it to acquire the ideal exposure for each situation.

Using the Histogram in-camera when shooting wildlife

In this tutorial Janet Kleyn explains camera exposure and how properly expose an image using the in-camera histogram.

Auto focus modes and Autofocus areas with Janet Kleyn

In this tutorial Janet Kleyn explains the different autofocus modes and autofocus areas and how best to use them in wildlife photography.

Black and White conversion using silver efex Pro

: Darren Donovan discusses and demonstrates the process of doing black and white conversions using Silver Efex Pro.

Sharpening and Noise Reduction

Janet Kleyn demonstrates two different methods that she uses in her workflow for applying sharpening and noise reduction to images using lightroom

Lightroom Library Module - Organise and Manage your Photos

In this tutorial, Janet Kleyn, explains the library module of Lightroom and how to keep your photos organised and easy to find. She covers key-wording, rating and using filters to find images. Janet also shares a few handy tips and hints at staying on top of those large databases of photos and her workflow when managing photos.

Basic Tone Sliders and Tonal Curve

In this tutorial Janet Kleyn discusses the difference between the basic tone sliders and the tonal curve in the develop mode of Lightroom. She explains how she uses the basic sliders in conjunction with the tonal curve to fine tune the tones and contrast in her images.

Elephant Sunset

This tutorial shows how you render a low contrast scene into a very beautiful one.
You will learn good brush tool technique.
How to see and recognise a silhouette image that will work well as a beautiful sunset image.

Leopard Brush Tool

This is a tutorial about how to edit a black and white image while also using the brush tool to great effect in order to make your subject really stand out and have the impact it should have.

Graduated Filter Tool

I use an array of images to explain the power and use of the Graduated filter tool.
It is not only used to darken skies, but can be used to affect images in a multiplicity of ways, as you will see in this tutorial.

Mating Lions - Action photography editing technique

This tutorial deals with how to position yourself in order to capture the best action in a photo. From there it focusses on cropping to maximise a high intensity photo and then sharpening techniques in order to get the most from this scene

Zebra Sky - Black and white fine art editing technique

Learn techniques to recognise a low contrast scene and how this can transform into a highly effective black and white image. It will aid you to keep an eye out for what scenes will work- allowing you to master creating great images in the field.