Nikon Z9 DX Crop Mode for Bird Photography

Image taken in FX mode with the Nikon Z9 and 100-400mm
Image taken in FX mode with the Nikon Z9 and 100-400mm

Nikon Full frame DSLRs (FX) have always had a DX crop mode to work with DX lenses. They have also had the ability to select DX crop mode so that you could in effect have a built in 1.5x teleconverter, achieving a narrower angle of view at the expense of lower resolution. This was useful when working beyond the reach of a telephoto lens when there was a lot of surrounding “dead space” being recorded on wasted pixels.

For example with a D850 if the subject was not frame filling you could select DX crop mode and just record the central approximately 20MP and keep file size down. In effect you had a D500, albeit with a slightly slower frame rate and bigger heavier body, built into your D850. The downside was that the viewfinder had a greyed out edge and you were composing in a small central area with the subject remaining rather small in the viewfinder. Despite this it was something I used and had a function button set up to easily change between crop modes.

Same bird photographed with Nikon Z9 and 100-400mm lens used in DX crop mode
Same bird photographed with Nikon Z9 and 100-400mm lens used in DX crop mode

DX crop mode with the Nikon Z9 is a much nicer thing. The image enlarges and you are still using the entire viewfinder. I have found this very useful when working at longer ranges. The one drawback is that it is so seamless that I sometimes forget that I am in DX crop mode when the subject comes closer to me and becomes more than frame filling. There is a selectable reminder in the viewfinder but I tend not to see it flashing in the corner it when concentrating on the behaviour of the subject.

Cropped, processed image from the FX image of the White-faced Heron
Cropped, processed image from the FX image of the White-faced Heron

In DX crop mode the Nikon Z9 records an image just under 20 MP but this has more than enough resolution for good sized print and far more than needed for any web use.

Cropped, processed image from the DX image of the White-faced Heron
Cropped, processed image from the DX image of the White-faced Heron

The benefits of DX crop mode are smaller file sizes which are quicker to download and process and more images can be stored on a memory card. I have limited the crop modes on My Z9 to FX and DX only (1:1 and 16:9 are other available options) and programmed the Fn2 button to select and scroll between the 2 modes. This is similar to how I have my DSLR set up but find I use it far more on the Z9 because the use of the full viewfinder in DX crop mode is just so much nicer than the tunnel vision of the DSLR viewfinder in DX mode.

Photos with Nikon Z9 and Nikkor Z 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 VR S

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This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. David Gove

    14 Mar 2022

    Thank you , very informative . I have had my Z9 just one week now going through the 900 pages manual . I just assumed the dx mode would be the same as my d850 . The greyed out area does have some advantages on a DSLR in dx mode in that you can track the bird easier or relocate it even if out of frame if you lose it in flight , i have just had a company print the z9 manual into 3 A5 300 page ring bound booklets for easier reference and use in the field or for reference if on a trip or Holiday very useful

    1. tony

      19 Mar 2022

      It is a pity cameras don’t come with printed manuals any more. I keep the pdf on my iPad but printed are nicer to read.

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