rook2c4 Loc: Philadelphia, PA USA

If you are always gentle with it, never use force mounting and dismounting, and most importantly, stop dropping your camera with lens attached, it should be fine and last many, many years.

smussler Loc: Land O Lakes, FL - Formerly Miller Place, NY

Firmware update is for your camera, not the lens. Available from Nikon USA site. They have clear directions.

Silverrails

Thanks, encouraged, just ordered my Nikon 10-20mm 4.5-5.6 AF-P lens from Adorama, look forward to seeing what it can do, got some good comments here on this lens.

Silverrails

Took the Leap, ordered mine from Adorama look forward to seeing what it can do with my Nikon D3300 camera.

Silverrails

Thanks

mr spock Loc: Fairfield CT

Thanks to all for their comments. I just ordered one from Adorama for $214.00 (refurbished)

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

Mine cost bit more than that. I have this one, Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM with hood caps and case. Here is a slightly cropped sample from it... To be honest though. Most times I have found the Tamron 17-50 F2.8 to be more versatile...

St. Peter's Episcopal Church by Scott, on Flickr

Argus

Per Nikon the lens will work with cameras that are newer that 2012 builds.
This includes D3300 and up, D5200 and up, and D7100 and up.

Just remember to go to your camera model's support page at Nikon and download and install the newest firmware for your camera. I heard that a number of other models (DX and FX) have been added to AF-P lens supported.

ronpier Loc: Poland Ohio

Nice shot. I also have the Tamron 17-50 f2.8. Excellent lens that provides just about all I need for wide angle to medium. And I can auto focus on all of my DSLRs including my D90 and D50. As tempting as the 10-20 P DX is I would be limited to using it only with my D3400.

Vienna74 Loc: Bountiful, Utah now Panama

I owned this lens a couple of years ago when still shooting APS-C (a d7200). I absolutely loved the lens. It was the hardest one for me to part with when I bought a d750. I shot some great stuff with it.

Silverrails

As a "Newbie" of approximately 2.5 years, I have never done a "Firmware Update" on my Nikon D3300, so I will need to investigate the Nikon USA site to be educated in this aspect of DSLR Photography. I am not a Technological Person, so I may need my Grandchildren to assist me in this new avenue of Photography.

Argus

Firmware updates are very easy to do. You use the same SD cards you use for photos. Just make sure nothing is on the card, format the card and then copy the firmware file from your computer to the card. I do this with the file transfer cable that comes with the camera. Then just follow Nikon's instructions as it's all performed in the camera's menus.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

I am not a fan of plastic bayonet mounts....

HOWEVER, should you ever break the one on the AF-P 10-20mm Nikkor, there are replacement plastic mounts available for $5.88 on eBay, including shipping. It takes ten minutes (three screws) to remove and replace a broken mount.

Somebody might even make replacement metal bayonet mounts for it some day.

However, there might be a reason besides price and weight that a plastic bayonet was used on this lens. Should it get a hard bump, hopefully only the easy-and-cheap-to-replace plastic mount would break, leaving the lens itself okay (as well as the camera). If it had a metal bayonet, I suspect it would be more likely that a hard bump would damage the lens itself, very probably requiring complete replacement because it would be impractical to repair such an inexpensive lens. Any repairs deeper inside the lens are likely to cost more than it's worth.



I agree. Firmware updates are quite easy (if needed, which isn't entirely clear with the D3300... the Nikon compatibility chart usually says if an update is needed, but instead simply lists the D3300 as "fully compatible" with AF-P lenses).

Firmware updates are not difficult to do, but it's important that they be done carefully and correctly.

First you download the update from the Nikon website. I don't know if Nikon provides means of doing so too, but when I do Canon firmware updates there's info provided on their site to do a "checksum" (look for an "info" file either on the website or included with the firmware download in a zip file). This simply means confirming that the size of the downloaded and unpacked (if zipped) firmware file now on your computer exactly matches the size cited on the website. This is to insure you got a complete download and that it "unzipped" correctly (if it's a zip file). To do this all you need to do is right click on the downloaded file and check it's properties.

Regarding zip files, those are simply one or more "compressed" files inside a "packet". If the suffix of a downloaded file says "zip", you have to unpack it before using it. Used to be we had to install an app on our computers to open zip files. But in most cases today that's already built into the operating system... so it's simply a matter of double clicking on the zip file to start it opening. You'll usually be asked where you want to save the unpacked file(s)... I usually just tell it to write them in the same folder as the zip file itself.

Once you know the file is good, prep a memory card to be used for the update. As mentioned, do an in-camera format to a card that's been emptied. Move the card from the camera to your computer's card reader and copy the downloaded and unpacked firmware file onto the card. Don't put anything else on the memory card and move it back to your camera.

Regarding the firmware update, they are usually accumulative... meaning if you have an older one on your camera and skipped several updates, you don't need to install them one at a time in sequence... you can simply install the latest and greatest and it will include all the changes to date.

The info file mentioned above also may give details on what that particular firmware version adds or corrects. Often I skip doing an update when it only addresses things that are meaningless for me... such as correcting the spelling of something in a language I can't even read!

Before installing the new firmware, be sure the camera's battery has sufficient charge to allow the camera to run for at least 10 (the update won't take that long, this is just a safety margin). Don't use a battery that's low on charge and might cause the camera to shut down before the update is complete. I just swap in a fully charged spare battery.

During the firmware update you also need to be careful NOT to touch any buttons, NOT open any battery or memory card doors, and NOT turn off the camera during the update. If an update is interrupted before it competes, that can "brick" a camera.... locking it up so that it has to be sent in for repair. So once you've started the update, just let the camera do its thing.

Once ready, follow the instructions in the manual how to start the camera installing the update. Then set it aside and let it complete the process. Most cameras will give you feedback on their rear LCD screen about the progress and completion of the firmware installation. It usually takes less than five minutes.

Silverrails

Thanks for your very well detailed explanation of "Firmware Updating". It seems simple enough, but my first time will be nerve racking, as I am not a modern technical Photographer, I still remember Film, but it had issues too.