The Nikon DF-M1 dot sight is a specialist piece of kit that’s designed to help you sight and track erratic subjects
(Image credit: Future)
The longer your lens, the harder it is to sight and keep up with your subject. Small movements become exaggerated at higher magnifications and this can make photographing erratic subjects, such as birds, even more challenging. You can see the bird in the distance - but finding it through the viewfinder quickly is hard, unless you have a dot sight to help you line up your lens
Nikon's DF-M1 dot sight is built to help improve your accuracy, and although this super-specialist attachment won’t appeal to everyone, it’s worth looking into if you spend most of your time searching for (or losing) faraway subjects. It is particularly useful with bridge cameras with supertelephoto zoom settings – or for use with long telephoto lenses on DSLRs or mirrrorless cameras. The pop-up dot sight slots into the hotshoe of a camera, weighs very little and folds down when not in use.
Video: How to use a Nikon dot sight
In practice, the sight allows you to pinpoint the center of your frame, without narrowing your vision through the viewfinder. This makes it much easier to find and track fast-moving or erratic subjects without losing them.
For the DF-M1 to function properly you need to calibrate the position of the reticle, so it matches the framing of your viewfinder/rear LCD screen perfectly. Thankfully, our tutorial will help you get bang on target!
The DF-M1 uses a CR2032 battery (found loose in the box). A thin implement is needed to push down the lock pin and access the battery slot. Power is used when the sight pops up. If left inactive for four hours, or by holding the colour selection or brightness buttons, it’ll switch off.
The dot sight mounts on top of a camera’s hotshoe and screws into place. It’s officially designed for use with the P1000 and P950 bridge cameras. However, we tested it on our D800 and Z 7, and it worked fine. It also comes with a small branded pouch, so you can stow it safely in your bag when not in use.
You can customize the DF-M1 to suit your preferences. A color-selection button allows you to choose between a green or red reticle; brightness buttons let you change the intensity of the dot and a small clickable lever allows you to cycle through three different reticle designs.
To calibrate the dot sight you first need to place your camera on a tripod. Then find and sight an object (ideally something that’s roughly the same distance as your subject) and centre it in the frame. We found it helpful to use a single AF point as a guide to ensure the frame is centered perfectly.
Look directly through the sight and turn the two dials either side of the device to place the reticle precisely over your object. Rotate the right dial clockwise to move the reticle up and anticlockwise to move it down. Turn the left dial clockwise to move the reticle left and anticlockwise to move it right.
6. How you use the DF-M1 will depend on personal preference. We used it alongside the rear LCD of our P1000. By holding the camera at arm’s length we could see both the dot sight and screen. It’s also useful for simply sighting a faraway subject; the dot sight gets you in the vicinity before switching over to the much more traditional viewfinder.
Mike is Digital Camera World's How To Editor. He has over a decade of experience, writing for some of the biggest specialist publications including Digital Camera, Digital Photographer and PhotoPlus: The Canon Magazine. Prior to DCW, Mike was Deputy Editor of N-Photo: The Nikon Magazine and Production Editor at Wex Photo Video, where he sharpened his skills in both the stills and videography spheres. While he's an avid motorsport photographer, his skills extend to every genre of photography – making him one of Digital Camera World's top tutors for techniques on cameras, lenses, tripods, filters and other imaging equipment – as well as sharing his expertise on shooting everything from portraits and landscapes to abstracts and architecture to wildlife and, yes, fast things going around race tracks...
