25 Steps to the Perfect Canon EOS M100 Setup

I have a Canon EOS M100 in my hands and it is time to set up the camera for use. Following are the 25 steps I took to make an out-of-the-box M100 ready for use.

1. Open the box, find the battery, place it in the charger and plug it in.
2. While the battery is charging, unpack the other items you want from the box. This is a good time to install the neck strap.
3. Download and install the Canon Solution Disk software on your computer to get support for the latest camera(s). Canon Digital Photo Pro (DPP), EOS Utility, Photostitch and Lens Registration Utility are the options I manually include in the install.
4. Insert the battery (after charging completes) and power the camera on.
5. The date, time and time zone setup screen will show at the first startup. Use the Rear Control dial and Set button to update this information.
6. Insert a memory card (don't forget to format the card via the tools menu option before taking pictures).
7. If the lens being used retracts beyond a usable focal length (the EF-M 15-45 for example), unlock and extend the lens.
8. Set the camera's mode to Av, Tv or M (some modes provide only a small subset of available menu options). Use the middle switch setting (Creative Assist by default) and scroll up to the advanced modes.
9. Scroll through all of the menu tabs to configure the camera as follows:
10. Shooting Menu, Tab 1: Image quality: Use top dial to set RAW to "RAW" and Rear Control arrow (press left or right) to set JPEG to "-"
11. Shooting Menu, Tab 1: Shooting information display: Grid display: 3x3, Histogram: RGB
12. Shooting Menu, Tab 2: Image review: Off (without a review display being shown and cleared, the viewfinder becomes ready-for-shooting faster)
13. Shooting Menu, Tab 3: Continuous AF: Off (increases battery life)
14. Shooting Menu, Tab 4: Lens aberration correction: disable all (I correct lens aberrations during post processing if warranted, though enabling CA correction is usually a good idea and if shooting in JPG mode, consider enabling other options as well.)
15. Shooting Menu, Tab 5: Auto Lighting Optimizer: Off (again, those shooting in JPG mode might want to explore the results of this option)
16. Shooting Menu, Tab 6: Picture Style: Neutral with Sharpness = 1 (Note: the low contrast "Neutral" picture style provides a histogram on the back of the camera that most-accurately shows me blown highlights and blocked shadows on the camera LCD. I usually change the Picture Style to "Standard" in DPP after capture. If shooting in JPG mode, selecting "Standard" is probably a better option.)
17. Shooting Menu, Tab 6: Long exp. noise reduction: Auto
18. Shooting Menu, Tab 6: High speed NR: Off (or Low) (Noise reduction is destructive to images details - I prefer to add NR sparingly in post. Select "Low" if shooting in JPG format).
19. Tools Menu, Tab 3: Beep: Off
20. Tools Menu, Tab 3: Hints & Tips: Off
21. Tools Menu, Tab 3: Mode icon size/info: Small, no info
22. Tools Menu, Tab 4: Copyright info: Enter Author's Name: [enter name]
23. Exit the menu, press the playback button and press the Menu button.
24. Playback Menu, Tab 1: Transition Effect: Off
25. Playback Menu, Tab 1: Auto Rotate: Off (always uses full LCD for display)
I make other menu and setting changes based on current shooting scenarios, but this list covers my initial camera setup process.

To copy this configuration would mean that you intend to shoot similar to how I shoot - including shooting in RAW-only format. While my setup works great for me, your best use of this list may be for tweaking your own setup.

If you can't remember your own menu setup parameters, keeping an up-to-date list such as this one is a good idea. Anytime your camera goes in for a service visit, the camera will be returned in a reset-to-factory state (unless you request otherwise). Your list will ensure that you do not miss an important setting when putting the camera back into service.

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Canon EOS M100

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