How to Change the Live View Auto-Off Timer on a Nikon D5300

By default, the Nikon D5300’s Live View will turn itself off after 10 minutes. You can bump that up to a maximum of 30 minutes.

Text & Photos By David Coleman

Last Revised & Updated: June 1, 2023

Filed Under: DSLRs

Topics: Nikon, Nikon D5300 DSLR

I MAY get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

By default, the Nikon D5300’s Live View will turn itself off after 10 minutes. That’s good for preserving battery life and protecting the sensor from overheating, but there are times you might need it longer. An example is if you’re using a Nikon D5300 as a webcam for live streaming video.

On the D5300, the maximum time you can keep the Live View active unattended at a stretch is 30 minutes. You can find this setting under:

Custom Setting Menu (pencil icon) > C Timers/AE Lock > Auto off timers > Custom > Live View > 30m

How to Keep Live View Active Longer Than 30 Minutes

There’s no way in the camera’s settings to disable the auto-off timer or set it to longer than 30 minutes.

If you need to keep it active longer than that, it’ll require some manual intervention. But not much. You can press any button to reset the clock. The two buttons I find most convenient and least likely to risk interrupting the video stream are:

exposure compensation button (+/- near shutter)
AE-L/AF-L button on the back

You can also lightly touch the shutter with a half-press, but that risks throwing off the focus.

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David Coleman

I'm a professional photographer based in Washington, DC. Seven continents, up mountains, underwater, and many places in between. I've been shooting for 30+ years, and my photos and time-lapse videos have appeared in a bunch of different publications, from major newspapers to magazines and books, billboards, TV shows, professional sports stadiums, museums, and even massive architectural scrims covering world-famous buildings while they're being renovated. You can see some of my travel photography here and here.

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How to Change the Live View Auto-Off Timer on a Nikon D5300

How to Keep Live View Active Longer Than 30 Minutes

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