Not everybody realizes that the computer program within your camera or lens or speedlight needs to be updated as and when updates are made by the manufacturer. Thing is, nobody tells you when that happened. If you own a Nikon product you can go to this site to verify if you need one, and download it. The same site also provides manuals.

https://support.nikonusa.com/a...cts#Anchor-DSLR-3800

Canon has the same thing of course. I think this is the European web site:

http://cpn.canon-europe.com/co...infobank/firmware.do

If you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself, any authorized dealer for your camera/lens/flash will probably do it at no charge.

Care needs to be taken to ensure that the update will actually work on your existing camera. Some updates require a certain level of firmware to already be installed.

Other firmware updates are "region" specific. You need to make sure you are installing the firmware for the North American region (if that is where you live) and not a region elsewhere in the world by mistake!

You should also bear in mind the way that your camera uploads new firmware. Some cameras have Programmable ROM (PROM), which allows new information to be added to the system.

Others have Electronically Erasable PROM (EEPROM) which allows information to also be erased. These cameras are obviously preferable, as you are not stuck with firmware updates if you do not like them.
Update with Caution

Whenever you are considering an update to your camera's firmware, make sure to read all of the instructions very carefully. Even do a search to find out if other users have had issues with an update using your camera.

In fact, camera firmware updates need to be done with more care than, say a software update on your computer (or even your phone!). You do not have the control over your camera that you do your computer, so reverting it to a previous version may not be possible to pull off on your own.

Bad updates can render your camera useless and the camera may have to be sent back to the manufacturer to fix. Do your research before updating your camera's firmware! I had one Olympus camera become a brick after updating the firmware.

It is also a very good idea to check with discussion forums as well before you update. Some updates are a cluster...

Don't be the guinea pig.