Nikon has released firmware version 2.01 for the Z6III, and the headline feature is Pre-Release Capture from compatible Bluetooth remote controllers. The free update is available now through Nikon's download center. For working shooters who rely on the Z6III as an event or wildlife body, this release is less about new toys and more about fixing things that could cost you frames.

What's new in version 2.01?

The feature list is short but concrete:

• Pre-Release Capture via Bluetooth remotes — the camera can now buffer frames from before you press the button, triggered wirelessly.
• Focus limiter support for eight NIKKOR Z lenses: the DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, DX 18-140mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, DX 50-250mm f/4.5-6.3 VR, 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR, 24-50mm f/4-6.3, 14-24mm f/2.8 S, 24-70mm f/4 S, and 14-30mm f/4 S.
• Renamed menu items: "Cloud Picture Control" becomes "Imaging Recipe," and "Add Cloud Picture Control files" becomes "Download Imaging Recipes." Cosmetic, but expect your muscle memory to stumble once.
• Corrected some Custom Settings menu item numbering.

Focus limiter support matters if you shoot fast action with consumer zooms — limiting close-range hunting on the 24-200mm can be the difference between a keep and a miss. Note the list covers mostly variable-aperture glass plus three S-line wide zooms. Nikon doesn't say why other lenses were left out, and it doesn't say when, or if, more will follow.

Which bugs got fixed?

The reliability items carry the real weight here. Nikon confirms fixes for:

• Rare overexposure during burst shooting in manual mode.
• Unstable exposure during bursts with a type E F-mount lens attached.
• The camera sometimes freezing during burst photography with F-mount glass.
• Autofocus failing while using FV lock with a flash unit attached.
• Pixel shift shooting sometimes not capturing the set number of frames with a non-CPU lens.
• The camera hanging when live view was zoomed during subject detection with a manual lens.

Five of the six fixes involve F-mount lenses on the FTZ adapter. That's a telling ratio. If you run adapted DSLR glass commercially — plenty of shooters still do — this update isn't optional; a camera that stops responding mid-burst is a camera that misses the play.

Nikon qualifies nearly every fix with "in rare cases" or "sometimes." We'll take the fix and skip the argument, but the pattern is worth noting: burst shooting with adapted lenses was clearly stressing the pipeline. The overexposure fix in mode M, though rare, is the one that could quietly ruin a paid sequence without any warning on the back of the camera.

Should working Z6III owners update now?

If you use F-mount lenses, a flash with FV lock, or pixel shift, yes — update before your next assignment. If you shoot native Z glass only, the case is softer: Bluetooth Pre-Release Capture and focus limiter settings are genuine workflow additions, not bug fixes, so the urgency depends on whether you own a compatible remote or any of the eight listed lenses.

One caveat, as always: Nikon's changelog says nothing about what 2.01 might change that shooters liked in 2.00. Early-adopter reports usually surface within days. The update is free, it's shipping now, and there's no stated deadline — but scheduling it between jobs, not the night before one, remains the professional move.