Beginner Is 3200 ISO Really Okay for APS-C and Quality Images?

Sony Corleone

Sony Corleone

Messages
213
Edit My Images
Yes
I have been watching camera people on the web, and they seem to agree that ISO should not go above 3200 on APS-C cameras, with some variation depending on the model.

I have been doing some shooting, and it seems to me that 800 is a better ceiling if I don't want a lot of noise or creepy AI-looking photos if I remove noise. Am I doing something wrong? Maybe I should just quit insisting on too much quality.
 
What do these people do if the ISO goes above 3200? Do they stop taking pictures? I suppose a long exposure to keep the ISO down is an option but what if your subject gets bored and walks away?

IMO it's better to take a picture than not take it and if taking it means a high ISO then you can always run some noise reduction software and if it's still not good enough at least you tried. I don't have an APS-C camera but I do have MFT which has a sensor which is smaller than APS-C and I have many pictures I'm happy with taken at ISO's above 3200.

My advice is to take the picture and if it's good enough for you that's what counts :D
 
Last edited:
On a Canon EOS10D I'd agree. On a 90D probably not. Depends a heck of a lot on the subject & what you plan to do with the image (I'd not be printing a poster...)
 
I guess it does very much depend on what actual camera you are using & how old it is!!

I don't use my [2013] A7 much anymore. I do very often use the A7Riii & Fuji X100f [both 2017 I think] and unless on a tripod for landscape with the Sony, I shoot in auto ISO and don't really worry about what it goes up to generally. I also don't use any noise reduction software.

ISO 4000 on the X100f


*** by Lee, on Flickr
 
I use a Fuji APS-C camera and I don't tend to worry about the ISO that much; I generally don't go above 6400 unless I'm really struggling to get a shot, and like Lee above I don't bother with noise reduction.

It's very easy with YouTube to tie yourself in knots with all the (sometimes conflicting) advice that you can watch on there.

The best thing to do in my opinion is to play with your camera, try things out and see what works or doesn't work for the sorts of shots you want to take.

One thing that I've found to be quite useful from time to time is to take a shot in Auto mode and then have a look at it afterwards to see what settings the camera chose.
 
skullfunkerry said:
It's very easy with YouTube to tie yourself in knots with all the (sometimes conflicting) advice that you can watch on there.
Click to expand...

No argument there.

skullfunkerry said:
The best thing to do in my opinion is to play with your camera, try things out and see what works or doesn't work for the sorts of shots you want to take.

One thing that I've found to be quite useful from time to time is to take a shot in Auto mode and then have a look at it afterwards to see what settings the camera chose.
Click to expand...

I like this advice.
 
LongLensPhotography said:
Ok for what specifically? Large format printing or phone size breaking news pic?
Click to expand...

I would like to have a lot of optically-good photos for viewing on TV and so I can print some out for our walls. I have decided that it's much better to blow up your own photos and frame them than to buy prints of paintings and so on. The original art I am willing to spend for would be pretty abysmal, and a family photo seems a lot better to me than an art print.
 
I think the only judge of whether an image is too noisy is the customer, and as the customer you need to be realistic about sizes and viewing distances.

I’ve shot weddings and included images above 3200 from a 7d which is considered by many to be a noise monster.

As you’ve said you appreciate bluntness, I’ll add that anyone offering advice like ‘never go above 3200 ISO’ is an utter moron.

However, if I was shooting ‘fine art’ for large display, I’d need a very good reason to use high ISO, no hard and fast rules, all of this is subject and use dependent
 
Try it and see if YOU are happy with higher ISO shots.

It's also very dependent on the camera, as well as getting the exposure as good as possible. I had a Nikon D200 and the ceiling for that was pretty much ISO 800 before noise was a real problem but the Fujis I now use are OK even at 6400 - not perfect but OK!
 
Sony Corleone said:
Maybe I should just quit insisting on too much quality.
Click to expand...
I think it all depends on your reason for taking pictures.

If you absolutely have to capture detail, stick to the base rating for your sensor and use a tripod or other support. If you are more interested in moving subjects, use whatever setting you need to get the image you want. I've seen images recorded on 2/3" sensors and printed to 4 feet x 3 feet, which worked well because the subject was really interesting and well captured. I think that obsessing over image quality is only sensible where it's appropriate to the purpose of the picture.
 
I think a lot depends on the camera, the lighting, the exposure and what you consider acceptable. I've got a Canon 30d and I wouldn't go over about 1600, the 90d or the 750d though are happy enough at 3200. Full frame I often shoot at 4000 or higher.
The biggest "problem" for noise is under exposure, get the exposure right and you get much better low light quality.
 
I used to think that but modern AI noise reduction is making that less so plus newer sensors. However there are still limitations by shooting at high ISO and it all comes down to what you are using it for. Shoot high ISO in bright light(for fast shutter speeds) is very different to high ISO at night. A landscape might not look as bad as a macro photo where you’d expect lots of detail and that’s the answer, how much detail do you require, how much colour accuracy do you require.
 
Modern APS-c DSLRs, anything in the last 10 years or so, I would say you could go above 3200 comfortably. Denoise software is so good now, one instructor said you could always improve a noisy shot, but can't rescue a blurred shot.
 
ISO depends on a lot of things and a general rule of don't go over xxxx doesn't make sense to me. I put a pic on an FB group that I had taken with max ISO on my OM1 m4/3 camera and somebody sent me a link to a rather detailed explanation of how ISO works. It made interesting reading but unfortunately I no longer have the link or the capacity to recall the information contained within it.
It did explain how I managed to get a usable (denoised 58 LrC) photo whilst having an ISO of 102400. Interestingly, when I uploaded it to Flickr, it changed the iso on the info to 65535 but still says standard output sensitivity 102400 in the exif data.

Don't get me wrong, it's still a noisy pic but it is at ISO102400, 32 times higher than your suggested 3200 max.

By the way, the high ISO shot was an accident. I had just got the camera and was trying out settings etc. Somehow the way I was holding it nudged a button and upped the ISO to the max.

High ISO mushroom by Phill Windsor, on Flickr
 
I guess that picture answers the question.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top