ISO and modern cameras

dakid

dakid

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I'm hoping to try and garner some thoughts on what ISOs are acceptable these days on the latest cameras.

Back when I last had an SLR, I would only ever buy 100 or 200 ISO film, and occasionally for sports/night photography a 400 ISO one.

These days, I'm very much getting the impression that ISO isn't as important as it used to be. I've seen shots at 800 that barely have any grain at all, and even the 1600/3200 ones can show minimal noise.

So, I guess the question is .... what's reasonable to use these days, when you're after that sports/nighttime shot, that will not adversely affect the quality of the picture you're taking.

I guess I'm talking about the latest cameras like the 400D/40D.
 
Its personal preference really, so just try and see!

Also, not all ISO 800 shots will show the same amount of grain, other conditions (especially post-processing) can make quite a difference.

On my D200 I find iso 800 has too much grain, so I dont tend to use unless I really need the shot! That of course is the other consideration - the trade off between getting the shot and the acceptable amount of noise.
 
I think Joe's right (for once :p) With the ability to change ISO on a shot by shot basis on a digital SLR it's sometimes a case of being able to up the ISO and get a shot, albeit a little noisy, that you may not have been able to get with a film SLR loaded with 100ISO film.

Personally I will always use the lowest ISO I can but am never afraid to turn it up if it means I can get the exposure I need for the shot.

One of the advantages of digital :clap:
 
Getting the exposure right can make a big difference to noise too. Under exposed high iso shots get very noisy. Nearly over exposed ones can be surprisingly clean.

I'll use 1600 without worrying about it too much and 3200 when necessary. Like Grendel my camera stays on 100 unless conditions dictate otherwise.
 
This might sound like a silly question, but how do you determine when to up the ISO? When your aperture and speed aren't what you're after (e.g. you dial in f2.8 and you still can't get 1/500, or you need f16 and you can't get it fast enough to hand-hold)? Or is there more to it?
 
My camera as an ISO range 80 - 1600. Would you recommend I leave it on 80 as the default ? Only changing it when I want to photograph fast or dark scenes ?
 
I know how much depth of field I'll get at different apertures so choosing the aperture is my starting point. Then I need a shutter speed that fits too - hand holdable, stopping action....whatever. If I can't get that combination then I'll up the iso so I can choose a faster shutter speed whilst keeping the aperture I wanted.
 
richmond said:
My camera as an ISO range 80 - 1600. Would you recommend I leave it on 80 as the default ? Only changing it when I want to photograph fast or dark scenes ?
Click to expand...

yes if 80 is the normal lower range not an 'extended' option. But you might also increase it for a normal shot if you need a small aperture for best depth of field and the shutter speed would be too slow to hand hold for example.
 
Thanks for that quick reply.

I'm of to practise now. :wave:
 
On my 30D I will happily shoot upto ISO1600, and if need be 3200 to get the shot. In colour it will look noisy so its great that I mostly shoot b&w where it just fits in :)
 
I keep the lowest ISO setting possible to achieve the shutter speed and aperture I want, ISO goes up if necessary and when I am already at ISO 1600, aperture goes down if I need to keep a certain shutter speed, shutter speed goes down when the photo is still too dark.

Joe T said:
Its personal preference really, so just try and see!

Also, not all ISO 800 shots will show the same amount of grain, other conditions (especially post-processing) can make quite a difference.
Click to expand...

:agree:
 
for some reason i never shoot at over ISO400, no idea why lol.
 
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