Who uses auto iso and why

do you use auto iso

  • yes

    Votes: 111 56.6%

  • no

    Votes: 85 43.4%
  • Total voters
    196
Indeed, all those functions are there for particular reasons and if you are smart, you will understand them all and when to use them.... guess it comes with experience and a variety of scenarios!

The only drawback I've heard with D300/D700/D3 etc auto ISO is that it can be slower to obtain a firing solution than aperture/shutter priority. Might only be a touch slower, but sometimes every nano second counts!
 
KIPAX said:
There are a lot of people posting saying they Want to be in control of the camera so always use manual and never anything on Auto?... These people have obviously never used there camera in situations where manual mode is useless.. You need to open your minds more :)

Unfortunatly as much as I like using manual I am often in a situation where manual simply wont get the shot.

On canon 1d bodies (dont know about other models) using auto ISO in Manual mode does not offer exposure compensation thus making it too auto and pretty usless. However the workaround is to say put in Tv mode.. then in the custom functions set max/min aperture and set the shutter to desired and iso auto.. this then works like nikon cameras in Manual and auto ISO and you can use exposure comp.

To answer the OP ... A situation for me would be a sunny day at a football ground with a large stand casting a dark shadow over half the pitch.. players running in and out of bright sunshine and dark area... Using Av or Tv and the changes would be too extreme as I require fast shutter and open aperture... so auto ISO is a godsend in this situation.. Manual would be useless.

I tend to use all setting on my camera at some time or another rather than stick to one... Av Tv Manual and even P (when using flash) all have there uses.... sticking to manual or any other all the time is very small minded IMHO :)
Click to expand...
well said.
I love the fact i can bung my nikons in manual and control the apature and shutter speed and set my iso so it wont go over what i want and not worry about it:D
 
KIPAX said:
There are a lot of people posting saying they Want to be in control of the camera so always use manual and never anything on Auto?... These people have obviously never used there camera in situations where manual mode is useless......
Click to expand...

When is manual mode "useless"?

What did photographers do before the days of auto everything? :thinking:
 
boliston said:
Ok, notice you mention players moving from bright sun to shadow areas - how long does it take to adjust by 3 stops?
Click to expand...

read again.. I said running in and out of areas..

Look.. I know how to use manual thanks.. been using it for a number of years and as I said (another bit you cut out) I love using manual... But the truth is there are situations that manual cant handle.. the fact you havent come accross one doesnt mean it doesnt exist.. only that you ahvent come accross it.. myself and many sports photogrpahers do come accross the situation.. i gave you one example.. what do you want.. a list? :)

Any situation where light is changing quicker than you can change settings... any situation where your subject is under different light quicker than you can change settings... thats where manual fails.... how did they used to do it before auto? they didnt...
 
Last edited:
i shot a play (dress rehersal) last week.. the full monty.. I started in manual as thats how I have shot plays before.. however this one was on a far bigger stage with more happening.. the lighting was different all over the place... Its a one off dress rehersal.. I have no idea whats going to happen or where on stage.. I ahve a split second to move and focus from one area to another and maybe back again... No way in a million years could Manual do it.. the fastest hands couldn't have kept up... not all night.. just now and then.. I didnt want to miss the shot so used auto iso..

what would a manual only person do? question directed at boliston ? :)
 
I'm almost the opposite! My go to settings on the 5D and 550D are straight to ISO1600 and set the rest to suit! Odd perhaps but it works for me :)
 
A no from me.......

With the stuff I enjoy doing I very rarely take the camera off 100 anyway. And when I do then the time it takes to turn a dial is neither here nor there.

Completely understand that there are loads of situations where the ability to fix the shutter speed and aperture and then let the ISO vary is a godsend - they just haven't applied to me.

I'm sure though the first time I do find myself thinking "Wish I had proper auto ISO" then gear acquisition syndrome will raise it's ugly head - maybe the second time but that's exercising self control........ :)
 
Moos3h said:
I'm almost the opposite! My go to settings on the 5D and 550D are straight to ISO1600 and set the rest to suit! Odd perhaps but it works for me :)
Click to expand...

haha BUT....BUT....BUT! The same applies.. there are situations when Auto will not do the job and manual is required... Not in your photogrpahy it seems.. but there are situations especialy in dimly lit surrounding where sudden bursts of light can happen for example..

this is why I am making my point.. I am not saying auto better than manual.. I am not saying anything is better... I am saying there are many settings on our cameras for many situations.. If some people dont need them then fair enough.. but its not right for others to make out that manual or any mode is the only way :)
 
KIPAX said:
read again.. I said running in and out of areas..

Look.. I know how to use manual thanks.. been using it for a number of years and as I said (another bit you cut out) I love using manual... But the truth is there are situations that manual cant handle.. the fact you havent come accross one doesnt mean it doesnt exist.. only that you ahvent come accross it.. myself and many sports photogrpahers do come accross the situation.. i gave you one example.. what do you want.. a list? :)

Any situation where light is changing quicker than you can change settings... any situation where your subject is under different light quicker than you can change settings... thats where manual fails.... how did they used to do it before auto? they didnt...
Click to expand...

100% agree with you on this (I know, I'm amazed too! ;)). I'd be seriously impressed if somebody could keep up or beat the accuracy of auto iso in some of the circumstances being discussed. I'd also question why anybody would want to. Satisfaction maybe but I can't help but think it would be more of an exercise in frustration.
 
Last edited:
I suppose it also comes down to whether you see grain as an issue. If you don't then auto iso would be an easy way to ensure you always get the shot in rapidly changing situations. A grainy sharp (ish) shot is better than a blurry one in my opinion!
 
Moos3h said:
I suppose it also comes down to whether you see grain as an issue. If you don't then auto iso would be an easy way to ensure you always get the shot in rapidly changing situations. A grainy sharp (ish) shot is better than a blurry one in my opinion!
Click to expand...

this is why you set an upper limit that you are happy with. Even if the upper limit was 800 you could still have 3 stops with very negligible differences in quality on a modern camera where 800 is considered low with no noise
 
Last edited:
Moos3h said:
I suppose it also comes down to whether you see grain as an issue. If you don't then auto iso would be an easy way to ensure you always get the shot in rapidly changing situations. A grainy sharp (ish) shot is better than a blurry one in my opinion!
Click to expand...
this also dpends on how the camera handles iso,
 
No, but every camera I've tried it on has been older so the system is pretty dumb and always over compensating. Thinking I need 1/200 shutter speed on a 50mm lens, what's that all about?

I've heard newer bodies are better for it, and some have good customisation so it could be something I'd use with future cameras.
 
scottthehat said:
auto iso gathering up speed now.
Click to expand...

So it should its a godsend for difficult situations, even more so for one-off shots.

Just wish the option to turn auto-iso on/off was in the iso menu in my d300 and x100.

One more thing, i have often wished i could set the minimum shutter speed as a 'hard stop'. ie never go slower than this shutter speed, even when max iso is reached. I understand this will lead to underexposed shots, but they are often preferable to blurred shots due to slow shutter speeds.
 
I don't think we're going to get a clear answer on this, because the auto-iso functions on different cameras seem to function differently to one another.
 
When handholding, if it's dark manual with Auto-ISO, if it's relatively light, Aperture Priorty with Auto-ISO. Probably with spot metering, but often matrix metering.

When on a tripod, fully manual. Probably with spot metering.
 
Rapscallion said:
One more thing, i have often wished i could set the minimum shutter speed as a 'hard stop'. ie never go slower than this shutter speed, even when max iso is reached. I understand this will lead to underexposed shots, but they are often preferable to blurred shots due to slow shutter speeds.
Click to expand...

I thought this was already what happened?
 
gad-westy said:
I thought this was already what happened?
Click to expand...

Will try when i go home. but i think that once max iso is reached, the shutter speed will keep slowing until a correct exposure is achieved.

I may be wrong (but don't think so...) as i have barely used my d300 since june....

can someone with a d300 check my sanity?
 
Although a hard minimum should be an option it is strange to think that a cameras software would underexpose knowing that it may end badly (maybe by a hugh amount if low light shot with shutter min set at 1/200 !)

Those mistakes are what manual is for :)
 
Martyn... said:
When the maximum ISO you have set is reached the camera will start reducing the shutter speed below any lower limit you may have set.
Click to expand...

Cheers. I stand corrected, for some reason I though it started to under expose rather than change shutter speed but maybe I'm thinking of manual mode with auto iso.
 
Until I read this thread, I've had a tendency to use Av mode and adjust the ISO myself. However, I've now found myself trying out the AutoISO (on the 5D3) and moving towards Tv mode. Results are very positive especially with the longer lenses where a shutter speed to match the focal length can be dialled-in and forgotten about..:thumbs:

It certainly works well on the 5D3 (my max setting is 6400) but I'd be less keen on the 7D which I find to produce noticeably more noisy shots almost regardless of ISO setting. To be fair, it's not a like for like comparison, but I can almost see myself ditching the 7D for wildlife/birds in favour of the 5D3, despite the lack of reach without a crop sensor.

I'm not going to pretend that I am capable of adjusting everything in manual mode in an instant when a bird or animal comes along. There just isn't the time to compose everything, so the fewer things to contend with, the better. Auto ISO it is now (thanks to this thread) unless I'm lucky enough to be setting up a shot well in advance.:thumbs:
 
gad-westy said:
Cheers. I stand corrected, for some reason I though it started to under expose rather than change shutter speed but maybe I'm thinking of manual mode with auto iso.
Click to expand...

Sorry Graham, I checked on my D300 which was close to hand, just looked at the camera again and it was in Aperture Priority where it dropped the shutter speed, in Manual mode it will hold at the shutter speed selected and under expose.
 
Yes, but only ever when shooting video. Using Auto ISO in manual mode means I can let the camera get the exposure correct while I keep the aperture and shutter speed constant.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top