High ISO

[Nik0nator]

I'm a n00b so I'm just wondering why I see so many people shooting at such high ISO settings? I know what ISO is and does and that is why I ask. So from my understanding you use the ISO depending on the lighting situation if you can't get enough light into the camera. The higher the ISO the more noise is introduced to the picture and that is why I always shoot at the lowest ISO setting. When I've needed to take shots late at night and didn't have my tripod, on a few occasions I've gone to a high ISO setting. So am I right here? Do they just not know? Or school me on the different uses of higher ISO?

[candleman]

well, it's better to up the ISO and get a good exposure.
a poor exposure at say ISO 800 where you need to push the exposure in post, will have more noise than a good exposure at iso1600 where no "pushing" is necessary.


A higher ISO wil allow a faster shutterspeed (no motion blur) and be able to stop down (say f/2.8 to f/4 which could make use of the lenses sweet spot)


It also helps when you're shoting with flash, so your flash recycle time is faster and your batteries last longer.
High ISO isn't always bad, but yes, in general shoot at the lowest ISO you can.

[RLucas]

I think part of it is that newer cameras handle the noise much better than just a few years ago. Also, processing software is able to manage noise much better, so that is probably why you are seeing more people shooting at a higher ISO. I was very afraid of it one time, and badly underexposing my shots, but now the majority of my shots are at 800 or above. I want to add that I am using a 6 year old Nikon D70, which by most standards, sucks at higher ISO. Part of it is exposing to the right, or over exposing and pulling in post, plus using LR3, which has some of the best noise reduction I have come across as well.
My shots are still noisy, but I kinda like em, so it's also a matter of taste.
The point is, don't be afraid to try it. Do what you can, and use what you have to get the shot. Don't be held back by only shooting at ISO 200.

[Doug Pardee]

Originally Posted by Nik0nator

from my understanding you use the ISO depending on the lighting situation if you can't get enough light into the camera. The higher the ISO the more noise is introduced to the picture

It's not the high ISO that causes the noise, it's the low light. As you noted, people use high ISO in low light, so there's a tendency to conflate the two. For a given amount of light/exposure, you're usually better off using the highest ISO setting you can without clipping the highlights that you want to keep. (For non-flash photos.) Also known as "expose to the right", although that term is usually applied to setting the exposure.

Except: some camera models kick in noise reduction or other special processing above certain ISO levels, and you might not want that. You need to know your camera and how it works.

[ravncat]

I think it`s a combination - low ISO is usually better - provided one can get a high enough signal to noise ratio and has a stable platform or high enough shutter speed.

I tend to stay low when I can, but I like to shoot at the edge of day alot, and that necessitates higher ISO, while remaining handheld.

[nickbedford]

Originally Posted by Doug Pardee

It's not the high ISO that causes the noise, it's the low light.

A considerable amount of the noise is the amplification on an inherently noise ridden electrical circuit.

[Nik0nator]

Interesting thank you so much for the info guys. I didn't know alot of stuff you guys mentioned. I haven't shot much at higher aperture so I've decided to take more shots. So I guess I'll be shooting at higher ISOs

[wulf]

Learning not to fear stepping above the lowest ISO setting on my camera has enabled me to get a lot of shots where otherwise I would hit the limits of aperture and shutter speed. It gives a little wiggle room and sometimes that is enough to balance the exposure triangle.

As long as the final shot is well-exposed, a higher ISO tends not to cause too many problems. Just remember to set it back before you step out in the sunlight!

Wulf

[Jim Poor]

Originally Posted by RLucas

. . . plus using LR3, which has some of the best noise reduction I have come across as well. . .

A small but important note of clarification: LR3 doesn't have great NR capabilities, ACR does. LR3 uses the most recent version of ACR, which does indeed have great NR capabilities.

The LR folks did a great PR run on this release, but it was also quite misleading.

[Nik0nator]

Originally Posted by wulf

Learning not to fear stepping above the lowest ISO setting on my camera has enabled me to get a lot of shots where otherwise I would hit the limits of aperture and shutter speed. It gives a little wiggle room and sometimes that is enough to balance the exposure triangle.

As long as the final shot is well-exposed, a higher ISO tends not to cause too many problems. Just remember to set it back before you step out in the sunlight!

Wulf

Well yesterday I decided to venture out to 400 territory wulf this is always the thing I'm scared of is to forget to set the ISO back after I'm done lol but I guess with more use I'll get it.