Nature Photography, LLC
Newsletter
November, 2012
Understanding Your Camera’s ISO Settings
Maybe you’ve seen it in your digital camera’s menu, and have no idea what it is. Or perhaps you shot film once upon a time, but never really paid that much attention to which film you bought. Either way, gaining an understanding of ISO can greatly improve the quality of the images you capture.
ISO (short for the International Organization of Standardization) in photography refers to a film’s or digital sensor’s sensitivity to light. The higher the sensitivity (ISO number), the less light required to properly expose the image. This is particularly important in darker settings (think indoors as opposed to bright sunlight), or in situations where you need a fast shutter speed to freeze motion (think trying to freeze the basketball as it hurtles toward the hoop at the big game). The greater the light sensitivity, the less time your shutter needs to remain open, which can also mean the difference between hand-holding your camera and needing a tripod. If higher ISO settings have so many benefits, you might ask, why on earth would we ever use a lower one?
The answer to that question lies in the one big drawback of high ISOs: grain (film) and noise (digital). Lower ISO settings will give your images a smoother look, while higher ISO settings will have noticeable spots all over the image. With some images, especially black and white images, this may be a desired effect, but for the majority of photographs it is distracting (digital noise is especially unpleasant). The second major drawback of high ISO settings is a decrease in color saturation.
So, keeping these benefits and drawbacks in mind, which ISO setting should you use in which situation? For bright outdoor settings or for flash photography, start at ISO 100. If your aperture and shutter speeds are correct and the image is too bright, turn the ISO down to 50 and try again; if it is too dark, crank it up to 200. One of the truly beautiful things about shooting with a digital camera is the ability to change the ISO setting after any and every image. With film cameras, the entire roll of film has the same ISO setting, so if you need to change ISO, you have to change the roll (not counting pushing and pulling, which we won’t get into here). This was one of the reasons, along with having different focal length lenses readily available, that professional sports and wedding photographers in the age of film often had two or more cameras slung around their necks. Some camera models’ lowest numbered setting is 200, so that would be your base setting for bright situations.
For indoor shots, try starting at 200 if the area is well-lit; begin at 400 if it is normally-lit. Going as high as 800 or even 1600 in dark settings, such as churches, galleries, and the like, is not uncommon, and also works particularly well for getting great mood shots of birthday candles being blown out or of holiday lights. Expect to get considerable noise in any images taken above ISO 800, though the amount varies considerably by camera make and model. Some professional cameras can capture images at ISO 3200 and above with almost no noise, while other digital models have considerable noise at ISO 800. Play with your camera to discern where its acceptable-noise-threshold is. The newer the camera, the higher you are likely to be able to go before you encounter noise. Like all things digital, improvements in noise reduction are developing at a mind-blowing pace.
Learning to use your ISO settings will greatly enhance your ability to capture the images you want to capture – even if you keep your aperture and shutter speeds on auto. Like almost everything else in photography, once you understand the basics of how it works, you can then break the rules to create a wide range of effects. One word of advice, though: when you are done shooting, be sure to return the camera to whatever ISO setting you decide to have as your “normal” setting (usually ISO 100 or 200). There is nothing quite like firing off those perfect images the next time around, only to discover that you left your camera set at ISO 3200 -- and your images look nothing like what you expected! (I will neither confirm nor deny that this warning stems from personal experience. Ahem.)
November’s Monthly Specials
It’s that time of year -- get 15% off of our boxed Christmas cards when you order from our specials page. Each box contains 10 cards; 2 each of 5 different designs. There are no limits on quantities, so stock up now!
Bonus special: Get a free 5-pack of Christmas cards when you spend $100 or more through December 15!
November’s Fun Facts
November’s full moon, falling this year on the 28th, is known in some Native American tribes as the Beaver Moon. Beavers, which do not hibernate, are especially active this time of year building and repairing their lodges and dams in preparation for winter. Since they are also nocturnal, most of this activity occurs at night, by moonlight.
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CITY ESCAPES Nature Photography, LLC
www.cityescapesphotography.com
509-396-5154
