Camera Basics 101: ISO

ISO is a very basic setting, that should be considered one of the top settings you will need to regularly adjust.  With digital cameras, the ISO pertains to how sensitive the sensor is to light.  The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the sensor will be and the brighter the image.  However, higher ISO's will introduce more noise.  Noise is the added grain that can ruin the sharpness and soften the image.

In the day's of film, ISO pertained to the film's sensitivity.  It used to be that you would have to change a roll of film to get a different sensitivity.

So how do you know which ISO to choose for an image?  Look at your content.

Noisy Image at ISO 3200 captured with Nikon D50

The High-ISO Revolution and why every photographer should jump on board

The new line of pro cameras with full frame sensors are allowing image capture at ISO's that never have even existed.  With both the new Nikon D3S and Canon's new 1D Mark IV bringing that amount to ISO 102,400!!!  The shots at this ISO are not very usable, but allow for shooting at fairly fast speeds in the dark!

One of my favorite shots to capture is a starred out sun with an athlete flying through the frame.  For me this shot has always been a compromise.  I trade noise for a perfect sun and a well-lit athlete.  Now with the new pro model I can capture the athlete at f/16 ISO 800(or higher) and a fast shutter speed to stop the action, with almost no noise!  For any event work/concert work, the fast lens will not be as large of an issue with one of these cameras.  The opportunities are limitless!

I will be purchasing the new D3S in the coming month and will be posting shots from it, along with video and video tutorials on this blog as soon as I can.  I look forward to offering viewers of allphotobuzz.com a new medium(video) to learn photography.  Enjoy!