Post by Snappersforum on Jul 24, 2013 6:02:39 GMT
Your camera's ISO setting controls how sensitive its sensor is to the light that reaches it. It is one of the crucial factors which goes into determining a photograph's exposure as well as the overall image quality.
A higher ISO setting makes your sensor more sensitive to light, meaning that you can take photos in darker conditions without the need to use a flash or tripod. However, a high ISO also creates more noise, reducing the image quality.
Most digital cameras can automatically adjust their ISO setting to give an acceptably sharp image when hand-holding your camera. However, you will often need more control than this, which is why it's important to have a good understanding of camera ISO and how it affects your shots.
However, increasing your camera's ISO speed comes at a cost - it also increases the amount of digital noise present in your photo. Noise is the digital equivalent of film grain, and it shows up as lots of tiny coloured dots, which are particularly noticeable in the darker areas of your photo.
Using a wider aperture or a tripod may be a better option than increasing ISO because both will help you to shoot in low-light conditions, but without deteriorating image quality. However, ISO speed is a setting that can rescue your photos in situations where neither of these is a realistic option.
You can of course clean up noise using your editing software and there are plenty of stand alone options for this on the market.
A higher ISO setting makes your sensor more sensitive to light, meaning that you can take photos in darker conditions without the need to use a flash or tripod. However, a high ISO also creates more noise, reducing the image quality.
Most digital cameras can automatically adjust their ISO setting to give an acceptably sharp image when hand-holding your camera. However, you will often need more control than this, which is why it's important to have a good understanding of camera ISO and how it affects your shots.
However, increasing your camera's ISO speed comes at a cost - it also increases the amount of digital noise present in your photo. Noise is the digital equivalent of film grain, and it shows up as lots of tiny coloured dots, which are particularly noticeable in the darker areas of your photo.
Using a wider aperture or a tripod may be a better option than increasing ISO because both will help you to shoot in low-light conditions, but without deteriorating image quality. However, ISO speed is a setting that can rescue your photos in situations where neither of these is a realistic option.
You can of course clean up noise using your editing software and there are plenty of stand alone options for this on the market.