iso

Michael Zhang

Nikon D5 Rumored to Pack 4K and a Native Max ISO of 102,400

The Nikon D4s' first birthday was only a few months ago, but rumors are already emerging about an upcoming D5 DSLR that'll succeed it. Some of the specs being discussed are intriguing: the D5 will supposedly offer 4K video recording and an impressive native max ISO of 102,400.

Michael Archambault

Review: The Nikon D7200 is the More Sensitive and Sociable Sibling of the D7100

Nikon’s D7000 lineup of enthusiast level cameras is currently the highest one can go before moving onto a full-frame FX series body. The company’s latest creation, the Nikon D7200, provides incremental improvements upon the previous model while also upping the standards for low-light performance in enthusiast DSLR camera systems. In a world of connected mobile devices, Nikon has also added WiFi and NFC for smarter access to photographs.

Michael Archambault

Film vs Digital: A Comparison of Pros and Cons

In a world in which photographs are primarily taken with digital image sensors, there are a growing number of photographers who are newly interested in film formats of the past. But why would anyone in our age of technological convenience still choose to shoot with analog film?

DL Cade

Dixie Dixon Tells the Nightmarish (Now Funny) Story Behind One of Her First Huge Production Shoots

It's easy to assume the successful photographers in the industry have always had it figured out. Commercial shoots fell in their laps and they took to the experience like they were born with a Hasselblad in their hands. But that, of course, is not always the case.

In the episode of Behind the Glass above, Nikon Ambassador Dixie Dixon tells the tale of one of her first major campaign shoots... and how it almost went terribly wrong.

Gannon Burgett

The Manual App Gives You Full Manual Control of All Your iPhone’s Camera Settings

The now-public iOS 8 brings about a number of updated features that give users more control than ever before, and one of the most talked-about ones is the ability for developers to integrate full manual control of the camera into their applications.

A number of major camera apps have already done that, but there’s a new app out that focuses on full manual controls and full manual controls alone: it’s called (go figure) Manual, and without any extra bells or whistles, it emphasizes giving you complete control over you iOS device’s camera without any other distractions.

Kristian Dowling

What Photographers are NOT Considering When Using High ISO

It’s no secret now that modern cameras have taken photographers to new heights with their ability to shoot at and above ISO 1600. Personally, I can now shoot in situations where previously, I ‘had no choice’ but to use flash or put the camera down, so it’s no surprise many photographers are taking advantage of high ISO to be able to shoot in poor existing light.

Gannon Burgett

Back to the Basics: ISO and Noise Explained

As photography technology continues to improve year in and year out, the ISO ranges we’re capable of pulling quality images from are getting truly ridiculous. But as amazing as the improvements in ISO are, it's important to have an understanding of what ISO actually is and how you can make the most of these growing numbers.

It's those questions that Mike Wallace tackles in the detailed video above, as he breaks down that part of the exposure triangle that is all too often misunderstood or ignored altogether.

Gannon Burgett

Back to Basics: Short Walkthrough Covers the Exposure Triangle for Beginners

When you're first learning the basics of photography, one of the first things you find out about after dropping out of 'auto' is the exposure triangle.

Consisting of shutter speed, aperture, and ISO, the exposure triangle is a system that takes into account each of those variables, making exposure adjustments a breeze when you need to change one of the variables for a particular situation (say, freezing motion or achieving a shallow depth of field).

Gannon Burgett

Sony’s A7s Put Through a Production Level Low Light Test, Continues to Impress

We’ve shown you the incredible low-light capabilities of Sony’s 4K-capable A7s camera before. But for the most part, the previously-released tests were fairly static and didn't offer much in way of production-level footage.

EOS HD's Yosh Enatsu took note of this fact, and decided to put together an impressive production-level comparison to show you just how well this mirrorless beast can handle the dark.

Gannon Burgett

The Sony A7s Gets Taken for a Spin at ISO 409,600

Sony announced the full-frame mirrorless A7s earlier this week. And while its 4K video capability was arguably the most touted feature, we were more intrigued by the 12-megapixel sensor that tops out at a ridiculous ISO of 409,600 ... almost half a million ISO ... in a mirrorless camera.

So, how does footage (and therefore images) look at 409,600 on the A7s? Well, Sony commissioned Den Lennie to show it off.

Ignacio Cángelo

Using ISO 100 for Concert Photography: Is it Possible?

Have you ever heard of the "4 Seconds" myth in concert photography? Well, probably not, because I made this phenomenon up as a play on words with the 4 Leaf Clover "Myth." The 4 Seconds Myth talks about the fact that there’s a maximum period of time at just a few concerts when you can in fact shoot at crisp, noiseless ISO 100.

DL Cade

How Far We’ve Come: Comparing the ISO Capabilities of Nikon’s D70 and D600

After Toronto-based artist Kyle Clements put together his popular D600 sensor dust time-lapse, he began receiving many questions about how his new camera stacked up against the D70 he used up until that point.

Rather than continue to answer questions individually, he's decided to start putting together YouTube videos for the most popular ones, starting with the ISO comparison above.

DL Cade

Rumor: Almost Official Canon 70D to Set a New Benchmark in ISO Performance

As the Canon EOS 60D gets ready to make way for its big brother at an announcement expected later tonight, more info is leaking about the soon-to-be official 70D. In addition to the whole list of leaked specs and pictures from last week, we're now hearing that the camera will set "a new benchmark" when it comes to ISO performance.

Michael Zhang

Use ISO Numbers That Are Multiples of 160 When Shooting DSLR Video

Technicolor just released a new Picture Profile for Canon DSLRs, and recommended that ISO be used in multiples of 160. Andrew Schär decided to test this using his Canon 60D, and found that in terms of the amount of noise present in the footage, ISO numbers that are multiples of 160 are best (i.e. least noise), followed by multiples of 100, and finally multiples of 125 being worst.

Michael Zhang

Lower ISO Doesn’t Always Lead to Higher Quality Images

When learning about ISO, you've probably heard that the lower the number, the lower the noise and the higher the image quality, but did you know that this isn't always the case? The reason is something called the base (or native) ISO of a camera -- the ISO achieved without amplifying the data from the sensor. This is usually somewhere between ISO 100 and ISO 200.

Michael Zhang

Freeze Your Camera for Less Noise

Last Friday an anonymous poster on the photography board of 4chan sparked a discussion that rippled into the blogosphere after freezing their camera to see whether ISO performance improves at lower temperatures.