Auto ISO...

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Craig
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Hi guys hopefully this is a simple fix but does anyone know how to setup auto ISO just to use the proper ISO range on a D810? Sometimes i'm getting back and seeing that the camera has used ISO 220 or 450 or weird ISO's. I just basically want it to use ISO 64, 80, 100, 125, 160, 200, 250, 320 etc. I have capped it out at 3200 but is there anyway to just use the normal ISO range and not all the weird in between ISO's? Noticing more noise with the weird ISO's. Any help would be appreciated.
 



Hi Craig, I'll try to explain …

  1. Auto ISO is used mainly when SS and ƒ are set and should not change.
  2. Auto ISO must have these "weird ISO's" as you want the correct exposures
  3. Auto ISO may be working in a limited range when set in the camera shooting
    menu where you may set the maximum sensitivity and the minimum SS
HTH! :cool:
 
On Canon for iso steps you can select 1/2 or 1/3 increments..........AFAIK when in auto iso it 'respects' that chosen setting. Though I have not checked ~ but fairly sure it has shown expected(?) figures i.e. no weird numbers!

But based on Daniel's insight it seems Nikon have a different approach???
 
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it seems Nikon have a different approach???


I would not believe so, Laurence — though I'm not familiar with other sys-
tems than Nikon's.

When the SS and ƒ stop are selected in M mode, adjustments are taken
over by the Auto ISO. A "weird value" may be read initially and this value
will go up or down in half or third increment, as selected. This is important
for making sure the exposure will be relatively constant throughout the
shooting séquence.

I do not think it would be wise to temper with the maximum flexibility of the
Auto ISO feature as it could not go for the best (though weird) value for any
given shooting situation.
 
Thanks Kodiak and Box. I was thinking that there wasn't much I could do in regards to this problem. In the future I will set ISO to a solid number and have the camera in Aperture mode. Then the shutter speed will change and no crazy noise with the weird ISO ranges. Thanks for your help guys ;)
 
I was thinking that there wasn't much I could do in regards to this problem. In the future I will set ISO to a solid number and have the camera in Aperture mode. Then the shutter speed will change and no crazy noise with the weird ISO ranges.


As you know, photography is a constant compromise business. There
is a price to pay for all changes in setup. That price may vary hugely
depending on the type of photograpy and conditions you're after.

The only fixed values one may set in the Auto ISO is the lowest and
highest values and the increments.

If you go the Aperture Priority mode with fixed ISO, it is the SS that will
give you the "weird numbers"!
 
Very true mate but I just notice much more noise when the ISO is at a weird number than at native. I can cope with a little shutter invariance as long as it stays above 1/1000th or so. I will just adjust iso accordingly. Thanks for your help Kodiak!
 
I just notice much more noise when the ISO is at a weird number than at native.


The noise appearance is "weirdness values" independent
but is somewhat linear and follows the values as they go
up, weird or not. Have a good time, buddy! :cool:
 
So best thing to do is shoot completely manual settings haha? I guess the dynamic range of these newer cameras would allow me to be a stop or 2 out.

Basically I'm shooting football and it's difficult enough trying to predict the action as well as getting exposure spot on so that's why I used auto iso. I'm going to try completely manual on the next game and see what happens haha
 
So best thing to do is shoot completely manual settings haha? I guess the dynamic range of these newer cameras would allow me to be a stop or 2 out. Basically I'm shooting football and it's difficult enough trying to predict the action as well as getting exposure spot on so that's why I used auto iso. I'm going to try completely manual on the next game and see what happens haha

Sports and wildlife have very much in common. I use this setup…
  • M mode
  • Matrix metering
  • ƒ 8
  • 1/1000 or < than
  • Auto ISO: 100/min, 1600/max
  • BBF
  • Single point AF-C H
  • Use the EV +/- to tweak the metering
And yes, your D810 can cope quite well most situation with it's
12+ stops in DR!
 
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Thanks Kodiak I'm going to tweak a few of my settings to match yours and see how I get on. The D810 is a brilliant camera for DR so I think I can nail most shots with the new settings. We shall see. Thanks again for all your help.
 
I found this very(?) technical academic study FWIW none of the graphical representations are fully linear.

http://theory.uchicago.edu/~ejm/pix/20d/tests/noise/noise-p3.html

So does that mean the internal processing (amplification) is handled by rounding to ensure noise is under better control, i.e. if it uses those "weird" intermediate numbers then noise suppression is not so refined because of non linearity???

Completely left field ~ I vaguely recall in my youth when building valve radio & repairing them that the rheostat (variable resistors for the likes of volume controls) choice was best to buy a linear one but the cheaper non linear ones were also used :LOL:
 
When the camera is in control of SS/ISO it can use settings that cannot be selected manually. Normally, this is a good thing as it makes the exposure that much more accurate. However, some cameras apply secondary (digital?) amplification for intermediate ISOs and they can show more noise (Nikon D3s/D5, many Canons, etc), but the D810 is not one of them. I don't think you should be seeing more noise at intermediate ISOs, if shooting RAW it is possible that it is the processing profile that is being applied. Nikon's own software tends to do a better job than other programs IME (but not enough for me to use it normally).

The full DR capability only exists when some pixels are fully saturated, i.e. the DR is from min to max saturation. Generally speaking, the DR capability decreases at about a 1:1 rate as ISO is increased... this is not due to the ISO per-se, it is due to collecting/recording less light. I.e. using base ISO/ISO invariance does not maintain/increase the DR capability.
 
I think you are right Steve, that does make sense. I'm going to just shoot and change a few things because I think maybe i'm being a bit too picky here. When I look back at photos i'm mostly happy with them so I shouldn't worry too much. Thanks for the comment it does make sense now.
 
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