ISO, how high do you go :)

[Uncle Kevriano]

Up until recently I used to limit my ISO to 10k max, as I felt that this was really the highest acceptable (to me), but I decided to remove the limit to see if I got a bit better exposure when I had no choice nut to go high. Anyway, without realising, the attached shot was taken at 20000. I would not normally keep it, but they are rather cute Mandarin Chicks and I loved the setting. I have added the orifginal shot, without any noise reduction, and then the processed image where I used Topaz Denoise, with some pretty high reduction and sharpening settings. I don't think it came out bad, though I'd never print it. Fine for online though I reckon. Thoughts?

• ILCE-7RM4
• FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS
• 394.0 mm
• ƒ/10
• 1/800 sec
• ISO 20000

• ILCE-7RM4
• FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS
• 394.0 mm
• ƒ/10
• 1/800 sec
• ISO 20000

 

[alexpler]

I set the max iso 12800 to make sure it's an usable image, and I aim for 6400 or lower when in low light conditions.

 

[Richard A]

Having been a slow speed colour slide film user for 30 odd years, I tend to keep my ISO pretty low just from habit. I have been using digital cameras for over 20 years now & can’t remember ever going over 6400. Image stabilisation is so good now & I rarely shoot in low light without a tripod. Best to do some tests with your software of choice to set yourself a limit I reckon.

 

[spudhead]

Kev my cameras are all set to 10,000 -12800 max but in use I seldom like more than 6,400 and less if possible

 

[DaveC Oz]

I used to keep my ISO quite low, however getting into astrophotography has altered my mindset a bit. For my stacked astro shots I will go as high as 10000. When shooting horse riding shows at indoor arenas I'll often leave my ISO on auto to get the shots I need, however these are mostly shots that will only ever be viewed on phones, or tablets, so noise is less critical. Generally I try to operate below 2500, but there are many times that I would rather get a noisy shot than no shot at all.

 

[Alan Clark]

I used to keep my ISO quite low, however getting into astrophotography has altered my mindset a bit. For my stacked astro shots I will go as high as 10000.

That is probably not a good idea. For astrophotogrphy you want a high signal to noise ratio, The signal strength is determined purely by the exposure, not the ISO, which is about how much the signal from the sensor is amplified before being converted from analogue to digital - a process which adds noise. The sensitivity of the sensor cannot be changed, and is always close to 90%, unlike film photography, where the ISO does indicate the sensitivity of the film.
It is all rather complicated, but the greater the exposure time the better. Tthis gives more info:-

Best ISO values for Sony cameras

Suggested ISO values for Sony cameras for astrophotography

dslr-astrophotography.com

 

[Richard A]

That site is very out of date unfortunately.

 

[Paul stuart]

recently shot a pooch for some one at iso 12,800 as it was indoor dark lit room and a subject that rarely sat still i am sure i could of gone higher as i prefer a sharp grainy image i had noticed that i had my limit set at 12,800 .The grain for me is non issue it is the colour rendition that is a killer i always get a cast at really high iso,s

 

[Loke]

Up until recently I used to limit my ISO to 10k max, as I felt that this was really the highest acceptable (to me), but I decided to remove the limit to see if I got a bit better exposure when I had no choice nut to go high. Anyway, without realising, the attached shot was taken at 20000. I would not normally keep it, but they are rather cute Mandarin Chicks and I loved the setting. I have added the orifginal shot, without any noise reduction, and then the processed image where I used Topaz Denoise, with some pretty high reduction and sharpening settings. I don't think it came out bad, though I'd never print it. Fine for online though I reckon. Thoughts?

View attachment 63800View attachment 63801

This looks very good to be at ISO 20000 in my opinion. I would maybe considering setting my max ISO higher after seeing this, im usually at 12.800.

In this particular image tho, you could prob get your ISO way lower with other settings, but you probably already know that

 

[evacguy]

Up until recently I used to limit my ISO to 10k max, as I felt that this was really the highest acceptable (to me), but I decided to remove the limit to see if I got a bit better exposure when I had no choice nut to go high. Anyway, without realising, the attached shot was taken at 20000. I would not normally keep it, but they are rather cute Mandarin Chicks and I loved the setting. I have added the orifginal shot, without any noise reduction, and then the processed image where I used Topaz Denoise, with some pretty high reduction and sharpening settings. I don't think it came out bad, though I'd never print it. Fine for online though I reckon. Thoughts?

View attachment 63800View attachment 63801

The denoised image is certainly good enough for use in social media. Very nice shot. With my A7iv, I usually accept a maximum ISO of 12800 and no higher. For Astrophotography I use ISO 400 as the maximum.

 

[evacguy]

That is probably not a good idea. For astrophotogrphy you want a high signal to noise ratio, The signal strength is determined purely by the exposure, not the ISO, which is about how much the signal from the sensor is amplified before being converted from analogue to digital - a process which adds noise. The sensitivity of the sensor cannot be changed, and is always close to 90%, unlike film photography, where the ISO does indicate the sensitivity of the film.
It is all rather complicated, but the greater the exposure time the better. Tthis gives more info:-

Best ISO values for Sony cameras

Suggested ISO values for Sony cameras for astrophotography

dslr-astrophotography.com

For astrophotography with my A7iv I set my ISO to 400 as this gives me the highest dynamic range for the highset ISO. Check out the following link for more up to date info. https://www.photonstophotos.net/Charts/PDR.htm

 

[TerryL]

They are absolutely beautiful. The available light determines the iso and shutter speed. If it needs to be high, so be it. This morning I had to shoot at 6,000 to get the aperture, shutter speed, and exposure I needed. The birds are gone when the light is good.

 

[Uncle Kevriano]

Interesting answers, and I wouldn't have kept the settings this high if I'd realised I was at 20k. I can shoot handheld at 1/60th, but I actually thought there was more light at the time. I will go back to setting an upper limit, but I was surprised at the detail retained here. I only posted it as a demo of what is possible really.

 

[dav1d]

Not sure I've gone as high as 20000 however I've had great success at 6400 using DXO Pureraw

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

My auto-iso settings are 100-4000. I'd rather be nearer to 2000, though, photographing people who are not sitting still.

 

[DaveC Oz]

One reason that I tend to push my ISO setting in astrophotography is that nearly all my shots are stacked in Sequator which eliminates most of the noise. Having a higher ISO doesn't change the output much, but does allow me to get a better idea of the combined shot when reviewing the sequence in the field.

 

[FowlersFreeTime]

As an APSC user, I try to keep the ISO below 6400, and even then I use de-noise tools very often.

 

[Williams359]

For work, weddings and events I like to stay below 3200 as above that there can be work involved with editing and I am a lazy git.

 

[Tim Mayo]

Normally I'll limit it to 12800 but rarely use these shots for anything other than memories unless it was something very special like a dodo bird. I did push the ISO a little more recently shooting the tawny and was glad to get the shots but won't be printing anything. This was ISO 64000. I didn't even bother trying Topaz!

• ILCE-7RM5
• 500mm F5.6 DG DN OS | Sports 024
• 500.0 mm
• ƒ/5.6
• 1/60 sec
• ISO 64000

 

[Uncle Kevriano]

Normally I'll limit it to 12800 but rarely use these shots for anything other than memories unless it was something very special like a dodo bird. I did push the ISO a little more recently shooting the tawny and was glad to get the shots but won't be printing anything. This was ISO 64000. I didn't even bother trying Topaz!

View attachment 64138

More like a Snowy Owl with all that grain

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

This was ISO 64000. I didn't even bother trying Topaz!

AI denoise might have turned it into a tack-sharp sparrow!

It's a remarkable pic for what it is, at that iso. Well worth it.

Way down the scale at 4000, and always meant to be a shadowy composition that was going to be noisy (in fact I've brightened it up a bit too much, I must revisit), cleaned up with what is available in darktable...

• ILCE-7M4
• SAMYANG AF 135mm F1.8
• 135.0 mm
• ƒ/2.2
• 1/200 sec
• ISO 4000