Auto ISO

<p>I would like to hear from people who have used auto ISO. I have always manually set it and normally shoot in Aperture priority or full manual when needed. I shoot with a D800 primarily and a backup D300. If you have shot using auto ISO and had good or bad results please let me know. Its one of those things I am curious about but just never tried.</p>

<p>Best advice is try it and see if you like it. I used it for a couple of weeks on 2 of my cameras, and decided it wasn't for me...basically a loss of control of a factor which was important to me. I can see some circumstances where it might be useful or desirable though, just not for me.</p>

<p>Between excellent high ISO performance and in-body image stabilization (IBIS), I find auto ISO very useful with a Sony A7Rii (or A7ii). I set an upper limit of 25,600, which is several stops higher than I would consider useful with my Nikon D3. I use it in conjunction with aperture priority (mandatory for manual lenses). Allowing ISO to float, the shutter speed can be kept fast enough to work well with IBIS. It's one less thing to worry about.</p>

<p>Some applications require a fixed ISO. These include landscapes (for enlargement), group photos (for consistency), use with non-TTL flash, copying and table-top setups.</p>

<p>I'm sure Nikon ISO performance has improved beyond the D3. There's no one answer, you have to try it and see how it works for you. In any case, it's not just a last resort any more, but another tool in your kit.</p>

<p>Please excuse me if this is a repeat of what I just posted but, it didn't look like it got sent. I have used Auto ISO with my D800e in situations where I wanted to have control over both shutter speed and aperture. It seems to work well. Last year on a photo safari to Africa, with the D800e and a Tamron 150-600 was the main experience. I wanted to use the lens stopped down a little bit and maintain a fairly high shutter speed to counter act the fact that I was shooting from a vehicle with others in it and with minimal support for the big lens. I used a monopod, vibration compensation turned on, auto ISO with a max of 3200, f8, and 1/1250 sec. and set the camera exposure mode at M. Exposure was adjusted by the floating ISO. There were situations when it was necessary to get out of that method of shooting but, overall, I was very pleased with the result.</p>

I once shot my D700 at 1600

ISO for 2 days in fairly

bright sunlight without

realising, and without any

adverse affect on the

pictures. The D800 has better

high ISO image quality, so I

wouldn't hesitate to use auto

ISO with a set upper limit of

1600 or 3200.

 

 

Like others have suggested,

just try it. It's not like

it's going to cost anything

except a little time.

<p>Ken Rockwell is a proponent of auto ISO. I go back and forth. There are some situations, particularly with highly variable light, where I can stay in aperture priority and not sweat the impact of a fixed ISO. At other times, particularly with very detailed landscapes, I put everything in manual mode, or at least keep the ISO fixed at 100 for the greatest possible detail. Experiment and see what works for you.</p>

<p>I don't know how this works on other cameras, but on the D3200 Auto ISO has some peculiarities that make it a bit inconvenient, quite apart from the fact that one cannot select it except by going into the menu. </p>

<p>One issue, not documented, is that when you set an upper limit for Auto ISO, you cannot select a higher ISO with the dial, without exiting Auto ISO. The ISO will show on the dial as a selection, but will not be used. So, for example, if you set your Auto ISO to a limit of 1600 and decide in a pinch that you need 3200 you cannot use it unless you exit Auto ISO. If you select 3200 on the dial it will still shoot at a max of 1600, but it will not warn you of this. </p>

<p>A second issue is that when in manual mode, Auto ISO will override your settings in favor of the meter if it can, making manual mode rather a joke. </p>

I use it for outdoor 5k road races all the time.. Aperture and shutter are important, but clouds and variation make manual

difficult at times. I set my aperture to f4, then walk my shutter speed up as fast as I can go with an ISO I like. If it's bright

out I'll get 1/1200th of a second, cloudy and I'll get 1/500th or so. My target ISO is usually around 400. That way if things

brighten up the camera will have room too to go to ISO 100 if things darken a bit it has room to go up in ISO. Plus I can

see the current ISO in the viewfinder so I can optimize shutter speed based on current ISO.

 

 

It's actually quite brilliant, I get the aperture I want, I control the shutter speed and the camera helps keep up with

changing lighting situations.

 

 

 

I'm using a d700 and a d750.

<p>I use it as a rule when I want to shoot in Manual mode, as I prefer to keep control of the shutter speed and aperture chosen, but have to shoot under circumstances with constantly changing light and there's no time on constantly adjust the shutterspeed and aperture.</p>

<p>Under those circumstances, and considering the subject ,<br>

e.g. catwalk http://www.pbase.com/paul_k/image/162166713<br>

fashion on outside location http://www.pbase.com/paul_k/image/162085894<br>

0r surf, shore to sea http://www.pbase.com/paul_k/image/129060792<br>

Auto ISO is ideal.</p>

<p>I don't use it under circumstances when I have total control of the light, or can take enough time to change my camera settings while shooting, eg in a studio http://www.pbase.com/paul_k/image/161552195 , or with portraits, stills, architecture, landscapes or other types of static subjects.</p>

<p>Auto ISO already was available with eg the D2X and D70S, but I only started using it with the D3 where it also became usable in Manual Mode and with the full range of shutter speeds, including those over 1/250th.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>It worked well for me on a D700, I just set the max for 3200, the highest I wanted it to go. It also work well on a GX7 (Panasonic M43) with the same setting. I haven't tried it much on the Fuji because the first couple of times I did, I didn't like the choices it made as to its settings in terms of shutter speed. I just need to dig into the manual and take on some of the settings there. I like to shoot in Aperture priority, I very seldom use manual, shutter or Program and the auto ISO can be very useful. But a lot of cameras make changing ISO manually very fast and easy.</p>

I use auto ISO a lot, especially when out and about sheeting 'on the fly'. It's great for keeping shutter speeds where you

want them relevant to the available light etc. However, I've recently come across issues when using auto ISO with flash (I

don't do much flash photography) as I've found that the camera sets the ISO based on the ambient light and ignores the

fact that there's a flash about to be used. I've recently had some images being shot with flash at ISO 6400, with some

resulting loss of IQ. Is the answer to set the ISO manually, meaning I will need to set the shutter speed manually too?

<p>I wish there was an easy way to turn auto ISO off and on. On the D7000 its deep in the menu settings - I have it saved to my menu which I pull up with the fn button, which make it easier (but that button is getting cluttered now) . I wonder why, when setting ISO manually, after you pass the highest or lowest setting auto doesn't turn up as an option? </p>

<p>Looking at my comment above, I realize my comment about manual exposure control fails to take into account those who use Auto ISO as a third component in automatic exposure control, which can make sense. But on the D3200, switching Auto on and off is tedious, exposure compensation is disabled, and information on meter decisions is not given before the exposure. On the other hand, manual ISO changing is very convenient. Thus, on this camera at least, it seems easier to keep an eye on ISO and change it manually when necessary, than to fuss with the menu when one wants to disobey the meter in manual mode.</p>

<p>My D7100 it is easy to turn AUTO ISO on and off. Pressing the ISO button and turning front wheel it goes AUTO and not-AUTO without going to Menu. ISO can be chancedwith back wheel similarly.</p>

<p>My first SLR didn't have aperture priority, but later on my first Nikon was an FE with the A mode. Further down the road Shutter Priority became available with the Nikon FA and AI-S lenses where the camera can control the aperture automatically. Auto ISO is merely the continuation of that trend once SLRs became digital so that ISO can change from frame to frame, no longer limited by film speed.</p>

<p>I definitely wouldn't use auto ISO when you have full control of the light and are in no hurry. In fact, the M mode may be best when you have time to adjust everything. I use auto ISO a lot for action photography, such as my spring hummingbird in flight images. My lens tends to be wide open (especially with my relatively slow 200-500mm/f5.6 in these days, I can't afford to stop down). Auto ISO helps me to maintain a minimum shutter speed to stop the action as much as I can. However, when I have a static subject, such as the hummingbird standing image I posted to Monday in Nature this week, I use a low ISO to improve quality and also slow down the shutter speed: http://static.photo.net/attachments/bboard/00d/00dr7j-562019484.jpg</p>

<p>In these days with the D7200, I wouldn't mind using ISO within 2000. With the D750, I can sometimes get decent results at ISO 4000 or so.</p>

<p>I tried auto today while capturing birds on my deck using the D800 and Tamron 150-600 and I must say I ended up with some great results. I had always shot with ISO of 200 but auto bumped it up to 1100 at time and I still got great results. I admit seeing the ISO creep up there concerned me but the D800 handled it beautifully.</p>

<p>D800 F8 1/640 ISO 1600 Tamron 150-600@600</p>

<p> </p><div></div>

<p>I use Auto ISO routinely in M mode (D7100/D7200). That gives me direct control over shutter speed and aperture. If desired, it is easy to see when you are at base ISO or at the high set point from the under/over exposure indicator in the viewfinder. Someone complained about difficulty turning Auto ISO on/off but I don't see the problem. First, to go beyond the high limit simply underexpose and lift in post. Since these cameras are ISO-less at high ISO there is no penalty. Secondly, one can easily save Auto ISO on/off using U1/2.</p>

<p>Nick, it depends on the camera. On the D7100 it's very easy, and the display is more informative. It's also less noisy than some at higher ISO.</p>

<p>On the D3200 and probably others of its ilk, it's a nuisance. It can only be done from the menu - not even from the menu - and although the ISO flashes in the display when it is changed, the display does not tell what ISO has been chosen. On the other hand, on this camera the [Fn] button, which can be set to change ISO, is well placed and convenient. Other users may disagree, but I usually find it much easier to leave it on manual, keep an eye on it, and change it as needed. </p>

<p>well, if it is different on the D3200 that would explain it. I've never used that camera.</p>

<p>i use auto ISO mainly while in manual mode on a DX camera (D300s). it basically allows me to change shutter and aperture as necessary and maintain consistent exposure. i have the Fn button set to toggle auto-ISO on and off if i want to use flash, wish there was a faster workaround but the D300s doesnt have a custom setting button. With the D3s i usually set ISO manually since i tend to shoot at higher ISO values with that body, and the camera is biased toward the higher end of the spectrum. on the D300s i rarely go above ISO 1600.</p>

<p>Nick -<br>

On the D7000 auto does not show up as an option when you hold down the ISO button and turn either the front or rear control dial. I am glad Nikon has changed that in the D7100/d7200 cameras. I find it frustrating when I want to turn it on and off quickly - so, most of the time I leave it off and change ISO manually.</p>

<p>On the D70S, and maybe others, auto ISO also turns on auto flash, which I normally don't want.</p>

<p>I now have a D200, and also don't use auto ISO. It isn't that hard to change. <br>

For indoors, usually without flash, I have it on 1600. Outdoors usually around 400.</p>

<p>Auto ISO on newer Nikons are amazing. I don't know how it works in other systems, but I won't be surprised if it's quite similar. The old way of shooting in Manual just doesn’t hack it anymore. The only time I don’t use Auto ISO, is when I use a tripod for long exposures.</p>

 

When handholding a camera, you should decide on the right Aperture and the right Shutter speed for the appropriate shot. In practice, you should always first decide on the Aperture and then decide what’s the lowest Shutter speed you can deal with. With those two settings decided, you have to vary ISO to ensure correct exposure.

 

Here’s how Auto ISO will work perfectly for virtually every handheld situation:

 

- Set camera to Aperture priority mode

- Auto ISO settings:

 

- ISO Sensitivity Settings > Auto ISO<br /> - ISO > Speed to 100<br /> - ISO > Maximum Sensitivity (set to the highest number you can live with)<br /> - ISO > Minimum Shutter Speed to about 1/125 or higher such as 1/1000 if you’re shooting action<br /><br />

A. With the camera settings established, here’s how to shoot IN CHANGEABLE LIGHTING SITUATIONS:

- Decide on an Aperture

- Take test shots and make adjustments using Exposure Compensation

- Happily shoot away, knowing that the Aperture will stay where you set it, the Shutter speed will vary, but never go below your minimum

- When there isn't enough light and your Shutter speed has bottomed out, the camera will automatically adjust the ISO higher

 

B. When the LIGHTING IS FIXED and you want to keep everything steady:

- Set your Standby timer (c2 in my D750 menu) to 10 minutes - this will retain AE-L for at least 10 minutes<br />- Assign the AE-L/AF-L button (f4 in my D750 menu) to AE Lock (Hold) - when camera times out, exposure lock is lost<br />

- Do exactly as in A above, but once your test shots look good with no blown out details, lock the exposure setting by pressing the AE-L/AF-L button (It will be retained for at least 10 minutes)

 

- You can make small adjustments by using Exposure compensation

 

C. When using a tripod and you don’t care how long the exposures are:

- Don’t use Auto ISO

- Set camera to Aperture priority mode

- Decide on an Aperture<br />- Let the camera pick the appropriate Shutter speed

- You can make small adjustments by using Exposure compensation