D5000 iso?

[2005magnum]

Just a little intellectual curiousity. I know that the D5000 has 3 low iso settings that are described in one text as the equivalent of about 100. 132 and 160. Why not just list them in the menu settings at these levels rather then the low settings? Just curious.
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http://digitalphotonut.zenfolio.com/

 

[rsmithgi]

Just a little intellectual curiousity. I know that the D5000 has 3 low iso settings that are described in one text as the equivalent of about 100. 132 and 160. Why not just list them in the menu settings at these levels rather then the low settings? Just curious.
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http://digitalphotonut.zenfolio.com/

As I understand it, every sensor has a base sensitivity setting that produces optimal results. I think Nikon is letting people know that you using the sensor at a setting that is not optimal. It will prevent unfair comparisons to other cameras that use sensors with 100 ISO as their base sensitivity.

 

[marbles504]

From what I understand, ISO200 is the native ISO sensitivity for most Nikon sensors. Anything below 200 (i.e. the 'lo' settings) or above the max (the 'Hi' settings) are somehow artificially created. There are drawbacks to these ISO levels, as you can see in the sensor reviews on dxomark. ISO Lo 1 seems to have reduced dynamic range while Hi 1 has an extreme amount of noise.

 

[PepsiCan]

All non-native ISO levels are created artificially

The Hi and Lo settings indeed indicate that these settings are possible but yield results with high noise levels. So, they are not ideal. But sometimes it is better to have the noisy shot then to have no shot.

If you keep the ISO setting on your camera between 200 and 1600 you will always get pictures that are viewable from a noise perspective. No guarantee you won't over expose or under expose due to other settings though