Still struggling with auto iso setup on D90

[toomanycanons]

I can see why, in some genres, auto iso would be useful, but again I've never used auto iso. I've always manually set the lowest iso I could get away with and changed it as needed, manually

At this point I couldn't imagine using auto iso, manually choosing my iso setting is such an ingrained part of my shooting workflow, no matter how "smart" today's cameras are at doing auto iso right

I'm sure the auto iso feature on my Z6 works just fine but...I'll never care to find out

 

[David Lal]

You could change film with a Hasselblad CM 500 like mine. You just put the dark slide in to the camera body then swap out the A12 film back for another one loaded with different 120 film. Of course there was no automatic anything including metering. But that's where my Gossen Luna-Pro came in handy.

Ha ha! That's why I included that little word 'usually'! I was/am not sufficiently well-heeled to afford a Hassie. I had a Kowa 6x6 with no removable back but also a Mamiya 645 for which, indeed, I did have two backs containing different film. I could swap the backs as you describe. Very expensively I acquired a metering top-prism for that camera - otherwise, like you, I had a Gossen (Sixtar).

I rather liked those days where one really did have to know what one was doing to get good results

 

[Blufftonian]

You could change film with a Hasselblad CM 500 like mine. You just put the dark slide in to the camera body then swap out the A12 film back for another one loaded with different 120 film. Of course there was no automatic anything including metering. But that's where my Gossen Luna-Pro came in handy.

Ha ha! That's why I included that little word 'usually'! I was/am not sufficiently well-heeled to afford a Hassie. I had a Kowa 6x6 with no removable back but also a Mamiya 645 for which, indeed, I did have two backs containing different film. I could swap the backs as you describe. Very expensively I acquired a metering top-prism for that camera - otherwise, like you, I had a Gossen (Sixtar).

I rather liked those days where one really did have to know what one was doing to get good results

I wasn’t exactly well-heeled back then either but my girlfriend (now wife) was a budding portrait photographer and “needed” a Hasselblad. I don’t think she’s touched this camera in about 30 years but I’ve been making good use of it since.

 

[Blufftonian]

I can see why, in some genres, auto iso would be useful, but again I've never used auto iso. I've always manually set the lowest iso I could get away with and changed it as needed, manually

At this point I couldn't imagine using auto iso, manually choosing my iso setting is such an ingrained part of my shooting workflow, no matter how "smart" today's cameras are at doing auto iso right

I'm sure the auto iso feature on my Z6 works just fine but...I'll never care to find out

I understand. We all have set ways of doing things. Do you set aperture and shutter speed manually too?

With my photography, I set both aperture and shutter speed manually and basically let ISO float. I always have an eye on what the camera selects though and I strive to keep it as low as possible. But, having said that I’d rather have a shot with high ISO than no shot at all and I can fix many high ISO issues with post processing software.

 

[toomanycanons]

I can see why, in some genres, auto iso would be useful, but again I've never used auto iso. I've always manually set the lowest iso I could get away with and changed it as needed, manually

At this point I couldn't imagine using auto iso, manually choosing my iso setting is such an ingrained part of my shooting workflow, no matter how "smart" today's cameras are at doing auto iso right

I'm sure the auto iso feature on my Z6 works just fine but...I'll never care to find out

I understand. We all have set ways of doing things. Do you set aperture and shutter speed manually too?

With my photography, I set both aperture and shutter speed manually and basically let ISO float. I always have an eye on what the camera selects though and I strive to keep it as low as possible. But, having said that I’d rather have a shot with high ISO than no shot at all and I can fix many high ISO issues with post processing software.

I shoot manual at times (for a client that wants sets of pics per each location with the same settings) and on A if I'm shooting snapshots for myself, manually set iso value all the time

 

[Full Frame]

I do realize that not that everyone has the time or inclination as I did.

You surely can find lots of people as enthusiastic and diligent as you are in photography.

As for auto ISO, i would not recommend it for a beginner. It takes away from the learning experience.

Sounds like my Fuji friend, wanting to set up his X-T1 manually for every shot, got great results and thoroughly enjoying doing that. His X-T1 has great high ISO performance and he has a very steady hand, often taking photo at 1/15 sec, part of his manual setting.

He shot RAW when I first met him. He has since given that up and just shoots Jpeg.

We often discuss how to get a good shot. He found out that I often use full auto for outdoor scenic shots and P mode, auto ISO with flash for indoor. He wasn't impressed, but we always ended up with a good laugh.

We travel together a lot and that his images are always brilliant, but I am happy with what I got. I just didn't show him my bad ones.

Totally agree, with over 60 years of making memories it does not matter what you know, what equipment you have or what settings you use.

 

[Blufftonian]

I can see why, in some genres, auto iso would be useful, but again I've never used auto iso. I've always manually set the lowest iso I could get away with and changed it as needed, manually

At this point I couldn't imagine using auto iso, manually choosing my iso setting is such an ingrained part of my shooting workflow, no matter how "smart" today's cameras are at doing auto iso right

I'm sure the auto iso feature on my Z6 works just fine but...I'll never care to find out

I understand. We all have set ways of doing things. Do you set aperture and shutter speed manually too?

With my photography, I set both aperture and shutter speed manually and basically let ISO float. I always have an eye on what the camera selects though and I strive to keep it as low as possible. But, having said that I’d rather have a shot with high ISO than no shot at all and I can fix many high ISO issues with post processing software.

I shoot manual at times (for a client that wants sets of pics per each location with the same settings) and on A if I'm shooting snapshots for myself, manually set iso value all the time

As we all know, there are only three main user variables involved in metering with a DSLR, shutter speed, lens aperture and sensitivity/ISO. You and I both control two of these manually and let the camera pick the other. For my bird photography, shutter speed and aperture are more critical than ISO, which is why I let the D500 control it.

I also have a backup body, a D7200 normally with a DX 16-80 mounted. Mostly my wife uses it for portraits and landscapes. That one is set to aperture priority as that is the most critical value for what she does and she often sets the ISO manually.

It’s all good.

 

[WPMChan]

Totally agree, with over 60 years of making memories it does not matter what you know, what equipment you have or what settings you use.

Indeed, enjoy the challenge, enjoy the process and enjoy the results.

Digital cameras are really marvellous. No more costly film, prints and the week of wait and anxiety to see what I got.

 

[Bob A L]

Second, practice setting your own iso number. I've never used auto iso

Maybe you should. Using it is no different than letting the camera set f-stop or shutter speed. It’s just one of the three variables you need to control to get a good image. With fast moving subjects like birds, I don’t have the time to manually set all three, and depth of field and shutter speed are more important to me than ISO. I can fix noise from high ISO in post, but I can’t fix DOF or motion blur.

I turn it on for my wife's camera as she just wants to push the button, but I much prefer to set it myself for my camera. It's not really that tough and many times I am not happy with what my cameras choose when allowed to pick the iso.

 

[Blufftonian]

Totally agree, with over 60 years of making memories it does not matter what you know, what equipment you have or what settings you use.

Indeed, enjoy the challenge, enjoy the process and enjoy the results.

Digital cameras are really marvellous. No more costly film, prints and the week of wait and anxiety to see what I got.

I still have prints made and they - especially metal ones - can be expensive. But my clients like them.

 

[WPMChan]

I still have prints made and they - especially metal ones - can be expensive. But my clients like them.

True. I print regularly too, just for my album and for friends, and for display at home.

I got a Canon i9950 and printed up to A3. The i9950 is dying, the paper feeder has broken. I am now happy with the Epson four colour A4 printer. The inks are a lot cheaper too.

The ILFORD pearl paper is my favourite.

 

[Buanadha]

I have my cameras set to Manual with Auto ISO just about exclusively. And yes, the lower the ISO the better the quality of the image so I have it set at 100 on my D500. As for the max I set it very high. I don’t remember what I use to use on my old D90, but on my D500 I set it to 51200. I’m not sure it ever gets that high but I can fix a lot of noise with software. Take some photos at higher ISO values to figure out what you can live with as the max.

I mostly photograph birds so I use the shutter speed to control how much movement I want to stop. That typically means at least 1/1250 but often I’ll go higher and sometimes I’ll go lower, sometimes much lower if I want to see blur in the wings. I use the lens aperture to control depth of field and subject isolation. I also use exposure compensation a fair bit, especially for backlit subjects or all white, or all black, birds,

Everyone's mileage will vary, but I shoot a lot like you as I shoot a lot of birds. Manual settings with Auto ISO -- The D90 will have some significant weaknesses at high ISO versus the D500, but the D90 would be able to use Auto ISO and produce nice images

When I use a D300 I often set the high ISO limit at 1600 versus 3200 just because I don't like the images as much, but if you are out on a dark day, 3200 might be necessary, just be prepared to use a Topaz AI or something like it if you get a shot at 3200 ISO on the D90

- One more addition here, on the D300 I'll constantly be checking the histogram on the images after I take them to make sure my shutter/aperture isn't bumping too hard against the ISO limit I set.

On the older cameras I will go a bit slower for shutter speeds if it's dark or if I'm in the shade a lot (e.g., under a tree canopy by the River), but I like to target 1/1000 as a minimum with 1/800 for really dark spots where I hope for the best. I shoot a pretty long lens, so the shutter speed is both to keep from lens shake and to catch moving birds better

I did a lot of building/architecture pictures in Chicago, so came to like using spot metering as it also works well for Birds when I don't know what background they will be around.