ISO is the setting that seems to confuse beginners the most. I've developed some photography ISO settings guidelines that have helped my students understand it better.
The basic rule is use the lowest ISO possible for the situation. But that's not always practical. My photography ISO settings approach is to think of it as a trade off between noise and shutter speed/aperture.
Modern cameras handle high ISO much better than they used to. I'll happily shoot at ISO 3200 or even 6400 if I need to. The noise reduction software available now is incredible.
What's your philosophy on photography ISO settings? Do you have a maximum ISO you won't exceed? How do you handle noise in post?
ISO is so confusing. I just set it to auto and hope for the best. Should I be manually setting photography ISO settings? The photography ISO settings seem to make my pictures grainy when I raise them.
For landscape photography ISO settings: keep it as low as possible. Since you're usually on a tripod, you can use base ISO (100 or 200) and longer exposures.
My landscape photography ISO settings rule: only raise ISO if you need to freeze motion in the scene (like leaves blowing). Otherwise, use a tripod and keep ISO low for maximum quality.
Street photography ISO settings: don't be afraid to raise it. Street photography often happens in less than ideal light. I'll use ISO 1600, 3200, even 6400 if needed to get the shot.
Modern cameras handle high ISO well. A little grain can add to the street aesthetic. My street photography ISO settings philosophy: get the shot first, worry about noise later.
Photography ISO settings in the exposure triangle: ISO affects image quality (noise) while aperture affects depth of field and shutter speed affects motion. You have to balance all three.
My photography ISO settings approach: set aperture for desired depth of field, shutter speed for desired motion effect, then adjust ISO for proper exposure. That's the logical photography ISO settings workflow.
High photography ISO settings can affect color accuracy. Noise reduction algorithms sometimes smear color details. At very high photography ISO settings, colors can become less accurate.
My photography ISO settings advice: test your camera at different ISOs to see where color degradation becomes noticeable. Every camera model has different photography ISO settings performance.
Photography ISO settings relationship with shutter speed: higher ISO allows faster shutter speeds to freeze motion. Lower ISO might require slower shutter speeds, leading to motion blur.
My photography ISO settings rule for action: raise ISO enough to get the shutter speed you need for the motion you're capturing. A sharp noisy shot is better than a clean blurry one.