The low ISO advice comes from the landscape photographers. Normally very low ISOs are used along very closed diaphragms to obtain the maximum quality possible. I think the problem is many of us started as landscape photographers due to it being easier and "cheaper", thus using basic cameras and lenses, which in turn need low ISO and stopping down to get decent images. Now that we allowed ourselves to buy that better camera and that expensive telephoto, we still carry some landscape/cheap mindset, but thankfully people like Jan help us out.
@@momo_the_great6969 I mean, having the shot is better than not having it, I think that doesnt depend on the camera, but yeah, old cameras benefit more from low iso I think
I rarely comment on TH-cam video's, but felt compelled to after watching this. In a world filled with useless information, this video stands out. Outstanding value for the time invested. Bravo.
This is a lesson that deserves repetition. Like many novices, I absorbed the common advice about the inherent superiority of "native ISO". For birding, I use an APSC sensor (Canon R7) with the RF 100-500 (F 7.1 at full zoom), so low light is always going to be an issue. But my default ISO is 1600, which I fine tune further if the birds cooperate and time permits. With this approach, I'm able to get noise-free images and large-format prints. And because I don't like monthly subscription software, I'm using DXO PL5 for both noise reduction and image editing, which I find to be a powerful combination with very a natural work-flow. Truth be told, I rarely have to go full out to achieve noise-free images, as in practice, the Deep Prime setting is generally reserved for shots at ISO 6400 or 12800.
As a wildlife photographer of over thirty years experience I agree with everything you’ve said in this film. You’ve highlighted all the key points perfectly😀 The only thing I would disagree with is in the use of Topaz De-Noise as I find their noise reduction kills noise at the expense of fine detail, this is something I don’t like in bird images because of the fine detail in birds feathers! Great advice and film Jan 👏👍😀
Very informative, in particular the use of a light background where possible, enjoy your videos like this one which explains your photography experiences in an understanding way.
Great Video Jan. On my micro four thirds camera I shoot manual, set my ISO to automatic and set the limit to 6400. my default shutter speed is 1/800. I also find that I get better images bumping up the ISO than I do using a wider aperture if light is an issue. I use DXO PL6.3 to edit and remove noise from the images - but often a little noise I find adds character to the image and I just leave it as is.
I have always used low ISO and fought doing anything else even though I have been disappointed with shots but next time I'm out I'm going to try higher ISO and a some creative post processing, thank you Jan
Since using Topaz denoise AI, I have started using high ISO images and the results are far superior as I get my desired images in difficult scenarios. Now with DXO pure raw and moving to Mirrorless , I worry less for ISO and concentrate on my sharpness and action sequences 😄. Thanks for a great video as usual. Would love to checkout your masterclass in near future ☺️
Agree. I use my star button when I need speed. You can set fixed value's for F stop, shutter speed and metering. Shutter speed is 2000, ISO on AUTO. At the moment I use spot for metering, to get a better exposure on the object. There is no time for exposure compensation. Use this now for a few weeks and it works for me.
Great tips!!! My cheat code. Aperture Priority with a minimum shutter speed set at 1/500, auto ISO (2000) max With these settings outdoors, I only need to worry about my DOF from f2.8-f11 Metering depends on whether there's blue skies or if the foilge matches my schedule (spot/matrix) I tend to have a very high hit rate.
I'm just learning and, yes, certainly got a lot of ridiculously dark photos because of my worry about going too high on ISO. I like to shoot manually but I finally surrendered to having the ISO be automatic. Much higher rate of usable photos. But regarding the TH-cam footage: this is the first time I have seen footage of gang-gangs in the wild and I am so envious! What a wonderful thing to share - thank you.
Great point Jan. I've been applying this philosophy for birds. One exception where I do like handholding slow shutters 1/100 or even below is when I photograph Bobcats. If they move all bets are off, but in very dark conditions when they sit still, I lay down, use my bag for support and fire away many shots.
Great video as always. I would add that as you move up with the ISO and enter the high ISO (danger 🤣) zone it is crucial to have your framing done right. High ISO images can be edited and cleaned nicely as long as cropping is minimal. The higher the ISO the better the framing and fieldcraft have to be. Which in some regions / with some animals is easier and with some very hard.
I love this kind of real advice, when you're bombarded with "truisms" like, "ONLY shoot low ISO!!!", "ONLY shoot wide open!!!", "ONLY shoot..." whatever or "DON'T over-edit" or any of the myriad of other absolutes you hear so often repeated that are detrimental to actually getting the shot or having any fun in the field. Great video, I look forward to more of your content.
Awesome video Jan! Since getting my R5, I have moved to full manual for shutter and aperture but auto-iso and it’s been a game changer. Like you said, the mirror less cameras and modern noise reduction SW really opens up a whole new world.
It's a welcome coincidence that both you and Simon d'Entremont posted videos on the dangers of low ISO in the space of a couple of days -- these are two of my favorite channels, and your explanations are mutually complementary. When it comes to the problems of Aperture Priority for shooting with shifting backgrounds, I've found that switching to Manual with Auto ISO improves things only if you have a separate dial for exposure compensation. My camera doesn't have one (I shoot on an A6600, and the only wheel is set to control shutter speed). When I'm shooting a bird against the sky, I add roughly one stop of light through exposure compensation to prevent the birds from looking too dark; but when the bird flies down against dark foliage, I must quickly bring the exposure compensation back, and there's no way of doing it fast enough for that particular context. Instead, I must choose in advance whether I want the bird against the sky or against the foliage, and give up on the alternative.
Steve Perry has said the same although suggests get the shot and then if time permits drop the shutter speed incrementally and see how low you can go. Dwayne Paton has said the same as I recall all excellent wild life photographers 😊
Very pertinent Jan. I recently missed a great opportunity for this exact reason. A group of us saw a brief altercation between Palm Cockatoos at Lockhart River. Surprisingly, no one had their cameras on the birds at the time, except for me. While I got some ok pics of an amazing moment, my relatively low shutter speed, in order to get a lower iso, compromised capturing something I am unlikely to ever see again - but very pleased to have seen it the once.
great video and a nice reminder! i recently shot tiger cubs in low light at at low shutter speed and the blurry images are killing me! while just 30 mins prior, i got an amazing sequence of tiger on a chase with high ISO high shutter speed. so, 100% agree to whatever u said in this video.
Everyone should watch this video before heading out on a photography expedition. Sums up all the important aspects to be taken care of. Thanks Jan for a detailed explanation 👍
Except, I don't agree fully with stopping down, unless like he said, it's a cheaper zoom. I own and have owned a few zooms, but none of them were cheap, in fact some were $7,000+ so some lenses are designed to be shot wide open. Of course I understand what he meant, but he should always preface facts or advice with both ends or sides of the story. I shoot wide open about 80% of the time on my 500mm f/4E VR FL, which granted was about an $11,000 lens. Most super-tele primes and some zooms at the higher-end are designed to be shot wide open, and the only reason to stop down is depth of field. I often shoot around water and use my drop-in CP filter in my 500mm, and or with my 1.4x TC, so I'm usually wide open, but if it's multiple targets or a large bird/plane/vehicle than of course stop down. Overall great video, but I'm not personally a fan of really high ISO images after editing. Jan is an expert at editing and uses photoshop and some techniques I personally DON"T agree with. I'm a photojournalist, so I live in the world of the ethics surrounding such editing techniques. I've never once combined multiple images, never added or subtracted anything, I don't even remove sensor dust spots, I just keep my gear in excellent/clean conditions. To each their own, especially since this is artwork, but I personally am not a fan of major edits. It's like cheat code mode, and most of his best examples are heavily edited in PS.
@@patricksmith2553 I’ve also wondered if “over-editing” is how I want to approach what for me is a hobby. I want to clean up photos but not create things that aren’t there.
I use 2 custom modes with slightly different settings for capturing still birds and flying birds I mainly use auto ISO, set F8 usually, then set EV comp as needed and adjust shutter based on bird size and semi auto focus
As a compromise I have a button configured to recall settings for high-IQ perched bird: ISO500 in A mode, so shutter speed is what is necessary. This setting is only active while the button is pressed. This way I can pick a low ISO shot in less than a second total and be back to settings appropriate for action.
I believe that any practical snapshot can be saved now, even those that are slightly out of focus, clipped, and so on. but there are not so many non-unique situations in life, you need to shoot!
I do use Aperture Priority for my butterfly shots (mostly F8) and then define a minimal shutter speed (at least 1/500) in combination with Auto ISO. My camera allows to use Auto ISO with a maximum set, this means: use Auto ISO but don't go higher than 1600. this works very well. Manual mode slows me down too much.
Another good one Jan. Learned the manual settings over aperture priority as you did, with moving subjects with changing backgrounds. Your saving others some grief here.
Excellent video. Starting with film in the 1970s, I started with Plus-X. Quickly moved on to Tri-X. Pushing it above native 400 ASA gave very grainy results. This mindset carried over to my digital work. Recently purchased DxO PureRAW2. Using ISOs above 3200 is no longer holding me back. Besides, noise only gets worse when you underexpose!
I like to get a slightly higher exposure in my lowlight shots, and darken it to the desired level in post. And if shooting jpegs, I set the colour profile with lesser sharpness and contrast than the default settings. This gives more leeway in post processing.
I like the Arnold Schwarzenegger bird near the end. Curious what your white balance and camera profile is set to. And do you adjust the in-camera profiles for tint, etc.?
Totally agree, Jan. I started to trust higher ISO images and with DxO Pure Raw I’m shocked with the images I can develop. Thanks again for another great video!
This video is really helpful. I used to shoot in AV mode and have lost a few good images because of blur as I didn't have control over the shutter speed. But on my recent birding trip I shot in manual with minimum 1/1600 and ISO on auto with Max limit of 6400 I got some fantastic results.
A most informative video Jan. I use Affinity Photo so your advice of what you use in Photoshop was most helpful, lucky me. I have missed some great shots lately due to low shutter speed, so thanks for the reminder for getting that up higher. I think this will a rewatched video for sure to reinforce your great tips. Many thanks indeed.
A very good summary on exposure settings and general workflow for bird photography. I own the Canon R7 known for high noise, but have found doing some research that 400, 800, 1600 and 3200 ISO seems to be best ISO settings regarding noise. My workflow is now Topaz Photo AI, Lightroom basic edit using camera linear profile, photoshop using TK8 plugin to isolate with luminosity masks and colour masks.
Apart from short shutterspeeds and the need for more dof, there is another reason to use high iso : if the background is bright or the bird is, you have to overexpose one or two stops. I once shot a flying seagull (white) against a blue sky. 1/3200th of a sec, f11, 2 stops overexposed and I needed iso 3200 ! And that was on a bright sunny day !
Great tips! I agree, a noisy image is better than a blurry one or missing the shot completely. I practice this with a few differences. I like to underexpose a little so as not to blow the whites, use highlight weighted spot metering, auto iso and then rely on the ISO invariance theory, dxo pure raw and topaz denoise to save and smooth the noise. I love highlight weighted spot metering! It gives me a good exposure on the subject and protects the whites to a degree, along with a little minus setting on the exposure comp, depending on the subject. Then the processing through DXO, ACR, Ps and topaz for a nice end product, imo. Loving the prosets, btw.
Super solid video, Jan. Practical advice and I found the “why” (or “why not”) explanations particularly helpful. thanks for sharing your knowledge, experience and work flow.
This is such a great video. I 100% agree with your take and have made the low shutter speed mistake too many times. Just recently I was shooting from a boat on a river and didn’t account for the movement of the boat ( It was raining, so very low light). I ended up with a ton of blurt shots to throw away. I think I will keep learning this lesson over and over again. Also, do you shoot the 100-500 stopped town a stop?
Great video, I’ve been doing this but am unsure what a proper ISO is so I’ve been using ISO in auto. Loved the post processing tips, just got your prosets and am about to get your master class. 👀👀
Thank you for sharing this information. I (probably) won't be shooting natural birds, but I'm going to a Pylon Racing Seminar prior to the Reno Air Races. Those "birds" are moving at speeds up to 600 MPH. A higher ISO and Shutter speed will be a big help, as will stopping down a bit to get better DOF. Awesome training! Again, thank you, so much!
It's happen the same to me when i start to shooting sport. Underexposed or bluried photos push me to use high ISO. Also with softwares like Pure Raw or adobe AI noise reduction this became more easy. One tip is to over exposed a little to reduce noise. Noise appear in the shadows so if you have an underexposed photo it would be more noisy.
My go to settings are manual aperture and SS, with auto ISO. I find noise to be the least objectionable "flaw" in a photo. A lot of times it doesn't even bother me enough to fix it at all, and if it does, DXO Pure Raw will fix it. I only ever set my ISO manually if I need to for a particular effect, or if I'm using a camera like my Zfc or XT-5 with all manual settings to replicate the feeling of shooting film (but without the need to develop).
I use Aperture Priority with minimum shutter speed dialled in. (Usually 1000 or 2000) with ISO on Auto. Usually works for me. I save these two as presets.
Jan, love you man and love your work and shots. Please stay well. I have much less experience in the photography arena, and I don't want to beat a dead horse (so to speak). I am in complete agreement with using higher ISOs as needed to get the shot. No argument there at all. Where I have to put my two cents in is this: ISO is not part of an exposure at all (nor a triangle). It is amplification of recorded photons (light) with shot noise from the environment. As I know you know, shot noise is amplified by turning up the gain ISO. Upstream read noise (prior to amplification) is also amplified by increasing ISO and can impact DR/IQ. I completely agree, get the shot first regardless - even with high ISO, but ISO has nothing to do with the photons captured on your sensor, only aperture and shutter speed do (if you don't count sensor size - bigger sensors having more area to capture light (i.e. better signal to noise if the "upstream/downstream noise" is equal - because the same shot noise is in the environment. I know, for a beginner, and non-engineer, I'm deep in the rabbit hole, but I'm working hard at the artistic and academic ends of the spectrum, so I had to stop here and just add some of the dirt I dug out. Love your work, energy, and enthusiasm! Keep it up. www.dpreview.com/articles/8189925268/what-s-that-noise-shedding-some-light-on-the-sources-of-noise/1
@@Enuffable Wow? Thanks, Chris (I think), but the DP review article I linked is actually quite good at explaining the basics. I didn't make a serious effort when film was around, and increased ASA was part of an exposure triangle, but today's cameras are not the same, and many videos here on TH-cam have the story correct. For simplicity, there are two kinds of noise. Shot noise in the environment (like the movement of air in a room or outside when trying to record a vocalist singing softly). It always there, and will be best heard when things are quiet. When loud (well exposed) the shot noise is overwhelmed by good signal (high s/n) and you can't appreciate it except when it is quiet (i.e. the shadows). Then there is "read noise" which can be thought of in two ways "pre-amplification" - before ISO - or "upstream" and post-amplification, after ISO, "downstream". Upstream noise is added at the pixel level and so, increasing ISO amplifies Shot noise and Upstream noise. Downstream noise occurs after ISO amplification and is the electrical noise of processing the information into a digital representation. Downstream noise is inherent to a given camera and can not be altered or amplified - normally. At base ISO, there is no amplification and so shot noise, upstream noise will be at their lowest and hide in the shadows until pushed too far. Downstream noise (which is also easier to see in the shadows) will not be apparent in good cameras with low downstream noise, but might be apparent in cameras with high downstream noise - and will limit dynamic range (assuming you shoot in RAW). When you increase shutter speed and close down aperture, the number of photons recorded is not as great (i.e. less true signal) and so the "shot" noise and "upstream" noise become more obvious because of the reduced S/N ratio and the amplification of it with increased ISO (and we're talking very high ISO to see it (i.e. an ISO of 12,800 is an amplification of 100x over an ISO of 128). Bottom line is that at this point, Upstream noise becomes more apparent even when high downstream is present. This is not an argument against using high ISO when you have to, just that both ISO is amplification of signal and noise already in the pixels (not part of exposure), and that turning up ISO, when necessary, will amplify shot noise and upstream noise in a situation that the signal is already low - i.e. you'll see the noise. That said, I will shot with high ISO if I need too, but I won't be surprised to see shot noise and upstream noise litter my image and Dynamic Range limited. th-cam.com/video/O6oGyFlZgAc/w-d-xo.html
I completely agree; great points. Using DxO pure RAW has made me fearless to use super high ISOs and I completely agree that it’s best to get the exposure right and avoid blurry images.
I have been incorporating your tips on shutter speed for a while now, 1/400sec on a overcast day is about perfect. There is 'dark overcast' and 'bright overcast', when it's bright I will increase to over 1/1000sec with pretty clean results. Your tips have helped me to not ruin critical moments, but for more casual photography I don't mind risking a slower shutter speed for slightly cleaner results.
Thanks for sharing. I have already been using auto iso and shoot on manual so that I have better control of shutter speed. I agree it has helped me get some shots that in the past I have missed. I've had people ask why my iso on some shots is so high but I'm happy I didn't let that deter me as I was more and more happy with the results. Thanks for sharing, I will also take advantage of some of the other tips you provided.
Informative video as always. This is great strategy now because of software advances. Years ago, the noise could be atrocious. Having said that, a noisy image is still preferable to a blurry soft image.
I like one of the photos you consider a failure: it seems the head is sharp while movement in the wings, but not too much so you can still see the colours. I think when everyone makes frozen-in-the-move pictures, I can become boring. A little movement in the wings can be nice. BTW I like your pictures, I would like to make them myself 😉
Great vid Jan. I'm a total believer. DXO cures any noise issues too. BHK photography seminars did a great one a few years ago with a guy named Roman. Changing Paradigms of bird photography. On just this subject. I'm glad you enjoyed our riflebirds!
Since using DXO Pure Raw I have changed my settings to manual with auto ISO and I allow it as high as 6400. It's a non issue with these modern software packages but increases keeper rates due to higher shutter speeds.
Good tips. We should note that these newer mirrorless cameras in combination with AI driven noise reduction has really made a huge difference when it comes to how much ISO we can tolerate. When you were stuck on low-ISO, it's because we didn't have as many great tools for removing noise.
Another interesting Video Jan, I've experienced the same issues especially in dark forests and found if I shot wide open at f/2.8 and slow shutter speeds with my 400 f/2.8 I kept getting slightly blurry shots and now I have a base setting of f/4 and 1/400s with auto iso (which I don't restrict) and I'll often stop down to f/5.6 or f/8. I took some shots recently where it was particularly dark and the iso went to 40,000 and the image was still good enough for social media if not for a print. I recently swapped my 7Dii for a 1dx and the low noise performance is amazing. Cheers Noel
This was an interesting and thought-provoking video, Jan! Artistically, I prefer a darker background and I've often wondered why your backgrounds are usually bright. Now I understand why you have chosen bright backgrounds as part of your style.
An extremely helpful video for me. Thank you for sharing some of your non-keepers that illustrated your points so well. I’ve definitely lost shots while changing settings. Can’t wait to use your trips in the field
In addition to wildlife, I have done a great deal of sports photography. I live by the rule of "use the highest shutter speed that is practical in any given situation." A noise free picture of a blurred subject is of no use to anyone. :)
The low ISO advice comes from the landscape photographers. Normally very low ISOs are used along very closed diaphragms to obtain the maximum quality possible. I think the problem is many of us started as landscape photographers due to it being easier and "cheaper", thus using basic cameras and lenses, which in turn need low ISO and stopping down to get decent images. Now that we allowed ourselves to buy that better camera and that expensive telephoto, we still carry some landscape/cheap mindset, but thankfully people like Jan help us out.
I agree, a noisy image is better than a blurry one or missing the shot completely.
You think? It depends on the camera.
@@momo_the_great6969 I mean, having the shot is better than not having it, I think that doesnt depend on the camera, but yeah, old cameras benefit more from low iso I think
Having 2 legs is better than having 1 only… 🥱
@@hellolau I dont think so. It is more weight to carry
Lol, beginning?
I rarely comment on TH-cam video's, but felt compelled to after watching this. In a world filled with useless information, this video stands out. Outstanding value for the time invested. Bravo.
Thank you!
This is a lesson that deserves repetition. Like many novices, I absorbed the common advice about the inherent superiority of "native ISO". For birding, I use an APSC sensor (Canon R7) with the RF 100-500 (F 7.1 at full zoom), so low light is always going to be an issue. But my default ISO is 1600, which I fine tune further if the birds cooperate and time permits. With this approach, I'm able to get noise-free images and large-format prints. And because I don't like monthly subscription software, I'm using DXO PL5 for both noise reduction and image editing, which I find to be a powerful combination with very a natural work-flow. Truth be told, I rarely have to go full out to achieve noise-free images, as in practice, the Deep Prime setting is generally reserved for shots at ISO 6400 or 12800.
The noise myth from higher iso setting, has been put to rest finally! Enjoyed every bit of your totourial.Thank you so much 🙏😊
Hearing about having to lift the color in post on low exposure photographs and resulting in increasing noise was helpful.
As a wildlife photographer of over thirty years experience I agree with everything you’ve said in this film. You’ve highlighted all the key points perfectly😀 The only thing I would disagree with is in the use of Topaz De-Noise as I find their noise reduction kills noise at the expense of fine detail, this is something I don’t like in bird images because of the fine detail in birds feathers! Great advice and film Jan 👏👍😀
That's why I only use it at the end if I need to and on its own layer, so I can apply it where needed
TRY DXO best Noise Reduction software currently!
Agree, i prefer a noisier image with details in the feathers, than a photo that resembles a painting.
A brilliant video Jan. I think a lot of us are inherently afraid of using high ISO's and just need to take that leap of faith.
Thank you & I think so :)
High ISO's are great if you have a camera thats capable of dealing with it but if its not then image quality suffers bug time. This video is a joke
@@momo_the_great6969 I use a Panasonic G9 so am very wary of high iso's myself.
@@momo_the_great6969 if you watched it you would’ve heard me speak about that too
I used 200 speed film kodak most of my life. used 400 fuji once. it turned out horrible. i only used kodak star point and shoot though.
Very informative, in particular the use of a light background where possible, enjoy your videos like this one which explains your photography experiences in an understanding way.
Glad it was helpful!
Great Video Jan. On my micro four thirds camera I shoot manual, set my ISO to automatic and set the limit to 6400. my default shutter speed is 1/800. I also find that I get better images bumping up the ISO than I do using a wider aperture if light is an issue.
I use DXO PL6.3 to edit and remove noise from the images - but often a little noise I find adds character to the image and I just leave it as is.
Yes you don’t wanna make the images artificially clean some grain is great
Thanks!
Welcome!
Thanks so much guys!!
I have always used low ISO and fought doing anything else even though I have been disappointed with shots but next time I'm out I'm going to try higher ISO and a some creative post processing, thank you Jan
Go for it!
Since using Topaz denoise AI, I have started using high ISO images and the results are far superior as I get my desired images in difficult scenarios. Now with DXO pure raw and moving to Mirrorless , I worry less for ISO and concentrate on my sharpness and action sequences 😄. Thanks for a great video as usual. Would love to checkout your masterclass in near future ☺️
Sounds great!
Agree. I use my star button when I need speed. You can set fixed value's for F stop, shutter speed and metering. Shutter speed is 2000, ISO on AUTO. At the moment I use spot for metering, to get a better exposure on the object. There is no time for exposure compensation. Use this now for a few weeks and it works for me.
A gem of a video Jan, I love these type of informative tutorial style overviews. Thumbs up! 👍🏻
Glad you enjoyed it!
Good tips. And I like those bird clips. Nice looking creations. Thanks
this is some of the best advice that you will ever find on this kind of photography. just have a look at this guy's pictures, they say it all.
Great tips!!!
My cheat code. Aperture Priority with a minimum shutter speed set at 1/500, auto ISO (2000) max
With these settings outdoors, I only need to worry about my DOF from f2.8-f11
Metering depends on whether there's blue skies or if the foilge matches my schedule (spot/matrix)
I tend to have a very high hit rate.
Best advice I have received in years. Photography is a pleasure again.
Great to hear!
I'm just learning and, yes, certainly got a lot of ridiculously dark photos because of my worry about going too high on ISO. I like to shoot manually but I finally surrendered to having the ISO be automatic. Much higher rate of usable photos. But regarding the TH-cam footage: this is the first time I have seen footage of gang-gangs in the wild and I am so envious! What a wonderful thing to share - thank you.
Great point Jan. I've been applying this philosophy for birds. One exception where I do like handholding slow shutters 1/100 or even below is when I photograph Bobcats. If they move all bets are off, but in very dark conditions when they sit still, I lay down, use my bag for support and fire away many shots.
Great video as always. I would add that as you move up with the ISO and enter the high ISO (danger 🤣) zone it is crucial to have your framing done right. High ISO images can be edited and cleaned nicely as long as cropping is minimal. The higher the ISO the better the framing and fieldcraft have to be. Which in some regions / with some animals is easier and with some very hard.
Good point
Many thanks, Jan.
Excellent video.
I love this kind of real advice, when you're bombarded with "truisms" like, "ONLY shoot low ISO!!!", "ONLY shoot wide open!!!", "ONLY shoot..." whatever or "DON'T over-edit" or any of the myriad of other absolutes you hear so often repeated that are detrimental to actually getting the shot or having any fun in the field. Great video, I look forward to more of your content.
Thank you!
Awesome video Jan! Since getting my R5, I have moved to full manual for shutter and aperture but auto-iso and it’s been a game changer. Like you said, the mirror less cameras and modern noise reduction SW really opens up a whole new world.
Great to hear!
Always a pleasure to listen you Jan!
It's a welcome coincidence that both you and Simon d'Entremont posted videos on the dangers of low ISO in the space of a couple of days -- these are two of my favorite channels, and your explanations are mutually complementary.
When it comes to the problems of Aperture Priority for shooting with shifting backgrounds, I've found that switching to Manual with Auto ISO improves things only if you have a separate dial for exposure compensation. My camera doesn't have one (I shoot on an A6600, and the only wheel is set to control shutter speed). When I'm shooting a bird against the sky, I add roughly one stop of light through exposure compensation to prevent the birds from looking too dark; but when the bird flies down against dark foliage, I must quickly bring the exposure compensation back, and there's no way of doing it fast enough for that particular context. Instead, I must choose in advance whether I want the bird against the sky or against the foliage, and give up on the alternative.
Steve Perry has said the same although suggests get the shot and then if time permits drop the shutter speed incrementally and see how low you can go. Dwayne Paton has said the same as I recall all excellent wild life photographers 😊
Thanks Jan. Great advice. I've been cranking up my iso over the last couple of years and my shots have been getting sharper :)
Great to hear!
Very pertinent Jan.
I recently missed a great opportunity for this exact reason. A group of us saw a brief altercation between Palm Cockatoos at Lockhart River. Surprisingly, no one had their cameras on the birds at the time, except for me.
While I got some ok pics of an amazing moment, my relatively low shutter speed, in order to get a lower iso, compromised capturing something I am unlikely to ever see again - but very pleased to have seen it the once.
Oh no, what a shame, such awesome birds
Thanks a lot. I will definitively try your ideas. Your pictures of birds are amazing.
Thank you so much 😀
great video and a nice reminder! i recently shot tiger cubs in low light at at low shutter speed and the blurry images are killing me! while just 30 mins prior, i got an amazing sequence of tiger on a chase with high ISO high shutter speed. so, 100% agree to whatever u said in this video.
That was a great video. I'm going to try those tips with my MFT. Beautiful bird photography. Thank you.
Glad it was helpful!
Super Erinnerung daran, wie man es machen sollte, wenn es gut werden soll. Danke.
Gerne!
On my A1, I use my main setting in manual exposure, and have a separate action button with a high shutter speed and auto exposure for surprise action.
Everyone should watch this video before heading out on a photography expedition. Sums up all the important aspects to be taken care of. Thanks Jan for a detailed explanation 👍
Glad you found it helpful
Except, I don't agree fully with stopping down, unless like he said, it's a cheaper zoom. I own and have owned a few zooms, but none of them were cheap, in fact some were $7,000+ so some lenses are designed to be shot wide open. Of course I understand what he meant, but he should always preface facts or advice with both ends or sides of the story. I shoot wide open about 80% of the time on my 500mm f/4E VR FL, which granted was about an $11,000 lens. Most super-tele primes and some zooms at the higher-end are designed to be shot wide open, and the only reason to stop down is depth of field. I often shoot around water and use my drop-in CP filter in my 500mm, and or with my 1.4x TC, so I'm usually wide open, but if it's multiple targets or a large bird/plane/vehicle than of course stop down. Overall great video, but I'm not personally a fan of really high ISO images after editing. Jan is an expert at editing and uses photoshop and some techniques I personally DON"T agree with. I'm a photojournalist, so I live in the world of the ethics surrounding such editing techniques. I've never once combined multiple images, never added or subtracted anything, I don't even remove sensor dust spots, I just keep my gear in excellent/clean conditions. To each their own, especially since this is artwork, but I personally am not a fan of major edits. It's like cheat code mode, and most of his best examples are heavily edited in PS.
@@patricksmith2553 I’ve also wondered if “over-editing” is how I want to approach what for me is a hobby. I want to clean up photos but not create things that aren’t there.
@@patricksmith2553 with equipment like that I would love to see your results. Got IG, Flickr, or any other online gallery?
A great watch Jan... I could not agree more... Ive been on a similar journey... speed is they key when working with birds ! 🙂
It really is!
Thanks for sharing your tips and beautiful photos. Liked and subscribed. Greetings from England!
Awesome, thank you!
Excellent Advice! Thanks for posting this video!
Glad you enjoyed it!
I use 2 custom modes with slightly different settings for capturing still birds and flying birds
I mainly use auto ISO, set F8 usually, then set EV comp as needed and adjust shutter based on bird size and semi auto focus
I'm right there with you Jan. I rarely shoot birds at less than 1600 ISO these days. I save F4 for single subject, close-ups in low light.
As a compromise I have a button configured to recall settings for high-IQ perched bird: ISO500 in A mode, so shutter speed is what is necessary. This setting is only active while the button is pressed. This way I can pick a low ISO shot in less than a second total and be back to settings appropriate for action.
I believe that any practical snapshot can be saved now, even those that are slightly out of focus, clipped, and so on. but there are not so many non-unique situations in life, you need to shoot!
Hello Jan, i'm in sport photography and i appreciate very much your advices which suit very well also for sports shoots !
Great to hear! Yes, most of these things apply to many different areas of photography
I do use Aperture Priority for my butterfly shots (mostly F8) and then define a minimal shutter speed (at least 1/500) in combination with Auto ISO. My camera allows to use Auto ISO with a maximum set, this means: use Auto ISO but don't go higher than 1600. this works very well. Manual mode slows me down too much.
This was awesome! Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Another good one Jan. Learned the manual settings over aperture priority as you did, with moving subjects with changing backgrounds. Your saving others some grief here.
Let's hope so, it can be a painful learning experience !
Excellent video. Starting with film in the 1970s, I started with Plus-X. Quickly moved on to Tri-X. Pushing it above native 400 ASA gave very grainy results. This mindset carried over to my digital work. Recently purchased DxO PureRAW2. Using ISOs above 3200 is no longer holding me back. Besides, noise only gets worse when you underexpose!
Good stuff!
I like to get a slightly higher exposure in my lowlight shots, and darken it to the desired level in post.
And if shooting jpegs, I set the colour profile with lesser sharpness and contrast than the default settings. This gives more leeway in post processing.
Great tips
Very helpful video. Thanks!
I like the Arnold Schwarzenegger bird near the end. Curious what your white balance and camera profile is set to. And do you adjust the in-camera profiles for tint, etc.?
Totally agree, Jan. I started to trust higher ISO images and with DxO Pure Raw I’m shocked with the images I can develop. Thanks again for another great video!
Yes, it's a game changer
Interesting comments about aperture priority against backgrounds that vary - and the risk of the camera miscalculating
It can be a big issue
Thanks for sharing Jan, whole new perspective and good advice.
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent video Jan, really brought clear some of the concepts I have struggled with!😊
Glad it was helpful!
This actually works! Thanks!!
This video is really helpful.
I used to shoot in AV mode and have lost a few good images because of blur as I didn't have control over the shutter speed. But on my recent birding trip I shot in manual with minimum 1/1600 and ISO on auto with Max limit of 6400 I got some fantastic results.
Nice
Excellent advice. Cat pics yesterday were all slightly blurry in AV mode and this video explained why very well. Thanks!
Glad it helped!
A most informative video Jan. I use Affinity Photo so your advice of what you use in Photoshop was most helpful, lucky me. I have missed some great shots lately due to low shutter speed, so thanks for the reminder for getting that up higher. I think this will a rewatched video for sure to reinforce your great tips. Many thanks indeed.
Glad it was helpful!
Really helpful, and I absolutely love the enthusiasm :)
Glad to hear it!
A very good summary on exposure settings and general workflow for bird photography. I own the Canon R7 known for high noise, but have found doing some research that 400, 800, 1600 and 3200 ISO seems to be best ISO settings regarding noise. My workflow is now Topaz Photo AI, Lightroom basic edit using camera linear profile, photoshop using TK8 plugin to isolate with luminosity masks and colour masks.
Yes, Have also heard the native ISO like those are best to use
Apart from short shutterspeeds and the need for more dof, there is another reason to use high iso : if the background is bright or the bird is, you have to overexpose one or two stops. I once shot a flying seagull (white) against a blue sky. 1/3200th of a sec, f11, 2 stops overexposed and I needed iso 3200 ! And that was on a bright sunny day !
Very valuable information. Thanks 🙏🏻
Glad it was helpful!
Great tips! I agree, a noisy image is better than a blurry one or missing the shot completely. I practice this with a few differences. I like to underexpose a little so as not to blow the whites, use highlight weighted spot metering, auto iso and then rely on the ISO invariance theory, dxo pure raw and topaz denoise to save and smooth the noise. I love highlight weighted spot metering! It gives me a good exposure on the subject and protects the whites to a degree, along with a little minus setting on the exposure comp, depending on the subject. Then the processing through DXO, ACR, Ps and topaz for a nice end product, imo. Loving the prosets, btw.
Sounds like a good way that works :)
Super solid video, Jan. Practical advice and I found the “why” (or “why not”) explanations particularly helpful. thanks for sharing your knowledge, experience and work flow.
Glad it was helpful!
This is such a great video. I 100% agree with your take and have made the low shutter speed mistake too many times. Just recently I was shooting from a boat on a river and didn’t account for the movement of the boat ( It was raining, so very low light). I ended up with a ton of blurt shots to throw away. I think I will keep learning this lesson over and over again. Also, do you shoot the 100-500 stopped town a stop?
Yes, when we move as well things can get bad quickly.
That's the only lens I don't really stop down
Great video, I’ve been doing this but am unsure what a proper ISO is so I’ve been using ISO in auto. Loved the post processing tips, just got your prosets and am about to get your master class. 👀👀
Awesome! If you learn to read the histogram, it's very easy to find the perfect ISO :)
Super Helpful. Great tutorial 🙂. Excellent clear and precise presentation with great examples. Thank you 🙂
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you for sharing this information. I (probably) won't be shooting natural birds, but I'm going to a Pylon Racing Seminar prior to the Reno Air Races. Those "birds" are moving at speeds up to 600 MPH. A higher ISO and Shutter speed will be a big help, as will stopping down a bit to get better DOF. Awesome training! Again, thank you, so much!
It's happen the same to me when i start to shooting sport. Underexposed or bluried photos push me to use high ISO. Also with softwares like Pure Raw or adobe AI noise reduction this became more easy. One tip is to over exposed a little to reduce noise. Noise appear in the shadows so if you have an underexposed photo it would be more noisy.
My go to settings are manual aperture and SS, with auto ISO. I find noise to be the least objectionable "flaw" in a photo. A lot of times it doesn't even bother me enough to fix it at all, and if it does, DXO Pure Raw will fix it.
I only ever set my ISO manually if I need to for a particular effect, or if I'm using a camera like my Zfc or XT-5 with all manual settings to replicate the feeling of shooting film (but without the need to develop).
What a great video with excellent points. I can't express how helpful this video was!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Great stuff, thank you for sharing. ✌️👍👍
Thanks for watching!
Thanks a lot!
Litt you have the best video content on TH-cam for bird photographers! 🤗
Glad you think so!
Some great shots sir. I shot hockey games ISO 1600, 2.8 shutter speed 800. With a Canon 80D 80 mm prime.
I use Aperture Priority with minimum shutter speed dialled in. (Usually 1000 or 2000) with ISO on Auto. Usually works for me. I save these two as presets.
Excellent video and confirms my own thinking
Glad you think so!
Jan, love you man and love your work and shots. Please stay well. I have much less experience in the photography arena, and I don't want to beat a dead horse (so to speak). I am in complete agreement with using higher ISOs as needed to get the shot. No argument there at all. Where I have to put my two cents in is this: ISO is not part of an exposure at all (nor a triangle). It is amplification of recorded photons (light) with shot noise from the environment. As I know you know, shot noise is amplified by turning up the gain ISO. Upstream read noise (prior to amplification) is also amplified by increasing ISO and can impact DR/IQ. I completely agree, get the shot first regardless - even with high ISO, but ISO has nothing to do with the photons captured on your sensor, only aperture and shutter speed do (if you don't count sensor size - bigger sensors having more area to capture light (i.e. better signal to noise if the "upstream/downstream noise" is equal - because the same shot noise is in the environment. I know, for a beginner, and non-engineer, I'm deep in the rabbit hole, but I'm working hard at the artistic and academic ends of the spectrum, so I had to stop here and just add some of the dirt I dug out. Love your work, energy, and enthusiasm! Keep it up. www.dpreview.com/articles/8189925268/what-s-that-noise-shedding-some-light-on-the-sources-of-noise/1
Wow!
Definitely too deep down the hole for me, but I appreciate the information :D
@@jan_wegener No worries, mate. Always enjoy your videos. Thanks, as always, and keep up the great work.
@@Enuffable Wow? Thanks, Chris (I think), but the DP review article I linked is actually quite good at explaining the basics. I didn't make a serious effort when film was around, and increased ASA was part of an exposure triangle, but today's cameras are not the same, and many videos here on TH-cam have the story correct. For simplicity, there are two kinds of noise. Shot noise in the environment (like the movement of air in a room or outside when trying to record a vocalist singing softly). It always there, and will be best heard when things are quiet. When loud (well exposed) the shot noise is overwhelmed by good signal (high s/n) and you can't appreciate it except when it is quiet (i.e. the shadows). Then there is "read noise" which can be thought of in two ways "pre-amplification" - before ISO - or "upstream" and post-amplification, after ISO, "downstream". Upstream noise is added at the pixel level and so, increasing ISO amplifies Shot noise and Upstream noise. Downstream noise occurs after ISO amplification and is the electrical noise of processing the information into a digital representation. Downstream noise is inherent to a given camera and can not be altered or amplified - normally. At base ISO, there is no amplification and so shot noise, upstream noise will be at their lowest and hide in the shadows until pushed too far. Downstream noise (which is also easier to see in the shadows) will not be apparent in good cameras with low downstream noise, but might be apparent in cameras with high downstream noise - and will limit dynamic range (assuming you shoot in RAW). When you increase shutter speed and close down aperture, the number of photons recorded is not as great (i.e. less true signal) and so the "shot" noise and "upstream" noise become more obvious because of the reduced S/N ratio and the amplification of it with increased ISO (and we're talking very high ISO to see it (i.e. an ISO of 12,800 is an amplification of 100x over an ISO of 128). Bottom line is that at this point, Upstream noise becomes more apparent even when high downstream is present. This is not an argument against using high ISO when you have to, just that both ISO is amplification of signal and noise already in the pixels (not part of exposure), and that turning up ISO, when necessary, will amplify shot noise and upstream noise in a situation that the signal is already low - i.e. you'll see the noise. That said, I will shot with high ISO if I need too, but I won't be surprised to see shot noise and upstream noise litter my image and Dynamic Range limited. th-cam.com/video/O6oGyFlZgAc/w-d-xo.html
Great advice. Thank you Jan!
Glad it was helpful!
Enjoyed that video, some great tips, thank you :)
Glad you enjoyed it!
Agreed, but I am curious, why not set the shutter and aperture to what you want, and then set auto ISO?
Because in theory at least that still allows the camera to mess up and choose a bad ISO, resulting in a bad exposure.
I completely agree; great points. Using DxO pure RAW has made me fearless to use super high ISOs and I completely agree that it’s best to get the exposure right and avoid blurry images.
Well said!
Thank you brother, I’m gonna take this one to heart.
Great to hear
I have been incorporating your tips on shutter speed for a while now, 1/400sec on a overcast day is about perfect. There is 'dark overcast' and 'bright overcast', when it's bright I will increase to over 1/1000sec with pretty clean results. Your tips have helped me to not ruin critical moments, but for more casual photography I don't mind risking a slower shutter speed for slightly cleaner results.
Good stuff!
Great video Jan. Good easy to understand technical stuff that is a bit counter to what you often hear. 👍🏻
Glad you enjoyed it
Amazing shot of the Red Wattlebird and the Mulga Parrot - Proves your point perfectly! Really useful.
Thank you!
Thanks for sharing. I have already been using auto iso and shoot on manual so that I have better control of shutter speed. I agree it has helped me get some shots that in the past I have missed. I've had people ask why my iso on some shots is so high but I'm happy I didn't let that deter me as I was more and more happy with the results. Thanks for sharing, I will also take advantage of some of the other tips you provided.
Great to hear
Informative video as always. This is great strategy now because of software advances. Years ago, the noise could be atrocious. Having said that, a noisy image is still preferable to a blurry soft image.
I like one of the photos you consider a failure: it seems the head is sharp while movement in the wings, but not too much so you can still see the colours. I think when everyone makes frozen-in-the-move pictures, I can become boring. A little movement in the wings can be nice.
BTW I like your pictures, I would like to make them myself 😉
Very enjoyable video, thanks for sharing
Glad you enjoyed it
Great vid Jan. I'm a total believer. DXO cures any noise issues too. BHK photography seminars did a great one a few years ago with a guy named Roman. Changing Paradigms of bird photography. On just this subject. I'm glad you enjoyed our riflebirds!
Since using DXO Pure Raw I have changed my settings to manual with auto ISO and I allow it as high as 6400. It's a non issue with these modern software packages but increases keeper rates due to higher shutter speeds.
Buddy, your VIDEO quality is STUNNING!
Glad you think so!
Great video!!! Question?
What focus area and metering do you do you use?
Matrix , center weight or spot ?
Thank you for your help 😁
I shoot full manual, so I set all parameters and metering doesn't;t matter, but otherwise I'd use evaluative
Needed to hear this Jan, thanks!!
Glad it was helpful!
Good tips. We should note that these newer mirrorless cameras in combination with AI driven noise reduction has really made a huge difference when it comes to how much ISO we can tolerate. When you were stuck on low-ISO, it's because we didn't have as many great tools for removing noise.
100%, but now we can also work on older noisy files and get good results.
Another interesting Video Jan,
I've experienced the same issues especially in dark forests and found if I shot wide open at f/2.8 and slow shutter speeds with my 400 f/2.8 I kept getting slightly blurry shots and now I have a base setting of f/4 and 1/400s with auto iso (which I don't restrict) and I'll often stop down to f/5.6 or f/8.
I took some shots recently where it was particularly dark and the iso went to 40,000 and the image was still good enough for social media if not for a print.
I recently swapped my 7Dii for a 1dx and the low noise performance is amazing.
Cheers
Noel
YEs, the results can be quite amazing
Keep up with great work Jan!!!!
And come to New Zealand, just across the pound, at some point!
Working on it!
@@jan_wegener Keep me posted! Can help you with that
This was an interesting and thought-provoking video, Jan! Artistically, I prefer a darker background and I've often wondered why your backgrounds are usually bright. Now I understand why you have chosen bright backgrounds as part of your style.
I do prefer the look of them as well, but they also help me to get better quality images
very useful tips I've heard for 1st time in detail.
Glad it was helpful!
An extremely helpful video for me. Thank you for sharing some of your non-keepers that illustrated your points so well. I’ve definitely lost shots while changing settings. Can’t wait to use your trips in the field
Glad it was helpful!
In addition to wildlife, I have done a great deal of sports photography. I live by the rule of "use the highest shutter speed that is practical in any given situation." A noise free picture of a blurred subject is of no use to anyone. :)
Exactly!