Panasonic high ISO test

[mh68]

I`ve always avoided shooting at high ISOs with my fz20 after hearing how noisy shots are but decided to take a few test shots tonight at 400iso to see for myself. I was pretty surprised how well most of the shots came out. Noise was visible when viewing the images full size, but after downsizing them they seemed pretty acceptable to my eyes.
Here`s one of them, apologies for the subject, but i think the detail captured isnt too bad at all considering the bad rep high ISOs have on prosumer cameras.Thought i`d post the results just to show you can get half decent shots with these settings , I know i`ve missed out on some nice shots in the past due to poor light that i`d have captured had i shot at high ISO.One thing i have found though, is that you need to be pretty spot on with exposure and cropping to any extent is best avoided if possible.Be interested to hear what others think....



Mark H

[David Hyde]

Hi Mark
Shot looks pretty impressive to me. I think ISO 400 is a setting that most decent digital cameras can cope with, I use it regularly and others on this site do also. There is some good software designed to combat noise. The best I have found is Neat Image You can download a free version and it links with photoshop - accessible under ‘Filter’. Not that I am suggesting you need it for this shot but its handy if you have problems with an under-exposed shot or use higher ISO settings.
The link is Neat Image - best noise reduction for digital cameras and scanners
David

[David Hyde]

Hi Mark. I noticed the link I pasted did not come up. Just do a search on Neat Image, you should not have a problem.
David

[Interpreter]

400 ISO isn't really high. For high 3200 and 6400 would be used and then noise and artifects would most likely appear. Look into the dark areas are search for red spots among the black.

In the days of film cameras 400 would be Tri-X and this ISO or ASA as it was then known would only be one f stop higher than 200 ASA which was the standard film of it's day.

[matt_xyz]

Originally Posted by Interpreter

400 ISO isn't really high. For high 3200 and 6400 would be used and then noise and artifects would most likely appear. Look into the dark areas are search for red spots among the black.

400 isn't high for a DSLR (or SLR), but it is high for many bridge cameras which do have a reputation for needing to be used at ISO80 or 100, the Panasonic range in particular. As this shot shows though, you can get away with using ISO200 or 400, particularly if you only want a web shot or a small print.

I also use Neat Image to clean up my images.

Matt

[mh68]

Thanks for the replies.I think though there seems to be a bit of confusion regarding camera type here....i`m referring to bridge type cameras not DSLRs, which cope with noise much better than the former.On most forums i`ve looked on its been recommended that ISOs higher than 100/200 are pretty unusable with bridge type cameras.Apologies for any confusion in my initial post.
I posted to show that reasonable results are possible provided you dont need to crop the image much, and that exposure isnt out too much,which may be of interest to those, like myself, who`ve been put off from using high ISOs by whats been written by others.
David, thanks for the link, I`ve used Neat Image for quite a while now,and its a great program for dealing with noise, also good for blurring backgrounds a bit more.I tend to use is as a stand alone program, not via PS, as most of my image editing is basic stuff like cropping/resizing, using mostly Irfanview, so its not often I bother with PS.

Mark H

[mh68]

Originally Posted by matt_xyz

400 isn't high for a DSLR (or SLR), but it is high for many bridge cameras which do have a reputation for needing to be used at ISO80 or 100, the Panasonic range in particular. As this shot shows though, you can get away with using ISO200 or 400, particularly if you only want a web shot or a small print.

I also use Neat Image to clean up my images.

Matt

Thanks Matt, thats what I was getting at in my original post.

Mark H

[glsammy]

It was the poor higher ISO performance from my Panasonic FZ30 that was the final deciding factor when I changed to a DSLR. The fact I can use ISO 400 as just about the starting point was a revelation. Even ISO 800 is perfectly acceptable, with ISO 1600 providing images that would match the one shown here.
The point Mark makes is valid though for bridge camera users. Don't be afraid to try higher ISOs, if the conditions warrant it. Better that than no image at all.

[mh68]

If I had the cash i`d probably buy a DSLR for that reason Graham, but as I havent its a case of making do with what I have.At the same time,the fz20 does still continue to surprise me with the quality of images its capable of when you get everything right.Plus, i like the fact that I can cover everything with a few cheap add-on lenses without the expense of several DSLR lenses to cover my needs, not to mention the weight factor too.
One odd thing i`ve noticed with my fz20 though, is that while i`ve managed decent images at 200 and now 400iso, setting the camera to 100iso, which should give acceptable results,produces pretty poor images with lost detail and the same noise as an iso200 image....very odd.

Mark H