Nikon D70s ISO setting

[rawill]

Greetings

I have been reading up on here and in my user manual about ISO auto.
My camera has 2 places to set ISO, one is for on or off.
The other is for the setting, 200 320 etc.
It has always been set on 200, but I am reading about a max ISO setting.

If I change the setting from 200 to another setting how will that change the way it operates when it is set to auto anyway.

[Mike Buckley]

If I understand your question correctly (I'm not positive that I do), you are referring to two ISO settings -- the maximum ISO configured when Auto ISO is turned on and the camera's ISO that is not part of the Auto ISO configuration. If you configure the latter setting to ISO 400, the camera will use that as the lowest ISO when Auto ISO is enabled. (The camera will use ISO 400 as the only ISO when Auto ISO is not enabled.) That explains why there is no advantage to configuring the latter setting to anything other than your camera's lowest ISO value when Auto ISO is enabled.

This also explains why I almost always leave my camera ISO setting configured to its lowest ISO value. The only change I make pertaining to ISO has to do with whether or not I use Auto ISO. I almost always use it when shooting handheld. I never use it when using a tripod.

[Melkus]

I think Mike got it about right. The thing to remember about using Auto ISO is you will run into a problem with your camera if you use manual metering mode. Auto ISO will override your manual metering settings every time if it is any different from what the camera’s meter says – thereby completely negating the very reason for Manual Metering’s existence. So I would not use this and leave it off but that's just me.
The D70 has an interesting and potentially useful application of the Auto ISO feature, where the camera will bump up the ISO to try and get a minimum shutter speed. This could be quite useful in helping to eliminate camera shake or subject movement, by having the camera automatically adjust the ISO. This might be a feature worth trying out, but just make sure that the Auto ISO feature doesn’t make your exposure metering inconsistent in manual metering.

[Mike Buckley]

Paul,

You make a really good point about the relative incompatibility of Auto ISO and manual metering, so I have a question about that. I never use manual metering except when using an attached flash (not the built-in flash) while hand holding the camera. In that situation I use Auto ISO, set the flash to through-the-lens metering, the aperture to the setting that produces the desired depth of field, the shutter to 1/60 and the flash's exposure compensation to whatever produces the desired histogram. (On my system, the flash automatically adds its exposure compensation to the camera's exposure compensation.)

Now the question: Is the Auto ISO overriding my manual settings? Have I perhaps been lucky in the past and should consider disabling it in the future in that situation?

I think this relates to Robin's question enough that I'm not hijacking his thread. Hope so!

[xpatUSA]

Have I perhaps been lucky in the past and should consider disabling [auto ISO] in the future [when using an attached flash (not the built-in flash) while hand holding the camera]?

I would personally be inclined so to do. But then, I hate the camera picking any setting for me . . .

(come back, Praktica MTL3, all is forgiven . .)

[Melkus]

Paul,

You make a really good point about the relative incompatibility of Auto ISO and manual metering, so I have a question about that. I never use manual metering except when using an attached flash (not the built-in flash) while hand holding the camera. In that situation I use Auto ISO, set the flash to through-the-lens metering, the aperture to the setting that produces the desired depth of field, the shutter to 1/60 and the flash's exposure compensation to whatever produces the desired histogram. (On my system, the flash automatically adds its exposure compensation to the camera's exposure compensation.)

Now the question: Is the Auto ISO overriding my manual settings? Have I perhaps been lucky in the past and should consider disabling it in the future in that situation?

I think this relates to Robin's question enough that I'm not hijacking her thread. Hope so!

I would say you have been. The photo is always taken at your selected ISO, as long as the camera can use that ISO for an optimal exposure. If it can't use that ISO for an optimal exposure it will automatically change it to get the optimal. It will not, however, exceed the maximum ISO you have set. A bit confusing, but a useful tool in situations where the lighting conditions are fluctuating substantially and you don't have time to change the ISO manually. Lighting for stage plays, or band concerts come to mind. You always want to shoot at the minimal ISO that will allow an optimal exposure. The auto mode allows you to do that and still get the shot.

[rawill]

Many thanks to you all.

Yes you understood my question.
And your answers went further than my original questions was asking.
And for that, I (and I think others too) thank you.

Rbn, and Mike, no you have not hijacked HIS thread.

[Mike Buckley]

HIS thread.

Oops! My post is now corrected.

[rawill]

Hehe, no worries.

Not the first time or probably the last time that has happened.
but if you saw a photo of the guy you couldn't possibly make that mistake.

Oops! My post is now corrected.

[Graystar]

The Nikon D70s does not have a "Max. sensitivity" setting in its AutoISO function. That is a setting found on the D80 and later Nikon bodies cameras. The D70s always uses 1600 as its max ISO. So you don't have to worry about the "Max. sensitivity" setting.

The AutoISO setting is in the Custom Settings menu. The other "ISO" setting that you're referring to is in the Shooting menu. This is the same ISO that you select by pressing the ISO button and rotating the command dial. It's just two ways to set the same value.

When you turn on AutoISO, the "ISO AUTO" symbol is displayed in the Control Panel. Note that the camera will only change the ISO when certain conditions met. Until those conditions are met, the camera simply uses the ISO that you set manually. But when those conditions are met, the "ISO AUTO" symbol will blink on the control panel, indicating that the ISO has been changed from your selected level. The behavior of AutoISO depends on the exposure mode.

In M mode, AutoISO is nearly always engaged, as the camera continuously updates ISO to provide Standard Exposure (Standard Exposure being the exposure you get from auto modes, or when you center the exposure meter in M mode.) As with auto modes, you have full control over your exposure by way of the Exposure Compensation control, and the AE Lock function.

In S mode, the ISO will start to increase if Standard Exposure can't be set with your lens's maximum aperture.

In A and P modes, the second AutoISO setting comes into play...the shutter speed selection. In later bodies, this setting is named the Minimum Shutter Speed, which better describes its function. In A and P modes, ISO will start to increase if Standard Exposure would require a slower shutter speed than the minimum shutter speed. Consider the shutter speed selection as a "cutoff"...where you tell the camera, "don't use a shutter speed slower than this."

The AutoISO function is great, and Nikon's implementation is the best. It works best in A mode with the Minimum Shutter Speed setting. You set the Minimum Shutter Speed to the slowest speed that you're willing to use for your current subject matter. So if you're shooting people at a picnic, you may set 1/100s. If you're shooting sports then you may want to set 1/320s or maybe 1/500s for fast moving sports. If you're shooting birds in flight then you may set 1/800s. Once the shutter speed is set, you start shooting. The camera will adjust ISO as necessary to maintain your specified minimum shutter speed. This protects against blur caused by slow shutter speeds.

I leave mine on all the time, as there's no penalty for doing so. If there's plenty of light, then the AutoISO is inactive and the camera uses the ISO that I set. When the camera does raise the ISO, it does so to the same level I would have selected myself, were I in full manual mode. Remember...in A mode I have control of the aperture, and I also set the shutter speed in the AutoISO setting. So I'm still in full control of the camera.

[rawill]

Graystar

Excellent !
Great info, very well written.

Molte grazie.

[dubaiphil]

The AutoISO function is great, and Nikon's implementation is the best.

I leave mine on all the time, as there's no penalty for doing so.

Part 1 I agree with 100%
Part 2 I agree with 99.99%

The 0.01% has bitten me in the bum a few times - when I'm shooting hand held panoramas. Switching to Manual, dialling in my ideal shutter speed and aperture based on the brightest area of the sweep of the panorama, and shooting the scene I have occasionally forgotten to switch auto ISO off. The result is sometimes a series of images at slightly different ISOs, which can make processing very time consuming and difficult.

[dubaiphil]

The AutoISO function is great, and Nikon's implementation is the best.

I leave mine on all the time, as there's no penalty for doing so.

Part 1 I agree with 100%
Part 2 I agree with 99.99%

The 0.01% has bitten me in the bum a few times - when I'm shooting hand held panoramas. Switching to Manual, dialling in my ideal shutter speed and aperture based on the brightest area of the sweep of the panorama, and shooting the scene I have occasionally forgotten to switch auto ISO off. The result is sometimes a series of images at slightly different ISOs, which can make processing very time consuming and difficult.