How Does the ISO Camera Setting Affect My Photos?

There are three pillars of photography – ISO, shutter speed and aperture.

Each of these settings can dramatically affect the look of your images.

The ISO camera setting controls the brightness of your photos.

Understanding ISO is a basic photography concept you should understand if you want to take the best possible images.

ISO Camera Settings Explained

I recommend you read the following articles to get a basic understanding of ISO:

• Understanding ISO – A Beginner’s Guide
• ISO Explained for Beginner Photographers
• Understanding ISO: How ISO Affects Your Camera’s Exposure

Now let’s delve a bit deeper into the topic of ISO.

What is the best ISO setting for the shot I want? 

Before determining which ISO setting is best, you must decide the objective for the image you want to capture.

Once you have that picture in mind, you should evaluate the scene and light and use the camera settings that will produce this image.

Personal taste affects your ISO settings.

Some people like a grainier image and some stories are best portrayed in gritty detail.

This concept reminds me of a question I’ve been asked many times over the years.

Which martial art style is the best? Another deep question not easily answered. Simply put, though, the answer is that all of them are the best.

Which style is best for the individual depends on the reason for learning, individual body type, physical abilities, and temperament.

ISO is equally broad. Settings depend on each individual and environmental circumstance.

ISO and wildlife.

I use higher ISO settings to improve my shutter speed for wildlife shots.

The best images of wildlife are often captured in lower light making freezing motion difficult. 

I will generally set my camera on aperture mode and adjust my ISO until I have the shutter speed I desire for the image I’m shooting.

To compensate for the lack of light and capture movement without blur, I tend to use a very high ISO.

It is a balancing act to find the best camera settings that will maintain image quality.

Higher ISO settings produce noise. 

The noise from higher ISO settings can be corrected to a certain point in Lightroom during post processing. But at some point the images can become so filled with noise as to be unusable.

I personally do not enjoy a lot of noise in my images and strive to keep my ISO settings as low as possible.

Low light shots will always be grainy, but sometimes that’s part of the appeal.

One of my preferences for processing low light shots is black and white. I think the black and white image is accented by the noise levels produced by higher ISO settings.

In processing low light or night images this way the ISO noise provides an appealing gritty texture.

Use a tripod.

A tripod is essential to steady your camera and reduce shake.

When you are taking photos in low light situations, you don’t want to add additional noise.

If you hand hold the camera in low light, it’s likely the shot will be blurry. Shaking equals blurring.

With a tripod, the shutter can stay open as long as needed. As long the camera remains still, the picture won’t be blurry.

LIGHTWEIGHT TRAVEL TRIPODS | TRIPODS FOR HEAVY LENSES

Experiment to find what works best for you.

My advice to you: practice and experiment to get the best ISO settings that produce images you are excited about.

In learning photography over the years I’ve been given a lot of advice regarding ISO settings and much of it has conflicted.

The end result is that with practice, I have a general idea where I want MY ISO settings to be in the vast majority of photographic circumstances I face.

Not everyone will agree with settings that I use, but hey, I’m the one shooting the shot and I’m the one that has to live with it.

The most important instrument is the person behind the camera who creates the images. Be confident in your abilities and have fun!

READ: 5 Basic Photography Tips

Camera Equipment for Landscape Photography

We like to use a Camera Gear Checklist of our equipment so we don’t forget anything when heading out to take photos!

Here’s a few of the important things you’ll need photograph reflections in water:

1. Camera: If you’re looking for something new… check out the compact travel cameras we recommend!

2. Tripod: We are big proponents of using a tripod. There are many compact and lightweight options out there that are easy to use. Check out the travel tripods we recommend!

3. Lenses: A good prime lens works well for photographing reflections. We find that wider angles work best. For landscapes we use 24mm f/1.4, 50mm f/1.8, and 24-120mm f/4 lenses. → Prime lenses for landscape photography.

4. Camera Bag: Protecting your camera from the elements (like sand and dust) is essential. Using a camera backpack is so nice for hiking too. → Check out our camera backpack for outdoor photography.

5. Neutral density filter: There can be extreme differences in light outdoors when photographing landscape scenes. To compensate for this variance of light you’ll need to use a neutral density filter. → Check out the Kase magnetic filters we use!

6. Camera cleaning kit: You’ll want a field cleaning kit to remove dust or water that may make its way to your lens. NOTE: this is not for cleaning the sensor. → This is the camera cleaning kit we use!

7. Memory cards: Purchase name brand memory cards since you’re trusting your images to the card! → We use Lexar and Sandisk!

8. External hard drive: Don’t forget to copy the photos to a portable external hard drive ‘just in case’. → Check out these awesome portable external hard drives. 

9. Headlamp: Early morning or late evening is a good time for photographing reflections. This means you may be navigating in the dark. We like to wear a headlamp because it allows us to set up equipment without having to hold a flashlight. Remember to use the red light setting and keep the beam pointed on the ground in front of you to avoid disrupting other photographers in the area. → Check out these headlamps with the red light!

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