You can get all the definitions from Wikipedia, here is the one for ISO:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_speedYongboPhoto Gallery: http://www.photo96.com/.
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It's sensor sensetivity, the speed at which the sensor creates an electronic response to light hitting it. It corresponds to faster/slower films that can be used in the same film camera (the 100/200/400/800 "speed" label on a package of film)..
Aperture and shutter speed affect how much light will hit the sensor, and ISO is how quick the sensor is to react to that light, so the three of them together control how bright or dark the picture will be. Higher ISO numbers mean faster response, which makes the image it produces brighter, which means greater ability to pick up an image in low light instead of just seeing black nothingness; lower numbers mean slower response, which makes the image it produces dimmer/darker, which means greater ability to discern shades and colors in bright light instead of just being washed out to blazing white...
I'd advice you to get some sort of P&S that handles this for you.Don't wait for the Nikon D-whatever, have fun now!http://www.flickr.com/photos/j_wijnands/..
There are three ways you can adjust the camera's ability to record light coming in from outside..
1. The size of the hole that lets the light through, = aperture.
2. the amount of time the shutter is open to let light through, = shutter speed.
3. the sensiitivy of the sensor that recieves the light. ISO is this one. It amkes the senso more or less sensitive to light..
So why do we not always use a nice high ISO so there are no problems with light? Becasue the higher the ISO the more "noise" you get on ths picture. Noise is like grain or speckling on the pic...
Delvo and Ajax, nice response. Thank you, I now know what I needed to know. Hey Wu- couldn't find it in the glossary....
FootballDad wrote:.
So what is ISO and how does it affect my photo taking, how does itdiffer from shutter speed?.
It's very common in these forums - but incorrect - to refer to "ISO"..
"ISO" is the International Organization for Standardization (I know that looks as though it should be "IOS" - explanation here:http://www.iso.org/iso/en/aboutiso/introduction/index.html#three ).
Just one of the thousands of ISO standards is that for film speed, which has been adapted to include the digital sensor equivalent. For one explanation see:.
Http://en.wikipedia.org/..._speed#Digital_camera_ISO_speed_and_exposure_index.
So what we are talking about here is the "ISO speed" and my personal crusade (doomed to failure, I fear) is to persuade people to use this term and not just "ISO". This is not helped by the fact that the button on the back of my 400D, in common with many others of course, is labelled "ISO". ;-(..
More or less identical to the old ASA scale, btw..
Go back further and you'll see that film varied a lot until two British (?) scientists decided to measure it and grade films according to their sensitivity (the old H&D numbers and they go back to the 1890's). Just like software, as soon as they'd done it everyone else came up with a system and film was often marked with three or four "speeds" using different scales..
Even so, it used to be normal for some time for test exposures to be made by the users from each batch..
BTW, changing the ISO means amplifying the signals - that's when noise creeps in, as the S/N ratio changes..
Regards, David..
I guess I'm also pedantic..
Steve Balcombe wrote:.
FootballDad wrote:.
So what is ISO and how does it affect my photo taking, how does itdiffer from shutter speed?.
It's very common in these forums - but incorrect - to refer to "ISO"..
"ISO" is the International Organization for Standardization (I knowthat looks as though it should be "IOS" - explanation here:.
Many people translate the French to "International Standards Organization"..
So what we are talking about here is the "ISO speed" and mypersonal crusade (doomed to failure, I fear) is to persuade peopleto use this term and not just "ISO". This is not helped by the factthat the button on the back of my 400D, in common with many othersof course, is labelled "ISO". ;-(.
I prefer "ISO Sensitivity" as "Film Speed" is arcane..
Charlie DavisNikon 5700 & Sony R1CATS #25PAS Scribe @ http://www.here-ugo.com/PAS_List.htmHomePage: http://www.1derful.info'I brake for pixels...'..
Quite simply,ISO is the rate of speed that the sensor or film absorbs light. ISO 100 -200 gives better sharpness than higher ISO such as 400-800 ect. As ISO increases you get more grain or noise. Sometimes it is nessasary to use higher ISO settings if there isn't enough light. Higher ISO will allow you to use a faster shutter speed also. Hope this clears things up a bit. Photoforum 1..
Yep, your personal crusade is undoubtedly doomed to fail. There is not the slightest chance that people will stop using the term ISO and replace it with either ISO speed or ISO sensitivity..
However in order to soften your disappointment I will use both those terms for the next 10 minutes. After that I will revert to simple ISO like every other human being on the planet......
Chuxter wrote:.
So what we are talking about here is the "ISO speed" and mypersonal crusade (doomed to failure, I fear) is to persuade peopleto use this term and not just "ISO"..
I prefer "ISO Sensitivity" as "Film Speed" is arcane..
Charlie DavisNikon 5700 & Sony R1CATS #25PAS Scribe @ http://www.here-ugo.com/PAS_List.htmHomePage: http://www.1derful.info'I brake for pixels...'..
Chuxter wrote:.
I guess I'm also pedantic..
Steve Balcombe wrote:.
"ISO" is the International Organization for Standardization (I knowthat looks as though it should be "IOS" - explanation here:.
Many people translate the French to "International StandardsOrganization"..
Mmm, actually it's nothing to do with French. "International Standards Organization" is simply what some people incorrectly assume "ISO" stands for. Oddly, you have snipped my link to the ISO's explanation, which would tell you amongst other things that the French name is "Organisation internationale de normalisation"..
So what we are talking about here is the "ISO speed" and mypersonal crusade (doomed to failure, I fear) is to persuade peopleto use this term and not just "ISO". This is not helped by the factthat the button on the back of my 400D, in common with many othersof course, is labelled "ISO". ;-(.
I prefer "ISO Sensitivity" as "Film Speed" is arcane..
Please note that I said "ISO speed" not "film speed". (I seem to be having trouble in this forum with people making up stuff I haven't said!) "ISO speed" is the term used in the ISO standard and is therefore officially correct. You're free to call it whatever you like, of course, but sticking "ISO" on the front of it is wrong since the ISO doesn't sanction the use of your terminology ..
Steve Balcombe wrote:.
Chuxter wrote:.
I guess I'm also pedantic..
Steve Balcombe wrote:.
"ISO" is the International Organization for Standardization (I knowthat looks as though it should be "IOS" - explanation here:.
Many people translate the French to "International StandardsOrganization"..
Mmm, actually it's nothing to do with French. "InternationalStandards Organization" is simply what some people incorrectlyassume "ISO" stands for. Oddly, you have snipped my link to theISO's explanation, which would tell you amongst other things thatthe French name is "Organisation internationale de normalisation"..
Yes, that's what I said. "OIN" translates losely to "ISO"..
So what we are talking about here is the "ISO speed" and mypersonal crusade (doomed to failure, I fear) is to persuade peopleto use this term and not just "ISO". This is not helped by the factthat the button on the back of my 400D, in common with many othersof course, is labelled "ISO". ;-(.
I prefer "ISO Sensitivity" as "Film Speed" is arcane..
Please note that I said "ISO speed" not "film speed". (I seem to behaving trouble in this forum with people making up stuff I haven'tsaid!) "ISO speed" is the term used in the ISO standard and istherefore officially correct. You're free to call it whatever youlike, of course, but sticking "ISO" on the front of it is wrongsince the ISO doesn't sanction the use of your terminology .
Nor do they sanction the use of "ISO" in isolation to refer to any of their standards..
Charlie DavisNikon 5700 & Sony R1CATS #25PAS Scribe @ http://www.here-ugo.com/PAS_List.htmHomePage: http://www.1derful.info'I brake for pixels...'..
Chuxter wrote:.
Steve Balcombe wrote:.
Chuxter wrote:.
I guess I'm also pedantic..
Steve Balcombe wrote:.
"ISO" is the International Organization for Standardization (I knowthat looks as though it should be "IOS" - explanation here:.
Many people translate the French to "International StandardsOrganization"..
Mmm, actually it's nothing to do with French. "InternationalStandards Organization" is simply what some people incorrectlyassume "ISO" stands for. Oddly, you have snipped my link to theISO's explanation, which would tell you amongst other things thatthe French name is "Organisation internationale de normalisation"..
Yes, that's what I said. "OIN" translates losely to "ISO"..
Charlie, this has *absolutely nothing to do with French*. Rien! 99% of the people who think ISO stands for International Standards Organisation don't have a clue what the French name for the organisation is so how could they be translating it?..
Now I know what it means and I have been able to use this information to get closer to achieving what I want.....
Steve Balcombe wrote:.
Charlie, this has *absolutely nothing to do with French*. Rien! 99%of the people who think ISO stands for International StandardsOrganisation don't have a clue what the French name for theorganisation is so how could they be translating it?.
I have no good idea. Perhaps they Googled it?.
Charlie DavisNikon 5700 & Sony R1CATS #25PAS Scribe @ http://www.here-ugo.com/PAS_List.htmHomePage: http://www.1derful.info'I brake for pixels...'..
This is what the official ISO site says:.
What ISO's name means.
Because "International Organization for Standardization" would have different abbreviations in different languages ("IOS" in English, "OIN" in French for Organisation internationale de normalisation), it was decided at the outset to use a word derived from the Greek isos, meaning "equal". Therefore, whatever the country, whatever the language, the short form of the organization's name is always ISO..
Art Caputi..
BTW, have a look at the CIPA spec if you want to learn more. Here's a page with a link to a large and long PDF:.
Http://www.dpreview.com/news/0706/070604cipadraftspecsguide.asp.
Regards, David..