Is ISO 200 a sensible choice on modern digital cameras?
Asked 3/27/2011
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With film, ISO 100 was often preferred for the finest grain and ISO 400 for indoor use, while ISO 200 was sometimes seen as an awkward middle ground. On modern APS-C DSLRs from brands like Canon and Nikon, does that still apply? Are there meaningful advantages or disadvantages to using ISO 200 instead of ISO 100 or 400 in terms of noise, dynamic range, color, contrast, or exposure flexibility?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
15y ago
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I think it's still generally true that one tends to either use lowest-possible ISO in bright lighting, or else higher-than-200 ISO settings in darker situations. But I wouldn't say I'd avoid ISO 200; it just often doesn't seem to be convenient. If I'm in the sun, there's usually no need for it, and if I'm indoors, I'd often rather get a little more depth of field or a faster shutter speed than worry about keeping ISO down. But if ISO 200 fit the exposure and aperture+time I want, I'd not think twice about using it.
One reason is that changing ISO is trivial now; I can choose ISO 200 for a particular shot with the press of a button and flick of a dial (or going into a menu), rather than committing to it until I change film. I can even let the camera automatically use it whenever it fits best.
Another other consideration is that modern digital SLR cameras, especially of recent vintage, have really very good high-ISO capabilities. The noise might not be attractive as film grain sometimes can be, but there's much, much less of it. So rather than going to ISO 400, one might not think twice about ISO 800, 1600, or beyond. I think you're right, though, that ISO 200 is still left in an awkward spot — if ISO 1600 looks great, why not use that instead?
On some cameras, though, there is a reason where ISO 200 is actually technically preferred over ISO 100. This is because on these cameras the base iso of the sensor is 200, and going below that is actually worse, since it reduces dynamic range.
Or, one might want to use a highlight-preserving mode, if your camera offers it. Because digital sensors clip highlights in an ugly way rather than the graceful analog response of film, having blown-out bright areas is particularly bad. Some cameras offer a mode where they actually underexpose by one stop and the adjust upwards — you get more protection for highlights at the cost of increased shadow noise. And since each shot is really exposed one ISO step down, the bottom of the scale — ISO 100, on my camera — isn't an option. So, when I turn that on, ISO 200 becomes the lowest setting.
So, overall: I don't think there's a special problem with ISO 200, but I do think it falls in a less-used middle point. If you're using a camera which, for technical reasons, makes ISO 200 a good choice, don't be afraid of it. If you're using a small-sensor point & shoot camera where ISO 200 is worse than 400, there may be times when it still makes a good compromise setting, but on cameras which exhibit less noise at higher levels, you'll probably just use those instead.
Originally by user1943. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1943
15y ago
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Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
On modern digital cameras, ISO 200 is not a “bad” choice. The old film logic doesn’t translate very well because digital ISO can be changed shot by shot, and sensor performance at low-to-moderate ISO is much better than film ever was.
For most reasonably modern APS-C DSLRs, ISO 200 is still very clean, often close to noise-free in practical use. Compared with ISO 100, the noise difference is usually small; compared with ISO 400, ISO 200 gives you a bit more image quality while still allowing more shutter speed or smaller apertures than ISO 100.
In practice, photographers usually choose the lowest ISO that gives the shutter speed and aperture they need. That means ISO 100 in bright light, higher ISOs indoors, and ISO 200 whenever it happens to fit the exposure you want. There’s generally no reason to avoid it.
One caveat: on some cameras, certain ISO steps may behave slightly differently depending on how the sensor/amplification is implemented, but at ISO 200 this is usually not a major concern.
So the simple answer is: use ISO 200 freely when it suits the shot. On current digital cameras, it’s a normal, useful setting—not the compromise it often was with film.
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