Why is ISO locked at 100 in Nikon P900 Star Trails time-lapse mode?
Asked 5/8/2019
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2 answers
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On a Nikon Coolpix P900, I set ISO to 3200 in PASM/manual shooting, but when I switch to the Star Trails time-lapse mode the screen shows ISO 100 and I can’t change it. Is ISO adjustable in this mode, or does the camera lock it based on the exposure settings?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
3
From Nikon P900 field test imaging-resource.com:
High ISO Performance
[...] The camera's ISO sensitivity setting affects the camera's maximum exposure times. Only at ISO 100 can the camera shoot at its maximum shutter speed of 15”. At ISO 200, the maximum shutter speed is 8”. At ISO 400, the maximum shutter speed is 4”. At ISO 800, it's 2”. At ISO 1600, it's 1”. At ISO 3200 and 6400, it's ½”. Even in full manual mode, these limits remain. Unfortunately, this means that the P900 cannot be used for any night landscape work that doesn't feature a lot of artificial light.
It sounds like whatever you did after setting ISO 3200 in Star Trails mode set the shutter bulb to 8–15 seconds, which caused the camera to limit ISO to 100.
Originally by user11924. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user11924
7y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
The P900 appears to limit ISO in Star Trails/night shooting based on the shutter time it is using. On this camera, longer exposures require lower ISO: about 15s only at ISO 100, around 8s at ISO 200, 4s at ISO 400, 2s at ISO 800, 1s at ISO 1600, and 1/2s at ISO 3200–6400. Those limits apply even in manual mode.
So if Star Trails mode is using a long exposure such as 8–15 seconds, the camera will force ISO down to 100 (or another low value) and you may not be able to override it. In other words, this is likely a camera limitation of that mode, not a setting you missed.
If you want higher ISO, the camera would also have to use a much shorter shutter speed, which is usually not ideal for star-trail captures. The provided info suggests the P900 is quite limited for night landscape or star-trail work.
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