Experimenting with ISO

ISO 200 (Daytime)


Here I have set the camera to ISO 200, the lowest ISO setting on my camera, as it is a Nikon D5000, and I have shot a Close-Up of a cigarette. ISO 200 has the least light sensitivity, so allows the least amount of light to enter the frame, giving a clearer but darker image.
ISO 1600 (Daytime)


In this shot I set my camera to ISO 1600, the midway point of the ISO settings on my camera. I captured a Long Shot of trees blowing in the wind. ISO 1600 has higher light sensitivity when compared to ISO 200, so gives a slightly less clear but darker image.
ISO 3200 (Daytime)


ISO 3200 is one of the highest ISO settings on my camera, and in this shot I captured a Point of View shot of me walking. ISO 3200 allows the most light to enter the image and therefore gives a much brighter, but much grainier image.
ISO 200 (Night)


This clip has the camera set to ISO 200. I filmed cars passing on the road, but since ISO 200 is the lowest ISO setting it allows the least light to enter the lens and therefore creates a very dark but clear image.
ISO 1600 (Night)


ISO 1600 allows much more light to enter the image, and therefore creates a much brighter image. In the above Extreme Long Shot of a flat block, the image is much brighter than in ISO 200, but the resolution of the image has decreased significantly.
ISO 3200 (Night)


In this shot, I set the camera to ISO 3200 and shot the same road as in ISO 200. As you can see, the image is much brighter, however due to increasing the ISO, the video has become much grainier.


I also filmed this Low Angle shot of a street lamp in ISO 3200. Setting the ISO this high and pointing the camera directly at a light source created a lens flare which I thought was an interesting shot and decided to include it in my blog.

Process: I think these videos were effective in showing the differences in different ISOs when shot at day and at night.

Problem Solving: The main problem I encountered was getting the right exposure, so that the shot wasn't under or over exposed. I overcame this problem by increasing/decreasing the aperture to allow more light into the lens.

Justification of Decisions: I shot these in outdoor locations that were readily available to me and I frequently travel, so were easy to get to, even at night. I also used items that were easy for me to acquire, such as a cigarette. I also shot the last video purely to show the effect of lens flare at a high ISO.

Recommendations: If I were to make these videos again I would use a tripod to get steadier footage. I would also use another source of light when filming at night just to make sure that the subject is in focus.