Do you use auto ISO?

[JustJazzie]

My camera is almost ALWAYS on auto Iso (capped at 8000 I believe.)

I turn it off for flash work when it won't work properly. If I'm doing a moon shot or something with a long exposure, I may throw it in manual. But in the end, about 90% of the time, it's in auto.

 

[Gary A.]

I know a lot of news photogs who use auto ISO. But you gotta be careful if you're looking for max IQ. News is different, typically it is fluid and fast paced. High IQ isn't the number one requirement for a news image. Auto IQ lets you concentrate more fully on the story without the distraction of metering while keeping your shutter and aperture at a desired setting.

I'm old schooled and still shoot manually for most of my stuff.

 

[ronlane]

I've used it for high school sports and birds with good success.

You have pictures of birds playing high school sports? Mega cool...

Lol

No, I didn't get the change of time on that one and missed that game. I showed up late and the final was the Raptors 48 and the Deer 47. They said it came down to a missed extra point try, someone from the sideline couldn't wait and pulled that trigger on the 10 pointer that was kicking that day.

Lol

That is the big leagues of animals playing sports. I'm still in the recreational leagues, when I can get an invite to come. lol

 

[jaomul]

Auto iso in manual (I know sounds like a contradiction) isgreat when I know what aperture I want and know the speed I want. Yesterday I went shooting with a friend, we were mainly looking for small birds in the dawn. I selected my speed and aperture in manual with auto iso and didn't touch the settings for a good hour after that.

My friend was adjusting regularly because his ss was fluctuating a lot in aperture priority.I explained how I was shooting and he will try next time. It's all about what you enjoy, and the photo. I never saw anyone (except photographers) ask if a wonderful photo had auto iso to help

 

[goodguy]

I know a lot of people say you can't be a "real photographer" if you use auto ISO,

Stop worrying about what people say, who cares, photography is about fun and the end result and not what people say or any rules.

I shoot mostly in Auto ISO but in events and studio I will use manual ISO settings.

 

[astroNikon]

Just tell all your friends that you shoot in Manual ISO, manual Aperture, manual shutter, manual exposure control and carry around a Light Meter and push it's buttons from time to time.

You could even turn off your AutoFocus and focus manually too to really impress them

But keep it all in AUTO ... who's gonna know unless you share your EXIF with them.

 

[nerwin]

Just tell all your friends that you shoot in Manual ISO, manual Aperture, manual shutter, manual exposure control and carry around a Light Meter and push it's buttons from time to time.

You could even turn off your AutoFocus and focus manually too to really impress them

But keep it all in AUTO ... who's gonna know unless you share your EXIF with them.

Darn it...only if I had friends!

 

[Dao]

Or just tell you friend a true professional photographer use whatever tool it need to get the result he/she want, and that includes auto modes. At the end of the day, they are just tools people use to get the job done.

 

[Derrel]

Auto ISO in Manual exposure setting mode, with the right settings pre-established works great in the "new" Nikons. In the new Nikons, Auto ISO has a high degree of user-adjustments that are pre-programmed into the memory bank, and exposure compensation works perfectly.

I like Auto ISO in situations where there can be BIG, major shifts in lighting levels, such as shadow/sunlight transitions, or where you want to be able to capture a subject that will move from a bright area, to a much darker area in a VERY SHORT amount of time: think of Coastalconn's osprey dive sequences, for a good example.

I'll never forget the first day I used Auto ISO, it was a portrait shoot right on the beach at the Oregon coast, steady winds of about 15-20 MPH, with occasional gusts up to 30 mph. I had the 200 VR and the 80-200/2.8 AFS on almost all day. The issue though was needing a FAST speed of 1/1600 to keep the wind from spoiling shots, to allow the subject to move and romp, at an f/stop of f/5.6 for the right background/depth of field and best image quality from the 80-200. And I wanted the ability to shoot toward the sun, backlighted, and side-lighted, or (later in the afternoon) front-lighted, using the sun as a crisp main light.

Auto ISO was a MAJOR factor in making it easy to just look thru the viewfinder, and work on composing, tracking, and getting the right timing.

Auto ISO in the earlier D2x Nikon was USELESS, since the sensor was only good from ISO 100 to 320; on the newer Nikons the usable ISO range is much better. It's my understanding also that other brands have significantly different, less-adjustable AUTO ISO methods.

There are many times when what you want is a specific shutter speed and a specific,exact f/stop. This is where Auto ISO in Manual exposure control mode has been the best for me. When I want to be able to set a certain, exact, specific exposure that has a real significance, and then let the ISO be moved to achieve the right level of sensor gain to get what I envision.
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I do not use AUTO ISO with flash, since most of my flash is shot at low to medium ISO values, and the majority of the exposure is from flash illumination. I shoot flash in M mode, always, figure out the flash power, and I set the shutter speed to control background brightness if there is an ambient light source.

 

[coastalconn]

I also shoot in manual with auto ISO for my birds.. Light changes quick and with spot metering and EC it makes it very easy to nail exposure. If I'm in a spot where I think the light will be constant I switch to full manual, especially for Ospreys.. If you meter off an Osprey with wings up vs wings down there is a huge shift in exposure...