Pushing the D100

[EdMac]

I just had to see what would happen if I pushed the ISO of my new D100 up to 1000. This bird feeder is in my yard, and under a tree. It was around 6:00PM, and the sun was very low on the horizon. The lense was my 70-300 mm D ED f4.5-5.6 cranked out to 270 mm. Exposure was f5.6 at I believe 1/160 of a second. I am impressed at what this camera can do.

[EdMac]

Here is another ISO 1000 shot of a second squirrel. In this case I used Photoshop to clean things up. Color was corrected, and I added a frame,

[EdMac]

This is the original Squirrel picture taken at ISO 1000 and then reworked in photoshop.

[me_wrestler]

I regularly shoot at 1600 or above (when needed) with my D100 and am very impressed. The difference between the higher ISO and the lower is quite minimal.
Colin

[EdMac]

Hi Colin,
I was just amazed at the performance at 1000. My old Coolpix had me hyper about going past 100. This is turning out to be a great machine. I have only had the camera for a couple of days, and I can't put it down. Every time I pick it up, I learn something new. Over on DPReview forum, I made a suggestion to a person who had a new D100 and a slow zoom lense that they raise the ISO to 400, and another guy came along and said that was absolutly the wrong thing to do. That is why I tried my own picture at 1000. Now I am going to have to try hgher. My normal zoom is the 28-105 F3.5-4.5, and my longer zoom is the 70-300 D ED f4.5-5.6. In low light they become pretty useless for any action. With the capabilities of the D100, I am able to do what I did tonight. That is great.

[me_wrestler]

I'm not shy about pumping the ISO up. Granted, if I'm going for something destined to be art, I keep to the lower ISO. But if I'm shooting indoors and flash is not a good option, I'll go all the way up. I've used the HI - 2 setting which is equivelant to 6400 ISO and have been treated to very acceptable photos. You can tell they were shot at a higher ISO but they look better than any high speed film (I've used some of that too). I think that the more you use your camera, the more you will love it, I do mine.
Happy Shooting,
Colin

[EdMac]

You are absolutely correct. This camera has made me feel free to express myself. I was at the NJ State Firemen's Convention today, and it was cloudy and rainy. The ability to push the ISO allowed me to get pictures that I would not have tried before.

[mrdinh]

wow...can you guys or anyone else compare that with the d1x?...

[EdMac]

Hi,
I have never worked with the D1X, but I would expect that it would be as good as if not better than the performance of the D100.

[mrdinh]

actually, myself...iso 400 is the max i used...any higher is not use able...but that is just me...in my d1x

i just wonder if someone had both cameras...and shot a high iso setting and compared both side by side...if so, can you post your results?

i ask this because i need a camera that can shoot very high iso during a low lighting ceremony during a wedding...and flash cannot be used...i know film cameras can do it but i'm not returning to film

[budguinn]

Ed,

Amazing.....I don't see hardly any noise at all........I'm used to using Neat Image or something else once I go 400 or more.

bud

[EdMac]

Hi Bud,
This is one of the things that has really made me glad that I purchased the D100. I was always fighting the fact that my lense was relatively slow, and I was afraid to push the Coolpix 5000. It was noisy enough at any ISO above 100. There are people that routinely shoot at ISO 1000 and 1600. I guess that I am not that brave yet. The other thing that I am learning is to use NEF. There are a lot of advantages to working with the 12 bit data.
BTW, the first image is blue because I had left the WB set for flourescent by mistake. I then used curves to fix it and produce the third image. Live and learn.

[me_wrestler]

I've used both cameras and they definatley improved the higher ISO's on the D100. Some of my friends and I shot some objects at different ISO's with both cameras and it looked like the D100 at 1600 was about the same as the D1X at 400. Nothing scientific, just opinion.
Colin

[EdMac]

It is encouraging to hear that. The low noise was a pleasant surprise to me, after I purchased the camera.

[Sunny]

Hi Ed-I'm curious about having to do the color correction, was your white balance not set right or is that a problem with the D100?