normanhall Loc: Leslie Missouri

I have been doing some reading and watching videos and i am hearing that the base iso of most Nikon's is 200; and by going to 100 really does not change anything. I would like to here some thoughts on this.

Experiment_626

Everything I've heard is that your camera's base ISO setting — the lowest setting that is actually given as ISO xxx — is where you'll get maximum image quality. I know Thom Hogan reported that with one camera (the D300, if I recall correctly), dropping down to the "Lo 1" setting works pretty well, but some highlight data can be compromised if you're not careful.

I think many of Nikon's cameras do have a base ISO of 200. The D3x, I believe, has a base ISO of 50. The D7000's base is 100. I'm not sure about the rest. I think my D80's was 100, and my D300's was ISO 200. You could look up the cameras on Wikipedia, which probably has that information.

I don't think it makes any appreciable difference in image quality to have 100 versus 200. Being able to go to a lower ISO could have other uses, such as longer exposures during daylight, but you can accomplish the same result with a neutral density filter.

SSB

normanhall Loc: Leslie Missouri

thanks for the input on this. i am using a d-5100 and the base iso on this one is 200. Thought it was interesting that moving down to 100 does not help any, make me wonder why it was put there.

MT Shooter Loc: Montana

I am not sure where you read this as the Nikon D5100 has an ISO range of 100-6400, that means the base ISO is 100. It has the same sensor as the D7000, but with a different processor is all.
Most of the early Nikon DSLRs had a base ISO of 200, but all the current models have a base ISO of either 50 or 100 I believe.
Even the D3100 has a base ISO of 100 with an ISO range of 100 to 3200.

normanhall Loc: Leslie Missouri

thanks MT maybe i misunderstood what was being said. to me it did not make sense to have an iso of 100 but 200 is the base. it was very confusing as to why it would be there.

Nikonfan70 Loc: Long Island

My D3100 has a default iso of100
My old D40's default is 200.

sharkman53

My D3s is ISO 200, there is no worries with this setting, I have no noise and I can push the ISO extremely high.

pjreed Loc: Tonopah, Arizona

I have a d5100 also and the base is 100

wlgoode Loc: Globe, AZ

My D5100 is 100 too.

coatachrome

Hello Norman, Coatachrome here,

Let me quote a piece from Simon Stafford's Magic Lantern Guide for the Nikon D90 that may help, he write, "It is easy to assume that using the lowest possible ISO setting would deliver the maximum potiential image quality; after all, this applies generally with film. However, digital sensors do not react to light in the same way as film. The standard base ISO sensitivity is where the sensor usually delivers optimal performance, which is ISO 200 in the case of the D90. At settings below this, the dynamic range of the camera is effectively reduced. Although low and midtone values are preserved, there is a tendency for highligh values to become overexposed more quickly. So, unless you really need to reduce the sensitivity, for example to use a wider aperture in brightness conditions, I recommend you shoot at ISO 200 to get the best out of your camera."

Hope this helps with your question.