ISO and ASA: I often wondered why present day DSLR's only have an ISO down to 100. I remember taking winter snow pics with PanX film @ ASA 25 for that great high contrast. Has post...

tor24tor Loc: Caldwell, NJ

I often wondered why present day DSLR's only have an ISO down to 100. I remember taking winter snow pics with PanX film @ ASA 25 for that great high contrast. Has post processing filled that void between 100 and 25?

dcampbell52 Loc: Clearwater Fl

tor24tor wrote:

I often wondered why present day DSLR's only have an ISO down to 100. I remember taking winter snow pics with PanX film @ ASA 25 for that great high contrast. Has post processing filled that void between 100 and 25?

It depends on the camera.. Some of the Nikons (D3300 D5200 (lowerer end) only go to ISO 200 and some of the High end (D800, D7100, etc) go to ISO 100 then have Lo and LO / LOW which goes way down. This has to do with the sensitivity of the sensor which is now catching up with the sensitivity of the fastest films where in the past it was only as sensitive as most of the films. Also remember that Color film was always slower than black and white and, if I remember correctly, Pan x was black and white only, so you are comparing apples and oranges.

Bear2 Loc: Southeast,, MI

I have shot color print and slides down to ASA 25. Kodachrome and Ektar both were available in ASA 25. Now ofcourse Kodachrome is extinct, and Ektar is only available in ASA100.
Duane

waegwan Loc: Mae Won Li

tor24tor wrote:

I often wondered why present day DSLR's only have an ISO down to 100. I remember taking winter snow pics with PanX film @ ASA 25 for that great high contrast. Has post processing filled that void between 100 and 25?

I'm new to digital photography and struggling with the same issues. I guess I will get the hang of it eventually but it seems like there is a lot of film stuff I have to unlearn.

Leitz Loc: Solms

tor24tor wrote:

I often wondered why present day DSLR's only have an ISO down to 100. I remember taking winter snow pics with PanX film @ ASA 25 for that great high contrast. Has post processing filled that void between 100 and 25?

The Nikon Df, for one, can be set at ISO 50, with a slight increase in contrast vs. ISO 100. If you liked Panatomic X you would have loved Efke KB-14.

dsmeltz Loc: Philadelphia

ISO (International Standards Organization) was just ASA (American Standards Association) going international. Well a little more than that. ASA still exists (as ANSI.) The ISO adopted ASA film standards as its base.

Oh. The question. There were ISO films at 25 and all the other ASA settings.

anotherview Loc: California

Note that the Canon EOS 6D has a setting of ISO 50.

tor24tor wrote:

I often wondered why present day DSLR's only have an ISO down to 100. I remember taking winter snow pics with PanX film @ ASA 25 for that great high contrast. Has post processing filled that void between 100 and 25?

Scoutman Loc: Orlando, FL

tor24tor wrote:

I often wondered why present day DSLR's only have an ISO down to 100. I remember taking winter snow pics with PanX film @ ASA 25 for that great high contrast. Has post processing filled that void between 100 and 25?

Kodachrome was originally developed as a film for motion pictures. Its use as a still film was a spin off and secondary.

As far as ASA is considered, Kodachrome was available at ASA values of 8 and 10. Ernst Haas, who arguably made color film respectable for photographic artists, complained bitterly when Kodak announced that if would discontinue making it. I could not verify the date. They reportedly sold Haas their complete inventory which he put in a freezer until that supply was exhausted and he was "forced" to move to Kodak 25.

The color work of Ernst Haas throughout his career is available on the web site that bears his name. Also, his statements on philosophy of photography. Lots of other stuff.

I've used Kodachrome 25 early on, and then moved on to Kodachrome 64, which I remember shooting at ASA 100 to get greater color saturation through underexposure.

So glad to have digital now, where, among other things, one can vary the "film" speed by just turning a dial on the camera.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

tor24tor wrote:

I often wondered why present day DSLR's only have an ISO down to 100. I remember taking winter snow pics with PanX film @ ASA 25 for that great high contrast. Has post processing filled that void between 100 and 25?

Now it's all electronics and in-camera processing magic. Film was physical and chemical - a world of difference. I bet you never shot film that had an ASA of 25,000.

chaprick

anotherview wrote:

Note that the Canon EOS 6D has a setting of ISO 50.

I wonder if that ISO 50 setting gains you anything? The camera comes with ISO 100 as the default minimum setting.

JerseyJim Loc: New Jersey, USA

jerryc41 wrote:

Now it's all electronics and in-camera processing magic. Film was physical and chemical - a world of difference. I bet you never shot film that had an ASA of 25,000.

I agree, it's apples and oranges. Digital sensors are engineered for a range of sensitivity within gain, noise and signal processing parameters. A high end/expensive camera will do a better job at ISO 100 or 25000 than a cheaper model. Film speed is generally determined by the size of the grain and the thickness of the emulsion but don't have the latitude of digital.

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

waegwan wrote:

I'm new to digital photography and struggling with the same issues. I guess I will get the hang of it eventually but it seems like there is a lot of film stuff I have to unlearn.

There is nothing you need to "unlearn". In fact, having film experience is a big plus when coming into digital, because you have the background to understand photographic concepts. Photography has not changed, it has progressed. Photography is still, and always will be, based upon light!

anotherview Loc: California

Agree: "There is nothing you need to 'unlearn.' In fact, having film experience is a big plus when coming into digital, because you have the background to understand photographic concepts. Photography has not changed, it has progressed."

Digital photography stands on the shoulders of film photography.

cjc2 wrote:

There is nothing you need to "unlearn". In fact, having film experience is a big plus when coming into digital, because you have the background to understand photographic concepts. Photography has not changed, it has progressed. Photography is still, and always will be, based upon light!

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

chaprick wrote:

I wonder if that ISO 50 setting gains you anything? The camera comes with ISO 100 as the default minimum setting.

ISO 50, gains you time, just like using an ND filter of 1stop, but with a small noise penalty. ;-)
SS

pappy0352 Loc: Oregon

My Canon 60D goes to ISO 100.

Pappy