High ISO Capable Compact Digital Camera (Pns)

“ISO 1600 is not a problem, our digital camera is like no others!” that is how camera manufacturers have been marketing their point and shoot (PnS) digital cameras.

ISO is a measurement of a digital camera's imaging sensor's sensitivity. Digital cameras with high ISO capability are better able to take low-light images and pictures of fast moving objects.

ISO ranges from 50-3200. Depending on manufacturers, compact digital cameras of more referred to as PnS have the ISO range from 100-400 while dSLRs’ ranges from ISO100-1600. Above are the typical ISO range, higher end PnS offers ISO of 400, 800 and even 1600 while some dSLR offers ISO 3200.

The higher the figure of the ISO setting the noisier the photos are. In photography, noise is defined as any unwanted signal interfering with the clarity and intelligibility of desired signals. Little dots on photos that you have taken are referred as noise.

Here is a list of some High ISO Capable PnS:

Fujifilm FinePix F30

Sample Photo

Canon PowerShot S3 IS (6MP)

Sample Photo

Panasonic FX01 (6MP)

Sample Photo

Sony DSC-H5 (7MP)

Sample Photo

Samsung NV7 OPS (7MP)

Sample Photo

Ricoh GR-Digital (8MP)

Sample Photo

Panasonic LX2 (8MP)

Sample Photo

Olympus Mju 750 (7MP)

Sample Photo

Olympus Mju 800 (8MP)

Sample Photo

A comparison of these cameras’ high ISO performance were carried out:

ISO 800
ISO 1000
ISO 3200

Compact camera high ISO modes: summing up @dpreview.com

• There is a lot of variation in the appearance high ISO output of different cameras, but they're all crippled by the same small sensors / lack of sensitivity.
• Do not expect to be able to produce large prints from compact camera high ISO modes.
• Subject matter matters: portraits are a lot more forgiving of noise reduction than landscapes.
• Once you get over ISO 400 any advantage of higher megapixel counts is usually lost.
• There is no compact camera on the market that can produce acceptable full size results at ISO 3200, and only a handful that can at ISO 800 or ISO 1600.
• Even viewed full screen on a large monitor you will see the loss of quality.
• Optical image stabilization is not a replacement for high ISO - it can combat camera shake, but it doesn't allow you to increase the shutter speed and therefore cannot do anything about blur due to movement of the subject in low light.
• If you intend to buy a compact for use in low light look for a fast lens (wide maximum aperture) - it's worth a lot more than a pointless ISO 1600 mode.
• For small social snaps (friends in a bar, for example) high ISO modes may well produce acceptable results as long as you are aware of the quality limitations and stick with small prints.

Bottom line about using High ISO @ digicamhelp.com

Avoid using higher ISO number unless you have a digital camera that is capable of handling it well. For important low light shots, shoot at a lower ISO and use a camera support.

When shooting in low light, it's better to select an ISO number than let the camera decide for you. Test your camera to see the highest number you can tolerate.

Complete article regarding compact digital camera at HIGH ISO:

Compact Camera High ISO modes: Separating the facts from the hype

High Sensitivity mode

High ISO Comparisons Nikon vs. Canon & Digicam vs. SLR

• dSLR High ISO Comparison -21/05/2007

• Nikon D3 at Osaka,Japan (ISO250- 5000) -27/08/2007
• Nikon D3 Sample Photo (ISO 3200) -27/08/2007
• Nikon D3 Sample Photo (ISO 640) -27/08/2007
• Nikon D300 ISO6400 Sample Photo -27/08/2007
• Canon 40D ISO1600 1st Look -24/08/2007

• Built-in Sensor Cleaning Solution, Work? -26/03/2007
• 2007: 10 Photo Industry Predictions Part 3 of 3 -21/01/2007
• 2007: 10 Photo Industry Predictions Part 2 of 3 -21/01/2007
• 2007: 10 Photo Industry Predictions Part 1 of 3 -21/01/2007
• 5 reasons why you should buy a dSLR -13/12/2006

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