Nikon D850 ISO Series from 64 to 25600: Creek to Pines to Mountain Peaks

2017-09-27 • SEND FEEDBACK |
Related: Nikon, Nikon D850, Nikon DSLR, noise

See my Nikon wish list and get Nikon D850 at B&H Photo.

I like to establish a baseline understanding of a camera in many ways, performance across the ISO range being one of those areas.

This ISO series evaluates noise from ISO 64 through ISO 25600 using a near-optimal exposure.

• At which ISO does image detail begin to be significantly lost?
• At which ISO do dark areas begin to be too overlaid with noise?
• What is the highest ISO that is acceptable?

Nikon D850 ISO Series: Creek to Pines to Mountain Peaks

Includes images up to 4320 wide from ISO 64 to 25600, and also several large crops at actual pixels from ISO 64 to ISO 25600. RawDigger histogram series from ISO 64 to 25600 reveals interesting quality insights across the ISO range, which dovetail nicely with my subjective findings.

(date/time below are wrong, date not set in camera)

f10 @ 1.6 sec, ISO 1600; 2017-01-27 21:09:13
NIKON D850 + Zeiss Milvus 35mm f/1.4

[low-res image for bot]