Does noise really matter all that much in portraits? I think people are too hung up on having their images 100% noiseless, whereas the crisper and sharper, the better. And that’s just the point, isn’t it?
People are hung up on noise for no reason — we’ve had it for years and years. I’m talking about low noise here from having to put your ISO up a touch to get a good shutter speed due to low light. Not talking about using incredibly high ISO for night photography, nor noise caused by a badly underexposed image fixed in post, either. I’m talking about a little bit of noise added to your image, rather like the grain that appeared with film cameras.
Noise or grain?
What’s the difference between grain and noise? Film grain is caused by the grains of silver present in the film — they’re not consistent in the pattern. ISO noise (often called grain) is caused by the digital sensor and is more pixel-based and consistent in the pattern.
Cameras these days are incredible. My Sony can almost shoot in the dark, and the ISO range is into the extremes, from 50 to 102,500!
I frequently shoot at a higher ISO (640 to 800) and tell my students not to be afraid of a slightly higher ISO. You’ll have less noise from higher ISO than from a badly exposed image (fixed in post), and they can add a certain old-world charm. If you are using editing software to create vintage film looks (like Nik or Exposure) chances are you’re pretty much always adding noise with the filters.
Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should
Just because I can shoot at ISO 50 and have absolutely no noise, does this mean I should? I adore creative portraits and often there is a theme or story behind my images. Sometimes I find my low ISO images too crisp and I have been known to actually add noise in post! A little bit of noise in an image can give a romantic old-world feel to my images.
I love the Hollywood look and grain was all part and parcel of the silver screen and film cameras. I honestly believe that a little bit of grain can make a photo look like a photo. The above images were shot at ISO 100 and I added grain in post. Next week I’ll show you HOW to add some old-fashioned grain to an image.
Finally an honest opinion about picture noise nowadays. Thanks!
Thanks so much, glad you enjoyed the post
It’s always better to _add_ something, as to try to _remove_ something.
If you have an image with noise and you find it is too much noise, you have definately more work at hand with the possibility of a much worser outcome.
So, always produce “clean”, then do the “dirt” in post if needed.
Thats one way, of course, but if you need to sacrifice a little grain to get a better exposure I don’t think it’s anything to be afraid of. Shooting at say ISO640 is not much of an issue on today’s SLR
I agree with you to a certain extent, but I think that an image without noise from the camera with creative grain added later (and some blur if required) will always look better than a noisy image, so I think that not having noise in your original image (either via low ISO or good noise removal software) is always a good thing.
Thanks Andrew, yes as I said I prefer to add in post, it’s much nicer. But I still think too many people get hung up on noise or shooting at a higher ISO. These days the camera are better and there are so many pieces of software out to fix it anyway, like the new LR update!
Thanks. Noise is overrated. At least if you have a look on prints. On printed pictures noise is not a problem.
. Agreed. Keep up making us think.
I find that taking all the noise out of a photo makes is curved and smooth instead of crisp.
depending on HOW the noise was removed in post it can make images seem that way yes. Especially using something like Luminance in LR. The new AI Denoise helps with that
I agree. I love the look of film! I’m a natural light newborn photographer and my ISO is rarely at 100, most likely at 640, sometimes more depending on the weather conditions ( in London light can be an issue!). But I’m not afraid of noise, I like it. Actually I’m doing a breastfeeding project at the moment and I’m finding adding some more noise in post too.