firmware issue with D3100?

[piperknitsRN]

According to Ken Rockwell's online review of the D3100:

"A firmware defect causes the Auto ISO to rise to the same high ISO it would pick without flash. In other words, with Auto ISO and flash, you'll usually be shooting at ISO 3,200, or whatever you've set for the maximum Auto ISO ISO!"

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d3100.htm

While I can see a few "work arounds" to this issue (setting default max ISO to 1600, say) it still baffles me as to why Nikon would program their firmware in such a way. I mean, wouldn't an ISO of 3200 + flash usually wash out pictures? (I realize there are other variables at play, but 3200 + flash just seems like overkill in most situations).

That said, I've used auto focus and flash for a number of indoor shots (especially a few where I've handed off my camera to someone else to take the picture) and not noticed this to be a "problem" given my general-all-around-purposes picture taking needs at the time (like, a quick portrait of my classmates). Perhaps I'd notice the "problem" if I were looking at a printed copy of my picture, but I'd really need comparisons to see the difference online--as the photograph looks just fine to me (and I suppose that's what ultimately matters).

Any way, curious, I checked the EXIF data on those particular pictures, and sure enough, the ISO was auto-set at 3200... which just seems excessive even for indoor shots under moderate lighting conditions.

Of course, I don't know enough to really be talking about this issue intelligently--I just think it puts a wrench in using auto mode (I've been using other semi-manual modes like A and S lately, but this is mostly when I've been photographing the bunnies and have the time to spare, not when I'm out with a group of people and we're taking snapshots on the fly, for instance--then I usually rely on my old crutch, "auto").

I feel a bit goofy complaining about it, even, since I know so little about photography, but was wondering if any one else had ever gotten a washed-out looking photo from using auto mode because of this issue.

 

[MikeScone]

I'm not sure if it's a defect or a change in philosophy at Nikon - I saw the same change between the D300 and the D7000.

It's kind of odd that Ken would call that a defect in his D3100 review, when in reviewing the same thing in the D7000 he said:

Auto ISO used to default back to the slowest ISO with flash, but now also ramps-up as things get darker. This is to lighten the backgrounds, and so long as you're not in pitch black, works really well. This is going to make a huge improvement in casual flash pictures, since most flash pictures taken inside look like car headlights illuminating a subject against pitch black, even if the ambient light was good.
​

In the case of the D7000, that's 25,600 (as I've got it set), which is too high because of noise. I could set the maximum to 3200 or 6400, which are still clean, but the whole point is to have the high ISO there when I must have it to get the shot.

The solution, I've found, is just to turn off Auto ISO when you're using flash and just use the native 200 ISO. On the D7000 I just set user mode U1 on the mode dial to the settings I like for flash, but lacking that on the D3100 you can just go into the menu and turn off auto ISO for those times you're using flash.

 

[piperknitsRN]

MikeScone wrote:

I'm not sure if it's a defect or a change in philosophy at Nikon - I saw the same change between the D300 and the D7000.

It's kind of odd that Ken would call that a defect in his D3100 review, when in reviewing the same thing in the D7000 he said:

Auto ISO used to default back to the slowest ISO with flash, but now also ramps-up as things get darker. This is to lighten the backgrounds, and so long as you're not in pitch black, works really well. This is going to make a huge improvement in casual flash pictures, since most flash pictures taken inside look like car headlights illuminating a subject against pitch black, even if the ambient light was good.
​

In the case of the D7000, that's 25,600 (as I've got it set), which is too high because of noise. I could set the maximum to 3200 or 6400, which are still clean, but the whole point is to have the high ISO there when I must have it to get the shot.

The solution, I've found, is just to turn off Auto ISO when you're using flash and just use the native 200 ISO. On the D7000 I just set user mode U1 on the mode dial to the settings I like for flash, but lacking that on the D3100 you can just go into the menu and turn off auto ISO for those times you're using flash.

I think I have Auto ISO set to "off"--but as I understand it, the firmware overrides that in full "auto" mode and basically defaults to 3200 when you're using the onboard flash (which is what I've set my max ISO at--it goes a bit higher than that but because of the "noise" issue I don't think I'd set it much higher unless I did so manually, and for a good reason--i.e. I really needed it).

It's just an odd "glitch"; I read Ken Rockwell's assessment the first go round and only really noticed the issue when I started studying other reviews (and user opinions) about the feature and did a google search on the topic... and there it had been in Rockwell's article all along; I just hadn't appreciated it beforehand. That said, I have no real complaints about the pics that used "auto" + onboard flash where the ISO defaulted to 3200. I didn't even notice it until I started poking around in online forums/reviews.

I also wonder if using an external flash (like my SB 400) overrides that particular glitch? Hmmm... I looked at a picture where for some reason I'd used the external flash but had the ISO set to 200--and the ISO stayed true to my setting...

Oh, just wondering--do you happen to like the results of the Active D lighting setting? Probably on the D7000 there is more than just "on/off" for Active D lighting, as I read on the higher-end models this is the case--but with the D3100 you can only choose on/off. I have mine set to "off" at the moment; not sure why I made that decision, though.

 

[MikeScone]

Oh, just wondering--do you happen to like the results of the Active D lighting setting? Probably on the D7000 there is more than just "on/off" for Active D lighting, as I read on the higher-end models this is the case--but with the D3100 you can only choose on/off. I have mine set to "off" at the moment; not sure why I made that decision, though.

I do like it. Active D-Lighting (which should properly be called "automatic dynamic range adjustment") is one of the best features Nikon has come up with in years. You should absolutely leave it on.

Yes, there are multiple levels on the D7000, and it has a more capable ADL firmware, but I haven't felt any need to juggle with the settings. I just leave it at the default setting.

Basically, if you look on the thread about photographing rabbits with red eyes you can see my discussion of using the sliders in Photoshop to make whites white and blacks black. Well, that's what Active D-Lighting does, but it does it on the fly in the camera. I noticed it right away when I switched from the Fuji S3 to the D300, and even more in the D7000. The pictures look "snappier" than the S3's right out of the camera. Under ordinary conditions I almost never have to play that trick with the sliders. When I look at the levels histogram the graph goes right to the black and white ends of the spectrum with little or no need for tweaking.

 

[piperknitsRN]

MikeScone wro

I do like it. Active D-Lighting (which should properly be called "automatic dynamic range adjustment") is one of the best features Nikon has come up with in years. You should absolutely leave it on.

Yes, there are multiple levels on the D7000, and it has a more capable ADL firmware, but I haven't felt any need to juggle with the settings. I just leave it at the default setting.

Basically, if you look on the thread about photographing rabbits with red eyes you can see my discussion of using the sliders in Photoshop to make whites white and blacks black. Well, that's what Active D-Lighting does, but it does it on the fly in the camera. I noticed it right away when I switched from the Fuji S3 to the D300, and even more in the D7000. The pictures look "snappier" than the S3's right out of the camera. Under ordinary conditions I almost never have to play that trick with the sliders. When I look at the levels histogram the graph goes right to the black and white ends of the spectrum with little or no need for tweaking.

Wow! That's pretty cool! I haven't graduated to photoshopping my stuff yet (still trying to figure out the camera!) but it's reassuring to know the ADL is a "good thing" that should be left on--just switched my camera settings ;-).