Photo Critique Club

[Gill-b]

@Evadig

Thanks to Google and some pictures grabbed off of the Internet, I will try to explain ISO. It is a throwback to the days when we used film in cameras.

'In film photography, ISO determines the sensitivity of the film to light, similar to how the size of a container determines how much light it can "catch". A lower ISO (e.g., ISO 100) means the film is less sensitive to light, requiring more light for a proper exposure but producing finer grain and sharper images. A higher ISO (e.g., ISO 400) makes the film more sensitive, allowing for photography in lower light conditions at the cost of more pronounced grain and potentially lower image quality.'

iso_05-1.jpg

• Gill-b
• Sep 25, 2025

Above image grabbed from the following webpage: https://photography.tutsplus.com/articles/what-is-iso-a-technical-exploration--photo-11963

film_grain.gif

• Gill-b
• Sep 25, 2025

Above image grabbed from the following webpage:
http://www.markdouglasphoto.com/photo/expose/film/film_char.html


'How the "container" analogy works:
The Light Meter & The Hose:
The light hitting the film is like water flowing through a hose.

ISO = Container Size:
The ISO setting on your camera is like the size of a container, such as a bucket, that collects this light.

Low ISO (Smaller Container):
With a low ISO, like ISO 100, the "container" is small. It can only capture a small amount of light. This requires a lot of light to fill the small container, resulting in less "grain" (like fine sand) in your photos and greater detail.

High ISO (Larger Container):
With a high ISO, like ISO 400, the "container" is larger, meaning it can "hold" more light even with the same amount of light flowing in. This allows for shooting in darker conditions or with faster shutter speeds, but the photos will have a coarser "grain".'

modelagentur-fotografie-grundlagen-iso-einstellungen.jpg

• Gill-b
• Sep 25, 2025

Above image grabbed from the following webpage:
https://cmmodels.com/1x1-of-small-photography-aperture-shutter-speed-iso-value/

 

[Gill-b]

@Evadig

I prefer this analogy which is almost how it was originally explained to me over 30 years ago.

The "Weave" Analogy Explained

Fine Weave (Low ISO):
Imagine a tightly woven basket. It's intricate and captures every tiny detail. This represents the small, fine grains of low-ISO film, which record fine detail and produce sharp images.

Loose Weave (High ISO):
Now picture a loosely woven mat. The gaps in the weave are larger, allowing much more light to pass through quickly. This is like high-ISO film, where the larger grains are more receptive to light, allowing for faster exposure in dim conditions but at the cost of fine detail.

What It Affects:
Just as a loose weave might lose small objects, a high ISO film can introduce more noticeable "noise" or graininess into your photographs. Conversely, the fine weave of low ISO film retains the photographic equivalent of small details.

 

[iwltfum]

What do you all think of this photo? It's so hard to take good photos of white chickens in the sun...
View attachment 4182791

I love this one!

 

[notabitail]

What do you all think of this photo?

 

[Gill-b]

What do you all think of this photo?
View attachment 4261308

First off, great job at spotting a great photo opportunity.

Next, I think that it needs a bit of editing to line up and straighten your photograph as best you can in post production.

Not 1a.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

As shown in the above image, the right side of your photograph could be cropped to centre the image onto the subject matter; then the top could be cropped to put the distant horizon onto the bottom third; and the whole image could be angled at around 0,58 degrees to straighten the vertical lines as well as straighten the distant horizon plus railing.

Not 1b.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

While busy taking photographs that are similar to this one, take note of all the lines that draw the eye to the subject matter. If you had just taken a step or two to the left, you would have been able to have a straight line running from you to the door of the structure. Unfortunately, this line in your picture is at an angle because you were positioned off centre to it when taking the photograph, as pointed out by the bottom white arrow in the above image.

Finally, everyone has different colour preferences, so it is up to the individual as to how one would prefer to colour edit an image. I personally would prefer to have an image that is less blue in tone by adding more yellow. Something like what this next image, my final edit, shows...

Not 2.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

So that is what I think of it.

 

[notabitail]

First off, great job at spotting a great photo opportunity.

Next, I think that it needs a bit of editing to line up and straighten your photograph as best you can in post production.

Not 1a.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

As shown in the above image, the right side of your photograph could be cropped to centre the image onto the subject matter; then the top could be cropped to put the distant horizon onto the bottom third; and the whole image could be angled at around 0,58 degrees to straighten the vertical lines as well as straighten the distant horizon plus railing.

Not 1b.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

While busy taking photographs that are similar to this one, take note of all the lines that draw the eye to the subject matter. If you had just taken a step or two to the left, you would have been able to have a straight line running from you to the door of the structure. Unfortunately, this line in your picture is at an angle because you were positioned off centre to it when taking the photograph, as pointed out by the bottom white arrow in the above image.

Finally, everyone has different colour preferences, so it is up to the individual as to how one would prefer to colour edit an image. I personally would prefer to have an image that is less blue in tone by adding more yellow. Something like what this next image, my final edit, shows...

Not 2.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

So that is what I think of it.

Thanks! I'll keep these tips in mind next time I take a photo like this.

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

@Evadig

I prefer this analogy which is almost how it was originally explained to me over 30 years ago.

The "Weave" Analogy Explained

Fine Weave (Low ISO):
Imagine a tightly woven basket. It's intricate and captures every tiny detail. This represents the small, fine grains of low-ISO film, which record fine detail and produce sharp images.

Loose Weave (High ISO):
Now picture a loosely woven mat. The gaps in the weave are larger, allowing much more light to pass through quickly. This is like high-ISO film, where the larger grains are more receptive to light, allowing for faster exposure in dim conditions but at the cost of fine detail.

What It Affects:
Just as a loose weave might lose small objects, a high ISO film can introduce more noticeable "noise" or graininess into your photographs. Conversely, the fine weave of low ISO film retains the photographic equivalent of small details.

Can you explain to me what ‘noise’ means, and how or when to use ‘noise reduction’ when making basic edits with a phone camera?

 

[azurbanclucker]

First off, great job at spotting a great photo opportunity.

Next, I think that it needs a bit of editing to line up and straighten your photograph as best you can in post production.

Not 1a.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

As shown in the above image, the right side of your photograph could be cropped to centre the image onto the subject matter; then the top could be cropped to put the distant horizon onto the bottom third; and the whole image could be angled at around 0,58 degrees to straighten the vertical lines as well as straighten the distant horizon plus railing.

Not 1b.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

While busy taking photographs that are similar to this one, take note of all the lines that draw the eye to the subject matter. If you had just taken a step or two to the left, you would have been able to have a straight line running from you to the door of the structure. Unfortunately, this line in your picture is at an angle because you were positioned off centre to it when taking the photograph, as pointed out by the bottom white arrow in the above image.

Finally, everyone has different colour preferences, so it is up to the individual as to how one would prefer to colour edit an image. I personally would prefer to have an image that is less blue in tone by adding more yellow. Something like what this next image, my final edit, shows...

Not 2.jpg

• Gill-b
• Dec 5, 2025

So that is what I think of it.

In addition to this excellent feedback, remember to follow your leading lines. See how that expansion joint in the sidewalk runs right into the split in the doors? Use it. Get down low, center your frame on that line, and shoot up, letting the symmetry of the lines tell another side of this story

Kinda like this. You could shoot it in portrait orientation as well to get a more vertical feel.

 

[notabitail]

In addition to this excellent feedback, remember to follow your leading lines. See how that expansion joint in the sidewalk runs right into the split in the doors? Use it. Get down low, center your frame on that line, and shoot up, letting the symmetry of the lines tell another side of this story

Kinda like this. You could shoot it in portrait orientation as well to get a more vertical feel.
View attachment 4261487

That's a nice picture. I'm going to try this.

 

[Gill-b]

Can you explain to me what ‘noise’ means, and how or when to use ‘noise reduction’ when making basic edits with a phone camera?

To maybe help you grasp an understand of how 'noise' works, study the art movement of Pointillism, paying particular attention to artworks by the inventor of the technique, Georges Seurat. His work 'A Sunday on La Grande Jatte', 1884, is perhaps the best example.

As far as making basic edits with a phone camera is concerned, I am very much old school and I do not keep up with advancements in digital technology, so I am unable to help you with this. I do know that the light sensors in digital cameras are becoming more and more sensitive, so taking photographs in low light is producing photographs with less noise than earlier digital light sensors.