BMPCC4K - Best ISO for Noise & Dynamic Range? | ISO Tested & Explained

The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K is know for its dual native ISO. But what do the noise levels look like at each ISO? And how does the relationship between ISO and dynamic range look? In this video we test the BMPCC4K and it's different ISO's in two different ISO tests. BMPCC4k, ISO explained.
Timestamps:
Intro: 00:00
Dual native ISO: 00:26
How the tests were done: 01:38
Test 1 - Noise Performance: 02:54
Thoughts & Conclusions - Test 1: 05:04
Quick walkthrough before Test 2: 06:32
Test 2 - Highlights: 07:21
Thoughts & Conclusions - Test 2: 08:40
General thoughts & conclusions: 10:02
Outro: 11:52
Gear I Use:
Camera (A) - Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K
Amazon: amzn.to/32LEHZy
Ebay: ebay.us/XOtY2b
Camera (B) - Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera (Original)
Amazon: amzn.to/39uRRMI
Ebay: ebay.us/etiuzm
All-round Lens - Sigma 18-35mm 1.8 Art
Amazon: amzn.to/32WLDT8
Ebay: ebay.us/B5SCdV
Lens Adapter/Speedbooster - Viltrox EF-M2 Speedbooster
Amazon: amzn.to/2TuqEnK
Ebay: ebay.us/nDtPwy
Lighting - Godox SL60W
Amazon: amzn.to/2xSmCxc
Ebay: ebay.us/OEaBp2
Microphone - Rode VideoMicro
Amazon: amzn.to/3cGxLRl
Ebay: ebay.us/BUtEYW
Monitor - Feelworld F6
Amazon: amzn.to/2TuqLzG
Ebay: ebay.us/w5X3kW
(Some of the links in my video descriptions are affiliate links, which means at no extra cost to you, I will make a small commission if you click them and make a qualifying purchase.)

[@marcom.3554]

This is the most informative explanation of ISO I’ve ever seen. Your simplistic and straightforward approach, along with clear terminology of camera settings, made this video beautiful. Thank you!

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks man, thats awesome to hear 👍

[@carloseduardomenjivaraguil3540]

Wow I can't believe that at iso 800 and iso 1000 you have much more highlight recovery, amazing, thanks for such a good job explaining it

[@marshpw]

Wow, I feel like I just took a semester in dynamic range. I appreciate you taking the time to do these tests, and teaching us with your examples. Thanks so much for sharing this valuable data.

[@josyhdz9079]

this was literally perfect bro. good job amazing video

[@Cre8tvMG]

This was very thorough and clear. Thanks for taking the time to make this. It's an example of how to make a great, informative video.

[@Faahlew16]

I just found this video. This was absolutely the best camera review I’ve ever seen. Very thorough, and I must compliment you on such a pleasant voice to listen to. Thank you for your time and patience.

[@marcello1995]

I love how methodically you explain technical stuff. Thanks your great work!

[@kirphophotography7452]

I was interested especially in the bright sky test. Very helpful! Thank you and keep up the good work!

[@REMVPS]

thanks Carl, finally an explanation of ISO and dynamic range for the BMPCC that makes sense, great examples too.

[@VistarCreative]

This is the first time I have had this explained to me and I understood! Thank you!!!

[@sergyorock33]

This is a masterclass about the ISO and Exposure Index Workflow thanks a lot!

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks :)

[@BrianGreenstone]

Finally a video that makes sense regarding ISO and dynamic range. I've been completely confused by this until now. I guess the simple way to explain it is that each pixel's bucket of photons gets full faster at low ISOs, therefore, highlights get clipped. But at higher ISO's the photon bucket is emptied before it gets full, therefore, the bright highlights can still be accurately measured. The opposite goes for shadows where at high ISO's the photon bucket isn't allowed to gather enough photos before being emptied, so the shadow data is poor. But at a lower ISO the photon buckets in the shadows are allowed to fill more before being emptied, therefore, more data to measure.

[@fluidmindorg]

This was fantastic! Thank you so much for taking the time to make this video. It's immensely helpful.

[@carlscinema7086]

Glad I could help :)

[@cristianbalate]

Great info, thank you!

[@WAHB50YY]

Perfectly executed! Thank you!!

[@fujiwtr_]

Unbeatable explanation. Very simple. Thank you !

[@matheusduboc]

Thx for the information. Best video ever about ISO and Dynamic Range relation.

[@carlscinema7086]

:)

[@EvilDogFilmsOfficial]

DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUDE finally, someone who explains that stuff in a way that my little pea brain can make sense of it. THANK YOU! You absolutely nailed it.

[@carlscinema7086]

Haha glad I could help out :D

[@jackmorrisdigital]

Excellent explanation of ISO and its effect on dynamic range highlights and shadows noise and detail. Thank you!

[@RedBookProductions]

Really informative and detailed. Thanks!

[@themightyroars]

Fantastic test; well explained. Many thanks

[@ptamburoFiles]

Excellent video man. I’m a complete beginner on this camera. And you fully clarified my questions on ISO and noise. After watching your video, I carved in some new settings, and now everything is looking 1000 x better already. You’re the best.

[@carlscinema7086]

That's great! Glad I could help :)

[@shamilhussain4014]

Best video ever made explaining best iso settings 👌🏽

[@mammakstolltv]

Great explanation & examples! Thank you 👍

[@carlscinema7086]

👍👍

[@mordaciousfilms]

I find that in darker situations 1200 ISO works really well to keep a fair amount of shadow AND highlight. Wow, thanks for explaining how ISO works in THIS specific case, since this camera is a unique beast.

[@jumbee9]

This video gets a subscribe from me. This is probably the best explanation of how ISO and sensor exposure works on youtube.

[@Pulparx]

Great explanation with sky examples!!!

[@connorjonesfilmsOH]

amazing video. thank you so much for your work.

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks! You're welcome :)

[@albertowylt]

the best explanation! Thanx bro

[@carlscinema7086]

👌

[@Profmorphious123]

Thank you for this.

[@carlscinema7086]

You're welcome 👍

[@mOo84]

I found this a lot easier to follow and understand than a few other videos which addressed the same topic. I've seen a lot of people who say they only ever shoot in either ISO400 for well lit scenes and then ISO3200 for darker scenes, then achieve correct exposure by either using ND filters or adding light if that's an option. This seems to be a lot more straight forward than messing around with the ISO level within each circuit, but I can at least understand the concept of preserving more highlights by using a higher ISO in the first circuit when you can.

[@carlscinema7086]

Exactly, but i still think its beneficial to know what happens when we change the ISO, to know when to stick to the natives and when it might be appropriate to go above or below.

[@inspyremusicnl5826]

Question though… why do camera manufacturers place native iso at for example 400 and not 800 ( in this example) where the dynamic range is equaly devided between stops above and below middle grey

[@k3lash174]

Thanx man!

[@foxrawstudios]

Very accurate scientific information,thank you

[@qewproduction]

excellent vid!!

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks :)

[@McJerome]

Broooo this is so clear

[@EvilDogFilmsOfficial]

9:20 is the sentence for me that made me understand the relationship between the ISO and the dynamic range.

[@carlscinema7086]

Yay! Glad I could help :) I know there's alot of misconception out there, about the relationship between ISO and DR

[@EvilDogFilmsOfficial]

@@carlscinema7086 Yeah and a lot of videos explaining it but somehow their explanations didn't click for me. Thanks again

[@bassbeats92]

great explanation

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks :)

[@antonisdavis2288]

very good!!!!

[@st.wassm.760]

Thanks! :)

[@Cali2Kyushu]

Changing the shutter angle is great if you're just taking a still image but not if you're filming movement or action

[@carlscinema7086]

The shutter is used in these tests to get a reliable and repeatable way of getting less light in to the sensor, without affecting the image quality. A way to simulate lower light levels and still being able to compare them to each other. I'm not saying that you should expose using shutter.

[@limitedhangoutlive]

If I underexpose even slightly at 400 ISO, the footage is noisy. Is this just because I need to over expose or what is going on? I feel like I shouldn’t be getting this much noise for pushing the iso to 600 in post to be evenly exposed.

[@anttiheik]

Great overview of how ISO works in cinema cameras and other ISO invariant digital cameras in general! It's always dreadful to see some people using their Blackmagic cameras at the lowest possible ISO when shooting outdoors. Same goes with still photographers that shoot at ISO64 in full sun and underexpose the image 4 stops so the screen is just black when they could just jack the ISO up a few stops and actually see what they are doing while still retaining all the highlight information. This of course only works with ISO invariant sensors like the Fuji X-Trans sensors. By the way, how did you expose the outdoor scene? I assume you exposed for the shaded buildings? Oh and also, 400 and 3200 are not actually native ISO's, they are merely recommendations from Blackmagic that they think offer a good balance between dynamic range and noise. This was stated by Captain Hook from Blackmagic Design in the Blackmagic forums some time ago. Basically it's two circuits of analog gain (100-1000 range and 1250-25600 range) and inside the ranges it's all digital gain. The latter can be changed in post when shooting BRAW, the former cannot.

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks :) Yeah there seems to be some confusion about the ISO specifically in ISO invariant cameras. So if this video clears that up for some people, I'm happy :D Yes, more or less. Didn't want to bring the exposure down to much by exposing for the sky and then not seeing too much of a difference between the ISO's, wouldn't really demonstrate the point.

[@inspyremusicnl5826]

Question: why do camera manufacturers put native iso at 400 instead of something like 800 where the stops above and below middle grey are even.

[@trevormartin9576]

This was a fantastic video! I feel like this was the video that Black Magic should have included with the camera! Can I ask a question though: what if I expose at 3200 ISO but I keep my shutter angle at 180 degrees? I shoot interior real estate video and feel like I'm always fighting for proper exposure. How far can I push the shutter angle at 3200 ISO? Thanks for all your terrific information and knowledge!

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks :) The shutter was only changed in this video to get an accurate and repeatable way of reducing the light reaching the sensor. So basically a way of simulating low light in a more scentific test. To clarify, Im not saying to use a shutter of 11 degrees for example, stick to 180 degrees unless you have a good motivation not to.

[@trevormartin9576]

@@carlscinema7086 Thanks a ton for that info! Really appreciate your time in getting back to me as well as breaking this down. I shot a video today using the 180 shutter at 3200 ISO and it was a game changer!!!

[@DaJesuts]

Why is it that candles tend to bring out orange horizontal lines in my footage? Almost like film grain but horizontal and uniform?

[@asando6432]

Update 7.9 bricked my BMPCC4K. any suggestions?

[@Margus81]

@Carl's Cinema Thank You for explaining it so well! Can you help me with the following problem: Why is this not talked regarding photography? It should apply there aswell, but there is recommended always iso 100 and expose to the right. Also, for photo cameras iso 100 seems always to provide best dynamic range. But why is there no info about stops above and below middle gray... I am so confused. Thanks in advance!

[@simeduar]

Supongo porque es una camara de cine. Ademas es muy incomoda para tomar fotografias, no esta diseñada para eso

[@rajanbingi1269]

Great video 👌 Still bit confused Can you plz make a video regarding How to expose your bmpcc4k Thanks 🙌

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks for the suggestion, might do :)

[@ubernexusiduru2061]

Greetings please can you send a conversion lut please I’m having troubles converting my bmpcc4k camera to a clean rec709. If you have any lut please I will really appreciate thank you.

[@inspyremusicnl5826]

Wacthing this for the 5th time . Watched ik like a year ago and im still catching revelations 😅

[@mylifepart2]

when i shoot at 400 iso its so dark...my lens is fully open...gotta keep playing with this..to get it right ....its hard to keep the grain low...

[@bhraanthanpaakkaran2835]

❤️

[@carlscinema7086]

👋

[@sondp]

Isn't the second native iso 3200 supposed to be cleaner than the iso from 1250 to1600?

[@carlscinema7086]

Once you go to 1250, you have switched over to the higher base. You are essentially using iso 3200 but pushing it down 1 and 1/3 stops, thus getting even cleaner shadows (at the expense of highlights).

[@BrandedChannels]

Interesting test... but in real-world situations you’re rarely touching the shutter (keep it al 1/50th or 180 degrees). That leaves the aperture as your main weapon of choice to get proper exposure. Your example does not involve any movement, but shutter speed will greatly impact the cinematic look as you introduce more motion blur. Can you do another video on what the do’s and don’ts are in exposing properly? What should your histogram on the LCD look like? When do you toggle between ISO 400 and 3200v?

[@carlscinema7086]

The shutter is used in these tests to get a reliable and repeatable way of getting less light in to the sensor, without affecting the image quality. A way to simulate lower light levels and still being able to compare them to each other. I'm not saying that you should expose using shutter.

[@SolidBlueBlocks]

So that means, that shooting at ISO 800 in Highlight-heavy scenarios and at 100 or 1250 in shadow-heavy scenarios will give you the best DR? With some play in that numbers of course.

[@carlscinema7086]

Yes. The total dynamic range stays the same but you are shifting it towards the highlights with higher ISO values (within the same base) and towards shadows with lower ISO values.

[@SolidBlueBlocks]

@@carlscinema7086 Perfect. However, I just now realized that your video is about the 4k... Silly me with the 6k is now asking himself if what you measured applies for the 6k too :)

[@iamboneyarms]

You should do a tutorial for color grading!

[@carlscinema7086]

Thanks for the suggestion, will keep it in mind for future videos :)

[@imDonDiestro]

why would the highlights be over exposed at a lower iso and exposed properly at a higher iso. that seems backwards to me.

[@carlscinema7086]

It does seem kind of backwards, but to properly expose the image at a higher iso you would need to let less light hit the sensor. It's the fact that you have less light hitting the sensor that allows you to not clip the highlights, not the ISO setting itself.

[@21stcenturyscots]

What is the best iso?

[@pocabromaproduccions2]

very nice video but you don't talk about the "recovering highlights" option that Davinci Resolve offers, so you can shoot 1250 and recover all those blown out highlights.

[@carlscinema7086]

I think you are greatly overestimating the power of that feature. Sometimes is does nothing, sometimes it can recover a little bit of the highlights by using information from one of the RGB channels that maybe hasn't clipped as badly as the other. No magic going on there.

[@shueibdahir]

This camera has a chart with middle grey being the center and the stops of light in the highlights and shadows. It shows you how ISO changes how the camera captures it's image. 100 ISO you've got more latitude in the shadows but sacrifice the highlights. At 1000 ISO you sacrifice your shadow latitude for the highlights. Also with this camera ISO is not an exposing tool. There's only two exposure settings in this camera. Low GAIN 100-1000 and High GAIN 1250-5000. Basically like CINE EI with sony camera's. The individual ISO settings within each GAIN stage are for establishing how you want that 12.5 stops of latitude to be allocated. When it comes to this camera the only way to expose is to let in more light to the sensor. Photography rules don't apply to this camera

[@albertowylt]

FINALLY I GOT IT !!! how does it work

[@carlscinema7086]

Glad I could help :)

[@Omarii47_]

I think its so funny that nobody is forcing canelo to fight benavides tho!! sup with that? But every black fighter they make fight their mandatories. Benavides was canelos mando for years and nobody forced canelo to fight him or strip him.