NOISE, WHAT NOISE?? How to get GREAT WILDLIFE PHOTOS in LOW LIGHT conditions.

[@simon_dentremont]

Want to take amazing wildlife photos? Check out my course with 20 modules and over 5 hours of content, no fluff! $150 OFF til year end using code "lowlight150". A free new module too! journalofwildlifephotography.com/lowlight150/

[@michaelt1103]

I cannot believe we get to watch this without paying a premium for such amazing content. Thank you Simon!

[@arkaefortt8]

Exactly

[@mullerschultz3660]

Amen!

[@soumaSR]

True

[@soumaSR]

Yeah 👍🏽

[@InsatiableAppetite-tz1ib]

100%

[@ddki9094]

Awesome. Almost an entire hour with Simon!

[@paulhopkins1905]

Simon, you channel is by far the best on YT and you are easily the best teacher

[@jimbruton9482]

Wow, just wow. Almost an hour with the best photography technique communicator. What a privilege it is to listen to Simon's expert discussion on this subject.

[@gyratingseacow595]

This presentation was awesome live. He is just as wholesome as you would hope. Keep being amazing Simon. You are the photography leader we didn't know we needed but now we definitely want.

[@CarloPiana]

It's basically a crush course reminding us of all we have learned in Simon's videos, plus some new tips. Very good.

[@kosowskj]

Simon: This may have been the most valuable training video I've ever seen. I went through it once and now plan to go through it a second time to really wrap my head around the concepts that you taught. I thought the section where you discussed reducing noise only in the background and only sharpening the subject was the most import. Thank you for this and all the incredible classes that you do. Much appreciated!! Jack K.

[@antoniodeabreaw19]

Dear Simon, I’ve learned so much from your KZbin videos, and my 14-year-old son is also a big fan. Thank you for the inspiration! Could you please consider making a video on safely storing camera gear and lenses to prevent dust and fungus? It would be a great resource for beginners.

[@jefferyrobbins3468]

Great episode! Very down to earth, practical, informative, skilled use of examples, honest, and immediately applicable/actionable. Thanks very much for this. I've seen too many other creators out there gaslighting saying that image noise and tiny aperture lenses don't matter because of software. In contrast, in this educational video, you show how to manage noise before taking the photo and after taking the photo when appropriate -- a holistic approach -- in order to get the best possible outcome. Excellent! Kind regards

[@LigreDesubi]

I'm more a street/tourist photograph, but I really like watching your videos. We learn a lot from you. Now that I don't fear of having some high ISO photos, I won't have a blurring subject in my photos. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

[@bobair2]

Simon, you are an inspiration and a positive Influence in this world of ours !

[@Soundwrecker]

Thanks Simon. I appreciate your channel because your style is technical and fast moving. It appeals to my engineer mind and I immediately saw the value in your content and have been a fan ever since.

[@geir2rs1]

This was a great presentation. Thank you for this and the other great videos you're posing. They are both useful and inspiring!

[@simon_dentremont]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@rafaplaca1]

What a class!

[@kevinpitzer]

Wonderful video and love how you help others!

[@PaulReinstein]

just a small add on... if you have a very brightly colored subject, like a cock of the rock bird, which is very red, you can use the regular histogram to judge ETTR, but after taking the shot, you should also check the individual color histograms. sometimes, the combined histogram shows a proper exposure, but one of the colors (or 2) can be hitting the right side (overexposed). think bright red or yellow subjects.

[@simon_dentremont]

righto!

[@garvitr.1061]

I love that you heard my comments regarding a video on camera settings. Never seen a creator before that hears their audience so quick.❤❤

[@simon_dentremont]

Welcome!

[@Paleo_Nico]

Was there for the webinar, happy to rewatch again! Thanks for all of your great content, it really helps me get out of my comfort zone sometimes. Happy holidays!

[@ardscorner]

There is not another channel that provides this level of expertise for free. Not only that but it is always delivered in a way that is both informative and easy to understand. I hope Canon ask you to do some quick tips learnig for their website. 5 minutes from you is better that trying to comprehend a chapter of a user manual.

[@walrus10001]

Nice one. Well observed and taken on board Cory.

[@klburt73]

Great tips, Simon. Just finished sending this video out to a bunch of my bird photographer friends. Thanks for producing such helpful content!

[@DwayneEdwards-x4x]

as usual, I always learn something. Happy New Year!!

[@jimmckeever1790]

Excellent video! It opened my eyes to a lot of things I have been doing wrong. I didn't see the point of ETTR but I know better now. Thank you for all of your video work.

[@jocelyncantin2493]

Excellente vidéo! De loin la meilleure explication de ce qu'est le bruit , l' ISO, comment éviter ou réduire le bruit à la prise de photo ou au traitement.... Merci infiniment pour cette présentation. On a toujours à apprendre et grâce à cette vidéo, on le fait!!!!

[@DimitriosPapoudas]

All these years it was in front of me and never thought the ISO means Ίσο!! Thank you very much for that piece of trivia. happy new year to everyone. A greek .

[@jacquesnel8384]

Happy holidays Simon. Love from South Africa 🇿🇦

[@gillianstewart681]

That was excellent. I learnt a lot. Thanks Simon.

[@5argetech56]

Hi Simon! Haven't heard from you in a minute. Nice upload to get good results using what I have!

[@somethingaboutkiwi]

This is such a good presentation. It just clears up a lot in a way that makes sense, at least to me. The info on f/4 compared to something like a f/5.6-6.3 180-600 that I was thinking of getting makes a lot more sense to potentially just get an f/4 400mm on a crop sensor body. I'm not going to be staying at a distance where I won't be getting eaten by a lion if I get too close since I don't think UK animals will maul me anytime soon. The thing about 12800 ISO exposed how you would normally but then ETTR was so helpful to see as well!

[@montanaylago]

Pretty cool that you shared this!!!

[@sherwoodlincoln7427]

Thank you, Simon, for the great info and images. I have not seen much information on cropping and adding more pixels like Topaz Gigapixel. I would like your thoughts or maybe a video. Thanks again.

[@davidhewett1484]

Thank you for showing this to us. I got a lot out of it.

[@brendanmaher8267]

Great video! I just recently started using a tripod and I was unsure how much it was helping but I decided to take my camera off while shooting a snowy owl to compare and couldn’t believe how much more shake there is when handholding

[@ericv3428]

Thanx for this amazing session : you are not just passionated, but also such a great experienced and inspiring photographer ... Greetings from Belgium !

[@simon_dentremont]

My pleasure!

[@johnpftd]

Thank you Simon for some wonderful tips. This was a great presentation.

[@StephenBridgett]

Absolutely fantastic presentation Simon

[@plantingseedsproductions4195]

Perfect timing… breaking in my recent purchase EF 100-400 L II tomorrow morning in the cold wet fog. Simon’s advice will definitely improve what I bring home.

[@javi-b9j]

Thank you very much for your advice, very good, the ones about holding the camera, those little details make the photo come out less blurry.

[@SebStatic]

Appreciate the presentation, always such a nice and simple explanation:) Happy holidays!

[@gautam54362]

Thank you Simon for this Christmas gift 🎉🎉❤❤

[@Twobarpsi]

Excellent advice Simon!!

[@simon_dentremont]

I’m glad you found it useful!

[@DalsPhotography]

Merry Christmas and Happy New year! I was waiting for this new Vlog!!! :) :)

[@simon_dentremont]

Thanks! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you too!

[@foto-dk]

Excellent, Simon - as usual! Happy Hollidays 😊 Jan, DK

[@RichieSullivan-mw7zb]

amazing simon, basicly u did a summery of all ur videos in an one hour video fantastic, i always look foward to watch ur work, HNY simon i hope u will have a great 2025..... following you from malta

[@valjdakosta]

thank you simon :D happy holidays

[@simon_dentremont]

Happy holidays to you too!

[@kenstav1]

Some very interesting principals, thank you for the great tutorial

[@simon_dentremont]

My pleasure!

[@BillFerris]

Simon, thank you for sharing a recording of your presentation on reducing noise when doing low light photography. The video is packed with really good information. I do have a suggestion for a bit of advice you can offer when talking about a photographer's choice of lens to use in low light. When comparing lenses of the same focal length, it's common to compare the fastest f-stop setting as a way to determine which of the lenses will collect more light and less noise. A 400mm f/5.6 lens is going to collect more light than a 400mm f/7.1 lens. That's all well and good. However, as you know, wildlife photography is a genre where people use different focal lengths. There might be everything from 300mm to 600mm or even 800mm lenses in use by a group of students in one of your workshops. In that scenario when comparing lenses of different focal lengths, their respective f-stops are not necessarily reliable indicators of which lens will perform better in low light. It's the size of the lens aperture - the entrance pupil - that determines how much light is collected from anything in the frame. If I'm choosing between a Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1 lens and a Canon 200-800mm f/6.3-9, the faster but shorter zoom may be the better option if I'm able to fill the frame with a keeper at 500mm. But if I'm going to crop that image to match the angle of view the 800mm lens would deliver, the longer and slower zoom will actually be the better choice for low liight. The shorter zoom has a (500mm/7.1=70.4mm) 70mm entrance pupil. The longer zoom has a (800mm/9=88.9mm) 89mm entrance pupil. The larger entrance pupil means this lens captures more light from the subject. So, if I would be cropping photos made with the faster lens to match the angle of view the slower lens delivers, the longer & slower lens will produce photos with a bit less noise. It's not a dramatic difference (61% more light from the subject at the same shutter speed) but every little bit helps when working in low light. Happy Holidays and here's wishing you & yours a wonderful start to the new year!

[@rhapsodysbiues290]

Awesome video, Simon! Packed full of very helpful information. Really clears up the denoising for me. Also enjoyed the histogram information. Thank you very much!

[@robvandenbrink9006]

great video, I always learn something from your content!

[@seaeagles6025]

Hi Simon, I learned something new today about different types of Noise. Great explanation and thanks for showing examples. Happy holidays, thanks Simon. 😊

[@ArleneBaverstock]

Merry Christmas Simon, as always when watching your video’s I learn how to be better when out in the field. All the best too you and the family, wishing you good health and a prosperous New Year. Brian

[@besytube]

Thank you for a great video / tutorial. I have been focusing too much on higher shutter speeds in low light it appears. I cannot wait to give this a go! Thank you. 😀

[@mstorey83]

Great video Simon! Thank youfor sharring your knowledge and experience. Wonderful video. Happy Holidays!

[@emmasantorini7041]

Yaaay new video ❤

[@lionheart4424]

Thank you so much for sharing this with all of us, Simon! Have a wonderful and happy New Year!

[@LunkerFishing]

Great video. I did notice your voice recording was wobbling but at the end you explained why. You gave me a headache because of all you made me think about. 🤔

[@StoicJason]

Holy crap. I learned so much. Thanks, Simon!

[@simon_dentremont]

Glad to hear it!

[@616MB]

Now thats a Christmas present. Nice. Thank you Simon!

[@simon_dentremont]

Enjoy!

[@Saber_Nico]

a 57 minute long video? now this is a class lol

[@robestey5628]

Great video. Merry Christmas my freind, have a great 2025. Love your channel.

[@railspony]

My biggest problem with ETTR was that for wildlife there are often highlights on the subject that look weird if they're blown out (reflection on a bird beak) and so "as far to the right as possible without blowing out highlights" is actually exposure compensation -1.3 and I'll have to selectively brighten most of the image in post. Wildlife action often happens pretty fast, it can be hard to check to the histogram every time, so I end up as far to the right as is safe, which might mean walking around at -2.

[@blob0000]

It took me a while to notice that there was a small webcam in the upper right corner. 😂 Great video!

[@MehtabReviews]

This is absolutely worth it thank you for this❤

[@simon_dentremont]

You're so welcome!

[@neildoherty9428]

Thank you so much that helped👍 big time

[@tonyweert3294]

how does one have questions when you explain it so well, just like all your great video's!!

[@JohnKAdams-lp2ov]

Thank you! Wonderfull.

[@Jimmy_Cavallo]

🚨6:24 Clears up that it’s ISO and not I.S.O. then goes on to say I.S.O. 🤣 Great channel, Simon. I subbed a while back

[@pauldarville3843]

Hi Simon hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

[@howardsmart7246]

Fantastic!

[@robertdeeter6205]

Wow. I learn a lot from your videos. Very encouraging. I feel like maybe I can get some images of this quality.

[@sadmanonatraintoo9781]

Superb thank Simon Wishing you and yours a great holiday season and looking forward to amazing photo opportunities in 2025, and a massive thank you for all the tips and advice on 2024, made such a difference,

[@GMWTravels]

Very helpful video thank you

[@simon_dentremont]

So nice of you

[@tomterrific8574]

In your introduction, you have both still and video examples of your work. How do you decide which you will shoot? Do you go into the field with the goal of shooting video, or do you just play it by ear as you go using the video option on Canon cameras? Inquiring minds want to know!

[@simon_dentremont]

I switch back and forth, but it’s hard. Confucius once said, he who chases two rabbits catches neither.

[@ivanvasilev2092]

awesome! thank you

[@comeraczy2483]

Almost always fascinating to watch KZbin videos about "noise" in photography. Thanks a lot for the effort. The first point of interest is at 10:55. I think that it might be useful to specify that the chart is specifically for "read noise in DN" and that in most reasonable situations, with modern digital cameras (which includes the 5D IV), read noise is insignificant and can safely be ignored. To put things in number, from ISO 3200 onward, the absolute read noise of the 5D IV is less than 2 electrons (yes, just 2 electrons). I think that even the most fastidious pixel peeper will probably have a hard time noticing this under any circumstances. Perhaps that's not what you meant to talk about in this video?

[@barryfrost4399]

Great video Simon. In your video you discuss the idea of shooting an animal in low light with a fast shutter speed to get the shot and then reducing the shutter speed to aim to get a better shot with less noise. Do you think is would be a useful feature for a camera to take a burst of shots automatically reducing the shutter speed each time from say 1/500 to 1/250 to 1/125 to 1/60 while keeping the aperture fixed and in auto ISO? You would need to be able to set parameters for number of shots and range of shutter speeds. This would be better than having to manually adjust shutter speed each time. The idea is similar to exposure bracketing where cameras take a burst at a range of exposures. If you think this idea has merit I though you could mention it to Canon as a Canon Ambassador.

[@FahrschuleAlpenland]

Thanks for sharing this livestream. i could not tune in the live show because of the time difference. 👍

[@Soltfire]

Great video Simon! Happy holidays!

Great video! Thanks a lot. You didn't mention anything about focal length. Does focal length have any impact on how many photons we collect? Thanks again.

[@JonathanMorley]

I recently ran a test on my camera to get a better general idea of preferred settings. I had ISO set to auto but capped at a max of 1600. The test shot was of the rising moon between the branches of a tree during golden hour. Since nothing was moving I kept the shutter speed low and the iso at auto and only changed the aperture from lowest to highest settings. With the aperture really cranked the image was super noisy. Even though many of the shots had the ISO set by the camera at 1600 not all of them were noticably noisy.

[@JonathanMorley]

Question pt1: Do you ever use exposure compensation? Question pt2: If so, how does it compare against lower shutter speeds and higher ISO settings? Question: 2: What suggestions do you have for getting the camera autofocus to quickly and correctly focus on smaller subjects? Especially if they are in motion. I would imagine with the equipment you typically use, focusing on smaller animals isn't much of an issue. I'm still using a Canon 90D and when I shoot hummingbirds or recently a dragonfly, there were several times that the camera struggled to focus on and stay focused on the subject. I tried switching the focus modes as well as toggling that "Full / 3m" slider on my EF 100-400mm lens. While I did manage to get some great shots of the aforementioned subjects, it can be frusturating when it feels like I'm fighting with my equipment. Thanks for posting this presentation.

[@gearoidosullivan356]

One reason for using exposure compensation at times in wildlife photography is when either the lighting conditions or the subject can fool the cameras metering (as it doesn't know what you deem to be important). A bird like a coot for example, has basically black feathers, with a bright white patch on its forehead, and it is very easy to blow out the highlights of that patch with auto metering. So you could dial in -2 exposure comp to try and retain those highlights. I'm sure Simon could explain it better (and I hope he will).

[@simon_dentremont]

I have a whole video on Canon focus settings...check that out. I use exposure compensation all the time. I have a video on that too,

[@bme7491]

Because amplifiers are not perfect, increasing ISO (which increases the amplification of the digital pixel values) also increases the inherent noise of the amp during reading of the data. LNAs (Low Noise Amplifiers) help mitigate the "read" noise.

[@j.j.mahanyjr776]

Great tips, Happy Boxing Day. Some of my neighbors are snowbirds from Canada, today is one's birthday.

[@sonicjav]

thank you

[@derekvanditmars9136]

I agree that 'keeping ISO low to reduce noise in a modern camera' is not the best rule to follow. However for a camera with an ISO invariant sensor, (i.e. Sony, not sure about other brands) the lower ISO does provide increased dynamic range. So when shooting in low light you can drop the ISO a few stops to get improved dynamic range in camera, then in post increase the exposure. Note that most post software typically has 4 to 5 stops maximum on exposure, so do not drop your ISO beyond what your post software can do.

[@megamastah]

Agree. All things being equal (shutter speed, aperture, external light), lowering the ISO for dynamic range gain and to protect the highlights seems like a smart play. It's au contraire to the ETTR though.

[@stevenmeisel4288]

Hi. Once. again a great video. I have 2 comments and a question. You mentioned you would not go over ISO 6400 in a M43 camera. I strongly disagree. I use an OM-1 and have no problems pushing the ISO to 12,800. I was recently in Panama shooting hummingbirds in flight in less-than-ideal light and got some fabulous shots properly exposed and tack sharp at ISO 10,000 and 12,800. And, I know others who push the ISO to 25,600 on the OM-1. With software such as Topaz PAI noise is not a barrier even with a M43 sensor. I'd be happy to send you samples. Regarding Topaz PAI: I find it's denoising superb although its auto-pilot wants to use the "raw strong" model when it reads a high ISO. As you mentioned, too much denoising can remove detail from the subject. So I switch to the "raw standard" denoising model for the subject then reapply the strong model for the background only. It works like a charm. My question concerns the sharpening model in Photo AI. I shoot a lot of birds and find that the auto-pilot routinely over-sharpens the subject. It's so problematic that I routinely reduce the software's suggestion by 25-50%. In older versions of the software I could choose a weak vs normal vs strong model but they have abandoned that in favor of what they claim is machine-learning of my preferences. I frankly have not seen that sort of adaptation so the problem is ongoing. Interestingly, I see this problem much less often with mammals or flowers and almost never with landscapes or insects. Do you have any suggestions in this regard? My workflow is to throw all RAW files into PAI from the start and do my post-processing with the resulting DNG; I find the workflow faster and more accurate than sending the file to PAI from Adobe (I use Photoshop Elements). Thanks and happy new year!

[@simon_dentremont]

If you’re happy at iso 25000, go for it! I like to tweak the settings myself, and usually do noise reduction last.

[@HelloThere-48]

Simon, I have a question - do you have any videos going over Lightroom and Adobe Bridge and any of their pros and cons? coming from watching your video on not losing your photos and the heavy usage of Lightroom does have me considering moving over from Bridge, but want to know if there is any differences, pros, or cons to doing such. When at college I got trained on Adobe Bridge and its integration with Photoshop, so its what I'm used to, but want to step outside my boundaries to become a better photographer

[@simon_dentremont]

I don’t use Bridge myself. so no.

[@k0y0t3t7]

Excellent video and thank you. I do have one question and one I am struggling with. When taking photos of birds in trees, the sky is bright and the birds are dark. How do you get the best pic? I have auto iso on and shoot multi focus point with speed around 1/400 as it’s a 400mm lens. Help..

[@simon_dentremont]

Use exposure compensation. I have a video on that. kzbin.info/www/bejne/oGnbgmuNnq5qqM0si=TTaUOraCGWNKwVop

[@felipenicolopulos]

Simon, I have a Sony a6400 and a a7III and I use them both with my Tamron 150-500 f/ 5-6.7. My Question is: Is it better to use my crop sensor in order to have more reach (and a full 24 mp photo) or to use my full frame and crop the image on post? Thank you for the amazing content, and I hope to see you soon here in the Brazilian rainforest 🇧🇷

[@simon_dentremont]

They will be very close, but often the full frame will win in low light, the crop sensor in good light.

[@felipenicolopulos]

@@simon_dentremont thanks ☺

[@JustConsciousStardust]

Very helpful, thank you

[@ifell3]

Really enjoyed this, thank you.

[@knyshov]

1 hour workshop… wow :)

[@marckristensen946]

It's like all of your videos comressed into one. Great! Question: At which aperture is the 24-70 2.8 RF at its sharpest? Can you give an estimate, Simon? It would really help. Thanks 😊

[@simon_dentremont]

probably f5.6, 6.3, 7.1 range. After that probably gets worse again.

[@jlowknight]

Whoa what an amazing video and valuable. Thank you for sharing your knowledge. What are your thoughts on the standard LR denoise feature? Sorry if you covered this on the video and I happened to miss it. Thanks again!

[@simon_dentremont]

the new LR one, the AI one, is pretty good, just a but slow.

[@jlowknight]

@@simon_dentremont thank you!

[@rickwojcik7983]

That was a great hour of information. You are a great teacher and I look forward to your weekly videos. If I could ask a question..... I would like to improve my low light photography by buying an older full frame camera. I presently own a R7 used primarily with a RF100-400 tele. I love this setup most of the time, especially in good light, but it's a bit wanting when I shoot owls and such at dawn and dusk. Would a used Canon RP ( or perhaps a 6Dii) be a good spend of money or are the sensors more or less equal in low light? I'm thinking the newer crop sensor is pretty much equal to the older full frame in terms of low light performance. . A faster tele is of course *the* answer, albeit the much more expensive. .

[@cguerrieri4866]

I needed a go video after a giant fail this morning. Sharpness is my issue😒

[@billkennon319]

That lion is amazing. I hope you brought some bloody steak to thank him for posing so beautifully!

[@NoDoSwLa]

So long? It's christmas🎉

[@Kellysher]

R5 with the RF 100-500 7.1 shooter. Struggle a lot with low light in the AM. Sometime I pull back to about 420 mm to get to 5.6. I guess I’m wondering if that makes a difference, and how much more light I’m really getting?

[@simon_dentremont]

You’ll get 2/3rds of a stop, so cuts your iso almost in half.