The ISO is one of the three significant factors in taking quality pictures on any camera. So I thought it might be nice for everyone to know what it is. I'm sure, by now, if you like to tinker, you noticed that changing the ISO seems to make your pictures "different" but its hard to really place how. I'm going to attempt to simplify it for you.
ISO is the adopted name for the International Organization for Standardization. I know its not an in the right order to be an acronym; if you want a history lesson on it read the wiki. Basically ISO is the film speed.
Now I know what you are thinking, "Who uses film anymore?" Well a lot of people; but besides that you will find that every aspect of digital photography is tied to analog, A.K.A film.
So what is film speed? It is the speed at which the film reacts to light. That is all a photo is by the way, light hitting film/sensor. So the faster film means less "time" is needed to get a fully exposed shot; meaning you can have a faster shutter speed or higher F-stop (more on that later).
Lets get to the important part, what ISO does to your pictures and what settings are best for what situations.
Lower ISO settings (typically 100-400) are good for well lit situations, like a sunny day at the park or a light overcast day; where as higher ISO settings (800-1600+) are good for darker situations, a poorly lit room or after dusk. Here is the catch, the higher the ISO, the more "noise" you see in a picture. So you have to decide whether you want a picture with some noise or, if you are trying to stop a kid in motion, deal with a blurry photo. If your photos are looking over exposed (way too bright) or your shutter is unnecessarily fast, try lowering the ISO as a first step. It will produce a cleaner picture in the end.
Good luck and happy shooting!
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