D500 Auto ISO with flash

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AlanW

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I was photographing a hot air balloon glow, with flash, and auto ISO max set to 2000 both with and without flash. Unexpectedly and to my surprise, the ISO was the camera's max, 51,200, on many of the shots. They were extremely noisy. For just illustrating that we did the glow I was able to get this after processing in Lightroom. The white dots were snow flakes.

Any idea why this happened or what am I missing? Thanks.




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You don't provide enough information in this post for anyone to form any reasoned opinion on what went wrong.
First, did you have the camera set to manual everything except ISO, or were you on aperture priority, or shutter priority, or full auto?
If in shutter priority, did you set a minimum or maximum aperture default? If in aperture priority, did you set a minimum or maximum shutter speed default? What flash shutter synchro speed did you specify? The more info you provide the better the clever folks on this forum will be able to help.

Also, your editing program stripped all the exif information off the image you posted. See if you can include that with the image so one can evaluate that information.
 
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I also agree that on the D500 and D850 Auto ISO and iTTL flash does not work all that well together. In my Thom Hogan Guide to the D850 the autoiso flash issues are explained starting on page 377. It is pretty complex so I just do not use Auto ISO in Aperture Priority mode when I mount a Nikon SB 800 flash or a SB 5000 flash. My recollection is that the flash auto iso issues are not discussed in the Nikon Guides for both bodies. I will try and check my Hogan guide to the D500 and see if i can provide more info.
 
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This is why some of the newer cameras, like the Z bodies have a seperate auto ISO setting for use with flash. Why they never did it for the DSLR's, I could never figure out.
 
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You got it set wrong in menu. When you attach the flash the iso should go up to 4x the base iso. I normally set base iso to 200 so it goes to 800. Try it in a normal indoor room before you go into the field. If its very dark it will go to higher levels.. I alway use A mode (aperture). On my D850 the control you have wrong is E4 auto iso sensitivity control and you want it set for " subject and background" I use spot metering 12mm. Set the FP ( flash programme) to its highest setting usually 1/250 or 1/350. Remember a flash exposure is a combination of the ambient light and the flash so the 800 iso will give some bias to the daylight and less to the flash.
For JOE 43 I have taken tens of thousands of flash pics inside and outside at weddings with never ever a problem ..you just got the settings wrong. If you dont have the equivalent of E4 and FP set right its a mess.
 
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AlanW said:
was
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aolander said:
Auto ISO and flash don't play well together I have heard. Also, I'm not sure flash added to the photograph other than to illuminate the snow flakes.
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I use flash and Auto Iso when shooting warblers and I get great shots. I have the flash comp turned down to -2.7 so my exposure is all based on the camera. For balloon glow I use ISO 100, aperture priority setting to F5.6 and I use a wide angle lens. (gives more depth of field)
 
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