So is it normal than to get noise when shooting sunset or sunrise shots?
No, I don’t think it’s because it’s sunset or sunrise. It all depends on the sensor. It looks like the 60D’s sensor is very similar to what’s in the T2i, which doesn’t deal with ISO all that well, so that’s probably why you’re seeing grain, even at ISO 100. Thankfully it is better than the 7D (source).
This would be a good thing to research though. At ISO 100, would a picture taken in bright sunlight have the same amount of grain as a picture taken at dusk (as long as the shutter speed wasn’t longer than a second or two)?
The problem I always run into with grain in sunset pictures is that I almost always tend to brighten the photo in post-processing, which is where grain is definately introduced. I just need to make sure I get the right exposure in-camera so I don’t have to brighten it. 🙂 However, I sorta like the HDR look so tend to do quite a bit of brightening of dark areas in post.
Why do you get noise from long exposures?
Noise from long exposures is different than noise from ISO. I’m not sure the technical reasons, but I think PhotoFocus says it well: “When you do a long exposure, let’s say something longer than one second, your camera’s sensor is activated the whole time the shutter is open. As it’s working, it’s also generating heat, and that heat (as well as other stuff) can cause image noise. This noise may show up in your picture as colored flecks of red, green, and blue. These flecks of noise are aggravating, and may just ruin your the presentation of your photograph. Especially if you’re shooting long exposures at nighttime, these flecks may obscure or be mistaken for stars. You’ll usually see the noise in the dark areas of the picture; if there are bright areas, they probably won’t be as noisy looking.”
- This reply was modified 55 years, 4 months ago by .