Lower you ISO
This seems simple enough right? Want less noise, use less ISO. But as stated before this might not be an option if your available light is limited. You still need to fill that bucket, so what else can you do?
Slow your shutter speed down
At a slower shutter speed you allow more light to enter your camera, thus reducing the need for such a high ISO. But again, this might not be possible. You may not have a tripod, you may be photographing someone on stage that is constantly moving and a slow shutter speed would blur your image. So what’s another option?
Add More Light
If you have it at your disposal, more light is technically the cure all for noise. If you are in a studio setting then this might be an easy task. Add a rim light, move the key light closer or add a 3rd light to the mix. The more light you can introduce into your scene, the more that digital blanket is pulled back. More light means lower ISO, which means faster shutter speeds which results in a crisp and well exposed image. But what if adding more light isn’t an option?
Noise Reduction Software
In most image editing software, Lightroom for instance, you can increase your noise reduction. This will make the image appear to have less noise. But let’s take a closer look at what this software actually does. Remember when we said that noise is nothing but random digital particles that blanket your subject?
Once that image is taken, there’s really no way to actually get rid of it, but you can attempt to mask it, or blend it and that is what noise reduction software does. On higher settings, your software will blur these random pixel particles into the adjacent pixels giving the illusion that the noise has disappeared.
But use this setting with caution. When you raise that setting, it’s not only blurring the pixels of the noise, but it is also blurring the pixels of your subject as well. Zoom in and look at your subjects eye and try to find the fine details, the eyelashes and the crisp reflection from the pupil. More than likely it will be gone along with your noise.
So stand on the side of caution when utilizing noise reduction software because when you lose noise you also lose detail.
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