... The F200 EXR gives a myriad of choices.

Folk often ask me what I use, and this is pretty much it :

* Up to ISO 400 - P mode, 12 mp, ISO 400 (Auto), Provia (or Astia), DR200%.
* Beyond ISO 400 - EXR SN and ISO 800 (Auto), or 1600, Astia.

/A tip - If, in P mode, you set the camera to 6 mp, you can then set DR200%, or DR400%, and still keep ISO at 100. Make sure flash is turned off though./

I also like SP-Underwater mode. Gives a very nice lift, and warmth to images. I have found this excellent in strong daylight. Also, great for flowers.

Film simulation notes :

* In P mode, I prefer Provia as it gives me more PP latitude and renders skin tones accurately. If no people in the image, I tend to use Astia.
* In SN mode, I prefer Astia as SN tends to 'flatten' the image. Astia helps give back the colour lift.

I have experimented with all the settings and have found the above combinations work very well, for me. These settings have proved perfectly suitable for acquiring beautiful images, and which can print to large sizes.

Reality is that all the modes are very usable. These simply suit how I shoot, and provide a good base for my PP workflow. Mostly, very little PP is required.

Chroma noise on the F200 EXR, and using 12 mp, does not become any issue until after ISO400. The Luminance noise pattern, beyond ISO 400, is also less desirable than that of SN. By this I mean that SN gives a more uniform noise pattern (a little like film grain) and without intrusive Chroma noise. It is still noise though.

Irrespective, noise is easily treated and not intrusive in prints. Mostly, I treat noise in ACR (IF required). I also have Nik dFine, Noise Ninja and Neat Image Pro, but find I don't need employ them.

When I use the flash (rarely), I set it to Slow-Sync.

Some example images.

http://www.pixplanet.biz/Posting-stuff_18_1.htm

Cheers.





--
Rgds, Dave.
Have fun - take lotsa pix.

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