Skip to main content

Famous photographer explains camera noise and how can you harness it

What is Sensor Noise
What is camera noise? Why do you hear people talking about it and how is it different from film grain? These are all questions that you may be asking yourself if you have decided to start looking more closely into photography and the various technical aspects of it.

Lucky for you, renowned Danish photographer Thorsten von Overgaard posted a video on his YouTube channel where he discusses those topics. This is a great resource for anyone who has been wondering what causes sensor noise and why it varies so greatly across cameras and camera systems.

Overgaard starts his video talking about light sensitivity, which is the key piece to any photography noise discussion. Light sensitivity is what causes film to have more or less grain and sensors to have more or less noise — what it really boils down to is the more sensitivity you want/need, the more grain/noise will be produced.

A great analogy that is used in the video talks about skin color and how some people can get sunburned quickly within a short time of being exposed to direct sunlight, while others with denser light sensitivity can be outside for long stretches of time without running into any issues. This more or less equates over to camera film and sensors as well, with some being more sensitive to light than others, just rather than a sunburn being the result, grain/noise is the result.

Make sure and watch the video as Overgaard makes some great points about what produces sensor noise, how you can avoid it as a photographer and ways that you can use it to your advantage in your photography. These are invaluable tidbits for any photographer struggling with these issues.

Editors' Recommendations

Anthony Thurston
Anthony is an internationally published photographer based in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Specializing primarily in…
How to photograph April’s solar eclipse, according to NASA
A total solar eclipse.

How to Photograph a Total Solar Eclipse

Nikon recently shared some tips on photographing April’s total solar eclipse, and NASA is also offering its own ideas.

Read more
The best free photo-editing software for 2024
Side view of a laptop on a desk.

Professional photo-editing applications aren't cheap, nor are they easy to master without formal training. That's why we're taking a look at the best free photo-editing software on the market.
Our top pick is GIMP, an open-source photo editing software available for the big three operating systems. It offers a huge workspace and a wide variety of professional editing tools.
We provide thousands of how-to articles, news articles, and best-of lists to help you build your photography skills, choose the best gear for your photography needs, and make the most out of your photo equipment. And if our top pick isn’t for you, check out the other options on this list. There are great choices for conventional desktop software, mobile apps, and even web-based solutions that don't require installing software.

GIMP

Read more
The best photo printers you can buy in 2024
Alan compares draft, standard, and high-quality photos from Epson's EcoTank ET-8500.

A comparison of draft, standard, and high-quality photos from Epson's EcoTank ET-8500. Tracey Truly / Digital Trends

If you love sharing photo prints or building physical photo albums, you might want to upgrade to a photo printer. When manufacturers optimize printers for pictures, the results can match or exceed that of the best printers available.

Read more