[LJR69]

Switching off the Active D has made a lot of difference (I admit to used to having it set to "High" though). I have also noticed that if you shoot with the Picture Setting of Vivid you also get a tad more noise than shooting as Standard. I no longer use the Vivid setting any more and will do any saturation adjustments myself in the Aperture or NX

[JMitchell]

I think the reason for the noise being more visible in vivid is because it also has increased contrast. I set up my own vivid mode, and I don't see too much noise.

[LJR69]

It's not as apparent as the Active-D and I saw it some images more than others. I guess the increase saturation can lead to colour noise being introduced. I do like the vivid setting for buildings, architecture, landscapes though.

[kukuphoto]

Originally Posted by VikingPhotography

This would be exacerbated by the use of Active D-lighting since it effectively boosts the signal in the shadow area, emphasising any noise recorded.

It also brings down the highlights, of course you will restore the highlights again in post and introduce noise.

Originally Posted by VikingPhotography

By the way - you should avoid going beyond f/11 when shooting with your D300... you'll be starting to introduce diffraction effects in to your images and will therefore lose critical sharpness. The shot above would have been better taken at f/11 and 1/250 sec.

I never had this problem before, I've shot my D300 and Nikkor 85mm PC lens at f50. Maybe it depends on the lens.


The D300 is a great camera once you get to know it, its not as forgiving as previous Nikons, so you have to have everything set right for optimal performance, especially with exposure. And it doesnt like cheap lenses either.

[JMitchell]

Originally Posted by kukuphoto

I never had this problem before, I've shot my D300 and Nikkor 85mm PC lens at f50. Maybe it depends on the lens.

Have to say here, it doesn't! On the other hand, the effects wont really not become noticable at a considerable way past f/11, and at a very large size at that. It is somthing to bear in mind, but not something to worry about, or to stop you using lenses over f/11

Originally Posted by kukuphoto

The D300 is a great camera once you get to know it, its not as forgiving as previous Nikons, so you have to have everything set right for optimal performance, especially with exposure. And it doesnt like cheap lenses either.

You got that right! People don't believe me! It really does accentuate any loss of sharpness on a cheaper lens. Even my favoured walkabout 18-70, which I know is cheap, but is well regarded, pales a ton in comparison to my Tamron macro prime.