Beauty is in the eye of the beholder?

[Lee Jay]

The ultimate thing we should ask, is noise always a bad thing?

What is wrong with a grainy photo? EVERYTHING shot back in the old days was grainy when enlarged much (except maybe the 16x20's...) Watch an old 30's movie. Find some old WWII footage or pictures. Is grain always bad?

What is wrong with embracing the grain as an artistic expression?

Because it looks awful, and it did all those years we shot film as well. It's like sprinkling dirt and sand on your pictures. It's the second worst image artifact next to unintentional motion blur, and ahead of unintentional missed focus.

Of course, that's just my opinion.

 

[wickidwombat]

The ultimate thing we should ask, is noise always a bad thing?

What is wrong with a grainy photo? EVERYTHING shot back in the old days was grainy when enlarged much (except maybe the 16x20's...) Watch an old 30's movie. Find some old WWII footage or pictures. Is grain always bad?

What is wrong with embracing the grain as an artistic expression?

Because it looks awful, and it did all those years we shot film as well. It's like sprinkling dirt and sand on your pictures. It's the second worst image artifact next to unintentional motion blur, and ahead of unintentional missed focus.

Of course, that's just my opinion.

haha its mine too, not a fan of the grain

 

[friedmud]

What is wrong with embracing the grain as an artistic expression?

Nothing at all.

But when you're hired by "Glam Magazine" to do a nighttime outdoors photoshoot and they want clean image for their feature article, you might want to deliver what they're paying for. Just saying that I too think artistic grain can be quite nice. But when looking at photography from a profession's standpoint, the public has their own idea of what a "good photo" is, too. And often times, grain isn't a part of it.

I agree.

Sometimes I like grain... sometimes I add more on purpose. However, I want that _choice_!

If your equipment is capable of a clean image... then it gives you total artistic freedom to add grain where you see fit... instead of being forced into it by an inadequate sensor.