ISO at 1600 but photo is still dark...

Oh, so here is my 5 millionth question. I am messing around with my 30D. I went into the livingroom (kind of dark) and tried shooting the window, which was covered with curtains. 1) The photo was still VERY dark. Darker than the living room was. And sometimes when I have the ISO cranked up, the photo takes FOREVER. It beeps like 10 times before it takes the photo. Can someone please explain this to me. It is probably the simplest answer, so I appologize if this was a waste of your time.

Brandon James wrote in post #3421995
Oh, so here is my 5 millionth question. I am messing around with my 30D. I went into the livingroom (kind of dark) and tried shooting the window, which was covered with curtains. 1) The photo was still VERY dark. Darker than the living room was. And sometimes when I have the ISO cranked up, the photo takes FOREVER. It beeps like 10 times before it takes the photo. Can someone please explain this to me. It is probably the simplest answer, so I appologize if this was a waste of your time.

It sounds like you have the self-timer on and your exposure is not set properly. Got any pics?

Which setting do you have it in? Av, Tv, P, Auto? That way we know what you did.

If you have the 30D, set the camera on P and try the ISO 1600. Make sure the little rectangle on the bottom right on your top LCD screen is on single shot, not the little round clock.

Thanks for the comments. I have been deleting the photos right after they were taken. I will try your suggestions and check the self timer and let you know the outcome. Thanks suzy for putting it in terms I can understand, haha

I should have put a smiley face on the last part. Let me fix it.

Brandon James wrote in post #3421995
Oh, so here is my 5 millionth question. I am messing around with my 30D. I went into the livingroom (kind of dark) and tried shooting the window, which was covered with curtains. 1) The photo was still VERY dark. Darker than the living room was. And sometimes when I have the ISO cranked up, the photo takes FOREVER. It beeps like 10 times before it takes the photo. Can someone please explain this to me. It is probably the simplest answer, so I appologize if this was a waste of your time.

Good one on the timer!
I still catch myself doing that...and for a split second I think "oh no, something is wrong with my camera!".
LOL!!!

Also, if this was during the day and you still had some good light coming in through the curtains, then perhaps your camera compensated for this high contrast scene by underexposing the shot. This would explain why your shot is "darker then the living room was...". You can try dialing in some +EC...

In such low light, your camera may be having trouble acquiring focus and therefore won't fire, especially if you're using a lens with a small maximum aperture - or as other have said, you have the self-timer on, but that should be ISO independent.

Mark

Others have mentioned about the self timer, but it looks like you have several problems here. Your number one concern seems to be that you're taking photos that are coming out dark. Just bumping up ISO won't help any. If you bump up ISO, or shutter speed, or aperture, the camera will adjust the other settings down so that you'd get the same exposure. I'm thinking you must have not set any particular metering mode when you took this photo of a window? If you leave it on evaluative and frame in a window with your shot, the camera would be averaging out the bright spots of the window....thereby giving you a shorter exposure (and a darker photo). You have to either change your metering mode, meter off something else, or use exposure compensation.

I'd recommend reading up on exposure.....the best book I've found on that, apart from Ansel Adams "The Camera" is "Photography: The New Complete Guide to taking Photographs", John Freeman.

Is this the kind of thing you get? As Dave suggested, this is a correct (if that word can be used here) exposure for a dark room with a window to daylight.

The range of brightness is much more than the camera can record.

-js

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ISO has no influence on the brightness of an image when you are using auto mode. Shuttertime might be faster, or aperture stopped down more, but exposure will be the same...
Learn about how your light meter works

The timer is a classic. For some reason (most likely me being stupid) when I change ISO settings I start off with turning the wrong wheel and thus changing from single shot to burst or timer .... .

Oh and for the rest i am too much a noob to get any more info then I have seen here. I figure your problem is what most people have pointed out ... Camera is setting for the "bright" window and thus the rest of the room is dark.

Lowieken wrote in post #3425381
The timer is a classic. For some reason (most likely me being stupid) when I change ISO settings I start off with turning the wrong wheel and thus changing from single shot to burst or timer ...

I had to laugh when I read your post. I thought I was the only one who does this. I've taken tens of thousands of shots with a digital camera and I STILL do this.