Sony ZV-E10 II Low Light Settings: ISO, Shutter and Lenses

For low light on the Sony ZV-E10 II, keep ISO at or below about 6400 for clean video, and get stability from a tripod, a gimbal or an optically stabilized lens, because the body has no in-body stabilization. Know one hard limit before you start: with Active SteadyShot on, movie ISO tops out at 6400, while with it off you can set up to ISO 32000.

What the ZV-E10 II sensor gives you in the dark

The ZV-E10 II uses the same 26MP back-side illuminated APS-C sensor as the Sony a6700 and FX30. A BSI sensor like this one should perform slightly better in low light than the 24MP sensor in the original ZV-E10, according to TechRadar.

In TechRadar's review, the camera delivered usable images in low light, and its raw files had enough dynamic range to push shadows and recover highlights. Autofocus is rated down to -3EV, per Photography Blog. For you, that means the camera can still find focus in dim rooms and on city streets at night, and shooting raw gives you more room to fix exposure later.

If you are new to how ISO, shutter speed and aperture trade off against each other, read the exposure triangle guide first. Everything below builds on it.

ISO limits for photos and video

ISO is the number the camera uses to express sensitivity to light, and a larger number means higher sensitivity. Sony's help guide is direct about the cost: the higher the ISO value, the more noise appears in images.

The numbers

Setting	ZV-E10 II	ZV-E10 (original)
Stills, standard range	ISO 100 to 32000	ISO 100 to 32000
Stills, extended range	ISO 50 to 102400	ISO 50 to 51200
Auto ISO range	ISO 100 to 6400, limits adjustable	ISO 100 to 6400, limits adjustable
Movies	ISO 100 to 32000	ISO 100 to 32000
Movies with Active SteadyShot	Maximum ISO 6400	Not listed in these sources
Shutter type	Electronic only	Mechanical available
In-body stabilization	None	None

Sony also notes that the available ISO settings differ depending on whether you are shooting stills, movies, or slow and quick motion.

Where noise starts to show

The two reviews in this research reach similar conclusions from different angles. TechRadar found the camera's 10-bit 4K/60p footage looks clean when ISO is kept below 6400, and that beyond ISO 6400, color shifting and noise start to get distracting. Photography Blog found that at ISO 6400 there is only a slight increase in noise and loss of detail, and called that sensitivity completely usable.

A sensible plan: treat ISO 6400 as your ceiling for video. For stills, use 6400 freely, and only go higher when the alternative is a blurry shot. A sharp, slightly noisy photo is more useful than a clean, blurred one.

Set an Auto ISO ceiling

Auto ISO is the easiest way to work at night, as long as you control its upper limit. You can reach the ISO setting through MENU, then Exposure/Color, then Exposure, then ISO. Select ISO AUTO, press the right side of the control wheel, and set ISO AUTO Maximum and ISO AUTO Minimum. By default, Auto ISO works within ISO 100 to 6400.

The camera also offers two levels of high ISO noise reduction, Normal and Low, or you can turn it off. If you shoot JPEGs at night, try Low first so fine detail survives. If you shoot raw and clean up noise in editing, this setting matters less.

Do not go below ISO 100 to chase cleaner files at night. Sony warns that ISO settings under 100 may reduce dynamic range.

The Active SteadyShot ISO trap

This catches a lot of new owners. When SteadyShot is set to Active, the maximum movie ISO is 6400. If you set a value above the movie limit, the camera automatically switches to the limit while recording, then returns to your original setting when you stop.

In practice, if your footage looks darker than you expected with Active SteadyShot on, the camera may simply be refusing to go past ISO 6400. Open your aperture, add light, or switch Active SteadyShot off and use a tripod.

Shutter speed without in-body stabilization

The ZV-E10 II has no IBIS. TechRadar lists your options: Optical SteadyShot in Standard mode with compatible lenses, or Active SteadyShot, which comes with a hefty crop. Photography Blog points out that the camera's focus remains on video from a tripod or gimbal rather than handheld.

Shutter speed for night photos

Without IBIS, the shutter speed you can hold steady depends on your hands and your lens. Photography Blog says an optically stabilized lens such as the E PZ 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OSS II gives you a couple of stops extra to play with for still images.

The other limit is the shutter itself. The ZV-E10 II has no mechanical shutter. TechRadar notes that this can produce banding when you shoot photos under artificial light. Digital Camera World adds that fast-moving subjects can distort with the electronic shutter.

For night photos, follow a few habits:

• Use a tripod for anything static, such as cityscapes, lit buildings or night skies, and let the shutter run as slow as the scene needs at a low ISO.
• Handheld, keep the shutter fast enough that a test shot looks sharp when you zoom in on playback. If it does not, raise the shutter speed and accept a higher ISO.
• Under LED or fluorescent light, check for stripes after each setup and try a few shutter speeds if you see them.
• Shoot raw so you have room to lift shadows later.

Shutter speed for night video

The usual starting point for video is a shutter speed about double the frame rate, a rule Photography Blog references. That works out to about 1/50 for 24p or 25p and 1/60 for 30p.

The catch on this camera is Active SteadyShot. PetaPixel found that it works very well at faster shutter speeds or faster frame rates, but at 24p and 1/48 it produced irregular blurry frames. Their advice is to use a stabilized lens or raise your shutter speed.

At night, raising the shutter speed costs light, so the trade-off is real. You have three paths:

• Tripod or gimbal: turn Active SteadyShot off, keep the double-frame-rate shutter, and use the full ISO range up to 6400 or beyond.
• Stabilized lens: use Optical SteadyShot in Standard mode, keep a normal shutter speed, and avoid the Active crop.
• Stabilize later: the camera records gyro data that Sony's Catalyst Browse and Catalyst Prepare software can use to smooth handheld footage in post.

For more on fixing motion blur and shake, see ZV-E10 blurry photos and video fixes.

Lenses that help in low light

Your lens does two jobs at night: it sets how much light reaches the sensor, and on this camera, it is the only source of optical stabilization.

The kit lens

The ZV-E10 II kit comes with the E PZ 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OSS II, a stabilized power zoom. Its brightest aperture is f/3.5 at the wide end, narrowing to f/5.6 when zoomed in, as the name indicates. At night, stay near 16mm when you can, because the lens lets in the most light there.

PetaPixel noted that the second version's improved stability is aimed at cameras with IBIS, which the ZV-E10 II lacks. PetaPixel also said the optics do not appear to have been upgraded, and suggested looking elsewhere if photography is a priority.

Brighter lenses

The ZV-E10 II uses Sony's E-mount lens line. A lens with a wider maximum aperture than the kit zoom is the most direct way to cut ISO at night. Weigh two things when you choose one.

First, stabilization. A bright lens without optical stabilization leaves you with Active SteadyShot, a tripod, or software stabilization for handheld video, so decide which of those you are happy to live with.

Second, size. Digital Camera World found that lenses do not have to be very large before they make this compact body front-heavy and push you into a two-handed grip. PetaPixel made a similar point about the deeper grip leaving little room for your fingers with a larger lens such as the Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 GM II. For handheld night vlogging, a small, bright lens will be easier to hold than a big zoom.

Starting settings for night shooting

These are starting points, not final answers. Adjust based on what you see on screen.

Situation	Shutter speed	ISO	Stabilization
Handheld night vlog, 24p	1/50, or faster if frames look uneven	Auto ISO, max 6400	Stabilized lens in Standard, or Active SteadyShot
Tripod night video, 24p	1/50	As needed, ideally 6400 or below	SteadyShot off
Handheld night photo	Fast enough to look sharp on playback	Auto ISO, max 6400	Stabilized lens
Tripod night photo, static scene	As slow as the scene needs	100 to 400	Lens stabilization off on a tripod, self-timer on

Other limits to plan around

Heat. In TechRadar's testing at a room temperature of 70F (21C), the camera overheated and shut down after 24 minutes of 4K/60p recording, with no overheating in Full HD. For long night events, 4K at 30p or Full HD is the safer choice.

Crop. The ZV-E10 II shoots 4K up to 30p with no crop, and adds a small 1.1x crop at 60p. At night, 30p also lets you use a slower shutter than 60p, which helps exposure.

Picture profile. The camera offers S-Cinetone, and 10-bit S-Log for footage you plan to grade. If you do not edit color, S-Cinetone gets you a finished look with less work.

Memory cards. If you record 4K at high bitrates, use a card that can keep up. See the SD card guide for the a6700, ZV-E10 and FX30.

For general technique after dark, the night and low-light photography guide covers composition and light sources.

If you have the original ZV-E10

Much of this advice applies to the first ZV-E10, with a few differences. Its extended stills ISO tops out at 51200 instead of 102400. Sony's ZV-E10 help guide notes that the available ISO range changes with the Gamma setting under Picture Profile. It also keeps a mechanical shutter, which TechRadar says lets you avoid the banding the ZV-E10 II can show under artificial light. Imaging Resource lists Night Scene and Hand-held Twilight among its scene modes.

For settings specific to that camera, see ZV-E10 low light and night photography settings. To compare the two bodies in detail, read ZV-E10 vs ZV-E10 II.

If handheld night shooting is most of what you do, in-body stabilization may matter more than anything else. TechRadar points to the Sony A6700 as the Sony option that adds it. The a6700 low light guide covers how that camera handles the same situations.