Chapter 10. Creative Techniques

More About Noise and Grain

In general, noise is something to be avoided, while grain is something that many cinematographers and directors embrace (although that is beginning to change). This section compares the difference between digital noise and film grain and includes some tips for how integrating noise into an image can be beneficial, and ways you might go about doing it.

What Is Digital Noise?

Along with the individual pixels of detail inherent to any image, digital camera circuitry introduces noise. The light-sensitive silicon chips at the heart of modern video recording cameras are, below a certain threshold of exposure, inherently noisy (CCD or CMOS chips are currently used). As with audio recording ...

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