Sony RX100 VII High ISO Sample Images

Here’s a collection of images taken with the Sony RX100 VII at high ISOs to give a sense of how it performs in low-light conditions.

Sony RX100 VII High ISO Sample Images
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When you’re traveling, most of the time you’ve got to take the light as it comes. And much of the time, the level of illumination leaves something to be desired. So you want a camera that can take it in stride—there’s not much fun in putting your camera away when the sun goes down.

Sony’s new RX100 VII is a high-end compact camera that continues in a line of feature-rich and impressive compacts. I’ve recently been out shooting with it to put it through its paces. I thought it might be useful to post some real-world examples of its high-ISO performance in case it’s useful for anyone wondering how well it performs in low light.

Sony RX100 VII Compact Camera
  • 20. 1MP 1. 0 Type stacked CMOS sensor, Zeiss Vario Sonnar T 24 200 millimeter F2. 8 F4. 5 large aperture...
  • 0. 02 sec. High AF speed, 357 point focal plane Phase detection AF and 425 point contrast detection AF

The Sony RX100 VII doesn’t have a particularly expansive ISO range. At least, not compared to some other cameras like the full-frame models that have ISOs up into six figures. I’ve previously posted some side-by-side examples throughout the ISO range. The RX100 VII’s full range is from ISO 64 to ISO 12800. Of that, ISO 100 to 12800 is native ISO, with ISO 64 and ISO 80 in the extended range (where software takes over from the hardware’s native sensitivity).

What I’m focusing on here are some examples taken at high ISOs. I’ve posted a more general collection of sample images taken with the RX100 VII separately.

Where “high ISO” begins is obviously open for debate. For the purposes here, I’m focusing on ISO 3200 through ISO 12800. ISO 3200 isn’t really a particularly high ISO these days—certainly not compared to what it was in early digital and film days—but I’m including them here as reference points.

I’ve tried to focus here on shots that are likely to show up issues with high ISOs. So things like smooth tones through the shadows and subtle colors. I’ve also included the same shot at different ISOs to allow for apples-to-apples comparisons.

I’ve taken all of these in RAW and processed them with a light touch in Lightroom. Doing so has bypassed the in-camera processing that’s applied to the JPGs. I haven’t applied any extra noise reduction beyond Lightroom’s defaults (Luminance: 0; Color: 25; Detail: 50; Smoothness: 50).

It’s worth noting that I haven’t applied any external noise reduction to these, either. There are specialized image editing apps available that can do pretty remarkable things in cleaning up image noise at high ISOs (eg. DxO’s DeepPrime and Topaz Labs’ DeNoise AI are good places to start; and if you’re shooting RAW, DxO’s PureRAW works a bit differently and isn’t only focused on image noise, but it can yield impressive results).

Sony RX100 VII High-ISO Sample Images

You can click on each image to open a full-size version for a closer look.

Sony RX100 VII High ISO Sample Image
ISO 3200
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ISO 4000
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ISO 4000
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ISO 4000
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ISO 4000
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ISO 5000
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ISO 5000
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ISO 6400
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ISO 8000
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ISO 10000
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ISO 12800
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ISO 12800

Fixing Image Quality Problems in Editing

And the general rule of thumb in photography is that it’s better to get the shot right at the time of capture rather than trying to fix it after. That’s a great aspiration, but it’s not always possible to do if you’re shooting in especially challenging conditions or bumping up against limitations or flaws in gear, conditions, or technique.

But it’s worth mentioning that there are some excellent tools available to help address common image quality issues with digital images. And they’re getting better and better all the time as the power of AI ramps up. They can deal remarkably well with anything from sensor issues like high-ISO image noise to lens issues like distortion, softness, vignetting, and chromatic aberration. (Note: I’m focusing here on corrections related to image quality, not image enhancement tools–that’s a different kettle of fish.)

All-round image processing apps like Lightroom Classic and Capture One have solid tools built in that are very good places to start. But it’s also possible to take it much further with more specialized tools. If you shoot in challenging conditions regularly and find room for improvement in the image quality coming out of the camera, these might well be worth a look (and they have free trials). Some are stand-alone apps; some integrate into image editing suites such as Lightroom Classic.

UPDATE: In April 2023, Adobe released an update to Lightroom Classic that added new AI-powered noise reduction for RAW files. It’s a powerful tool that rivals some of the dedicated apps below. If you’re already using Lightroom Classic for your image editing and organization, it’s well worth trying out.

Fixing Image Noise & High ISO Artifacts

Fixing Lens-Related Optical Issues

  • DxO PureRAW (again offers an impressive suite of automatic fixes that are applied before you start editing the images)
  • DxO ViewPoint (correcting for lens distortion and geometry skews)
  • Topaz Labs Sharpen AI (in addition to standard unsharp tools, includes focus correction and shake reduction)

Wrap Up

For a compact camera with a small sensor, I’ve been pleasantly surprised with the high-ISO performance of the RX100 VII. Although it probably shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise considering it’s coming from a camera manufacturer has been consistently producing some of the best sensors in the business for several years now.

Accessories

It’s possible to add filters to the RX100 VII, but you first need to attach the VFA-305R1 filter adapter kit as the front panel. You can then use 30.5mm filters. The kit also comes with a lens hood.

The Sony RX100 VII doesn’t come with a memory card as standard. I’ve put together a detailed post of Sony RX100 VII memory card recommendations separately.

Sony RX100 VII Price & Availability

Check the current price and availability of the Sony RX100 VII at:

Sony RX100 VII Compact Camera
  • 20. 1MP 1. 0 Type stacked CMOS sensor, Zeiss Vario Sonnar T 24 200 millimeter F2. 8 F4. 5 large aperture...
  • 0. 02 sec. High AF speed, 357 point focal plane Phase detection AF and 425 point contrast detection AF

Images and product information from Amazon PA-API were last updated on 2023-06-02 at 23:52. Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon Site at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.

David Coleman / Photographer

David Coleman

I'm a professional freelance travel photographer based in Washington DC. Seven continents, up mountains, underwater, and a bunch of places in between. My images have appeared in numerous publications, and you can check out some of my travel photography here. More »

4 thoughts on “Sony RX100 VII High ISO Sample Images”

  1. Does this apply for video? I have been having a hard time with mine recording video in low light. What are some of the recommended settings for video in low light? I have seen some amazing videos from this camera.

    Reply
  2. The new RX100 vii has slightly lower native ISO, ISO100 vs ISO125 on the RX100 vi. I realize that this is not a big improvement, perhaps just a 1/4 of an f-stop. However, do you see an improvement In low-light or night-time photos at ISO100?

    Many thanks, – Bob

    Reply

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