Unlike its film-using predecessors, modern digital cameras present us with a challenge of a non-replaceable sensor. Due to this, the given amount of light, which falls on an element of the sensor (pixel), creates the same charge irrespective of ISO sensitivity setting resulting in an identical output signal. The response of the sensor itself depends only on the light, and not on the digital camera sensitivity (ISO) setting.

It would seem that this contradicts everyday photographic practices: if there is not much light, you have to set the sensitivity (ISO value) higher, and the picture will come out right, but if you set the sensitivity low, then it won t come out right. Lets have a closer look.