Camera Graininess (video noise) on the iSight

Help- I have some really bad camera noise on the iSight and it seems to be in every application (iMovie, Quicktime, iChat). I'm wondering if my iSight is broken, or I'm doing something wrong?
I took a screen shot of it, with all the lights in the room on. It was very bright, and I'm still getting a lot of camera noise. help!
You can click on the image below to see the full sized screen shot.
Message was edited by: Fausto Fernos1

Hello Fausto Fernos1
What application did you use to capture and enlarge this image? Your full-sized image is 991x736 pixels. iSight's native resolution is 640x480. Any camera noise is exaggerated when you enlarge the image beyond the native resolution.
Considering the size of the webcam image you have made and the quality of your lighting, your picture does not look "really bad" to me. However, if you want higher quality images, consider using a compatible Firewire camcorder for your video webcam needs. Most 2MP or higher digital still cameras will deliver better still images than any webcam.
If you want to try for better quality than this with your external iSight, try making another image when you can use daylight to illuminate your location. As explained in Use good lighting for the best iSight picture, the KIND of light you use is as important as the AMOUNT.
For some other suggestions, consider the suggestions in Improving Your iSight's Picture.
If you want other ideas, consider the How to test your (external) iSight to ensure it is functional suggestions for taking your iSight to a different location or a different Mac to see if the image quality is the same.
Finally, operating temperature can also effect camera noise. If your location is unusually (uncomfortably) hot, or if your iSight's air vents have been blocked so its temperature has risen, consider a cooler environment or unplugging your iSight for an hour to let it cool before repeating your tests. If your location is subject to atmospheric dust, consider gently vacuuming your iSight to remove any dust that may be restricting the flow of air through the vent holes in iSight's case.
Please let us know how it goes.
EZ Jim
PowerBook 1.67 GHz w/Mac OS X (10.4.11) G5 DP 1.8 w/Mac OS X (10.5.2)  External iSight

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