Imported shots too dark in Lightroom 4

matt_is

matt_is

Messages
19
Name
Matt
Edit My Images
No
Hi,
I'm a newbie on here so I hope you'll be gentle....
I've been using Lightroom 4 for several months now, on a 2009 iMac, shooting RAW on a Canon 5D mk2 with various glass attached, and no matter what I alter - I am having to brighten almost every shot, and quite a lot.
I have followed all sorts of advice online regarding colour correction on the iMac, as well as including simple things like turning down the brightness on the screen and changing my work area to a constant light using daylight bulbs and drawn curtains. I have reset all settings on LR4 that I can find as well as all settings in camera too.
I'm starting to tear my hair out......
I know that the LCD on the camera isn't to be taken as an accurate representation of brightness, indeed I've turned that down a bit too... but even various test shots undertaken in normal daylight outdoors in Auto mode are looking too dark on the Mac screen.
I'm aware that the iMac screens show creamy whites in Black & White a little whiter than on a non-Mac (particularly obvious in my wedding photography where I use various creamy black&white effects), but I just have to allow for this whilst processing. But it's the darkness I can't rectify.
An example of this is finishing a shot to perfection and then exporting it and viewing on a PC / TV screen / etc and finding it at least a half stop too dark.
I keep thinking it's my setup, but I have PP's various phots using one of the LR4 presets without tweaking, and had the same result. Fine on my Mac, too creamy and dark everywhere else.
Is it my 5D, is it my Mac, is it LR4 or is there something I've missed.....?

All and any advice greatly received, thanks.

Matt

:bang:
 
This happens to my x100 raw files as well. Its only raw files though and its the exposure that is turned down.
I have no idea why it does this, if i'm honest!
I set my camera to record raw and jpeg and use the jpeg files most of the time and if i have to use the raw file i just adjust the exposure in lightroom.
 
matt_is said:
An example of this is finishing a shot to perfection and then exporting it and viewing on a PC / TV screen / etc and finding it at least a half stop too dark.
I keep thinking it's my setup, but I have PP's various phots using one of the LR4 presets without tweaking, and had the same result. Fine on my Mac, too creamy and dark everywhere else.
Click to expand...

Fine on the Mac, dark everywhere else. It sounds like your Mac is set up differently from everywhere else. Have you calibrated your screen? For putting stuff on to the internet it should be calibrated to gamma 2.2. Macs used to be calibrated to 1.8, but I think the norm is 2.2 for Macs as well these days. Anyway, if you haven't calibrated your Mac screen, I suggest trying that. I can point you to more info about calibration if that is new to you.
 
Hi Nick,
Thanks for that, but unfortunately I've tried that. I've also tried various other calibration exercises from YouTube with no success, as well as one or two trial versions of calibration software. The thing that actually made the most difference was just turning the brightness down on the screen a chunk, and using consistent lighting in my workroom, probably a good 60 to 70% improvement but not quite right.
The colour calibration I'm not too fussed about as it's only slightly creamy and only in one or two specific settings that I used to use, its' just the darkness that's getting me down.

Jonathan, I'm happy with the histograms per shot which is partly why I've turned down the brightness on the LCD so as not to lull myself into a false sense of security.

In short, they look OK on the LCD, but in in order to export shots that look good in Print or on non-Mac's or TV screens, I have to over-expose my shot in LR4 more than I'd like to - usually by at least half a stop or more.

Whilst a couple of RAW Test Shots taken in Auto on a sunny day outside won't win any awards, they should get processed by LR4 and exported without tweaking and should look fine, right?

(By fine I only mean generally in relation to exposure)

Thanks
 
Try shooting in RAW+JPG then directly compare the two as well. RAW files are often lacking in saturation and pop for good reason - they're unprocessed.

If BOTH look dark there maybe an issue. If its just the RAW im not convinced it isnt fairly normal.

FWIW LCD brightness used to fool me a lot, especially in fairly dark environments. I have to knock it down to about 30% for underwater for example. Histogram is a far better guide.
 
Last edited:
Excellent - I hadn't tried that. I'll give it a go over the weekend and see how I get on.

Thanks for the advice

Matt
 
Go here - http://www.blackfiveservices.co.uk/profiling.shtml

Click the download link at the bottom of that page for the test card image and import the test picture into Lightroom WITH NO IMPORT ADJUSTMENTS.

How does it look?

Export it - open in a picture viewer - how does it look now? Open it on another device - how does that look?
 
Hi Jonathan.
Right - I've run through the steps you suggested. Import into LR4 - looks the same brightness as the web version. Export to Desktop then open in 'Preview' - again, the same as the web version, the same as LR4. I then copied the exported file onto my Android Device.... colours looked fine and perhaps a little darker, but too close to tell easily.
I then opened the link on my android device and compared directly with the exported file on my android and actually - probably the same brightness.
So now I'm really confused. Following this process, the image was probably the same across all views.
So is it maybe something wrong with my camera rather than LR4 or my Mac? or is it to do with the RAW conversion? (The test card was a jpeg)
Thanks
Matt
 
Can you post up a screenshot of one of your pictures open in the develop module so we can see the histogram as well?
 
/Users/matthewbrooks/Desktop/screenshot 1.tiff

Hi Jonathan, probably not the best example as I've already tweaked most of the ones that I had issues with, but this one looks way too dark. I know that the histogram reflects this... I'll troll through for a better example
Matt
 
screenshot 1.tiff
 
Last edited:
Hi jonathan. I've dumped the screenshot on Flickr. The link in my last post works, but just doesn't show the pic in the post.
Matt
 
"Underexposed" due to backlighting..... ;)

(From a technical point of view it's "correctly" exposed since the camera has held highlight and shadow detail. Unfortunately the women's faces are darker than the average tone so render as underexposed.)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top