Beginner Why are all my shots "overexposed"?

thatone1967

thatone1967

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153
Name
Jim
Edit My Images
Yes
Pretty much every shot I take, I have to tone down the brightness after uploading to Flickr.
Not a problem to resolve, it's a 2 second job in either Photoshop or using the Flickr tool.
I have an EOS450D, and shoot pretty much full auto, unless I am shooting prop blur, in which case, I use Shutter Priority.
I'll use this as an example. as it's a poor picture that I have not bothered to edit.

IMG_2111(1) by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
 
I wouldn't say that was overexposed. If you camera is in full auto then it's doing it's best to give you the best balance between a bright sky and darker foreground.
 
When I use the 700D I often get a similar result when on full auto. I tend to have to expose for the highlights of sky and then amending the curves in PS to bring out the detail, colour and correct exposure of the foreground and darker areas. Leaving the camera to make the choice for me often blows the sky right out leaving it barely manageable. Perhaps its just an entry level EOS thing? as neither my 7D or EM5 do that.
 
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I must tell you, Jim, I know nothing of your gear…
but this is what you should make sure of:

— that no exposure compensation has been dialed in
— that your ISO is not too high
— that you selected the right metering method

These are, at the beginning, the traps easy to fall into.

…hope that helps!
 
Hi, Not to get to complicated the camera has no idea what is important in your image so it meters for an overall exposure and always comes back with 18% grey as a standard level of exposure. It is quite difficult to explain without writing near to a book on it. As most do say if you point your camera at a white towel against a black background what colour will the towel come out on the back of your camera? White? NO! Grey Looking? Yes!! and visa versa black on white. A better way and only my opinion is to get of the automatic and shoot manual so you can learn about exposure and then tell the camera what you want not what the camera thinks you want. Go onto Youtube and type in How to use Manual exposure in photography there are hundreds of people out there with advice.
Russ
 
ecoleman said:
I wouldn't say that was overexposed. If you camera is in full auto then it's doing it's best to give you the best balance between a bright sky and darker foreground.
Click to expand...

Cheers mate, it probably wasn't the best example to be fair, and as I say, it's not the end of the world. as its a 2 second job to fix at the editing stage,
 
Kodiak Qc said:
•
I must tell you, Jim, I know nothing of your gear…
but this is what you should make sure of:

— that no exposure compensation has been dialed in
— that your ISO is not too high
— that you selected the right metering method

These are, at the beginning, the traps easy to fall into.

…hope that helps!
Click to expand...

In full auto, non of these things will be the problem
 
Have you got the exposure compensation at zero?

If you take a similar shot in manual to one you've just taken (next time you're out) set the shutter speed the same as the previous photo and then alter the aperture so it shows as zero. Take the photo and see if both photos are on the same settings - i.e. is the aperture the same with both?

Is the ISO high?

Just some thoughts.
 
ecoleman said:
In full auto, non of these things will be the problem
Click to expand...
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I think, on the contrary, that even in this full mode
the first and last may be affected.
 
ecoleman said:
I wouldn't say that was overexposed. If you camera is in full auto then it's doing it's best to give you the best balance between a bright sky and darker foreground.
Click to expand...

No it isn't. It's taking the exposure segments you chose in the metering mode and adjusting ISO, Shutter and Aperture so they appear to be 18% luminance.

If the average luminance in the scene isn't 18%, then it will over or under expose.
 
st599 said:
No it isn't. It's taking the exposure segments you chose in the metering mode and adjusting ISO, Shutter and Aperture so they appear to be 18% luminance.

If the average luminance in the scene isn't 18%, then it will over or under expose.
Click to expand...

And in plain English.......what I said.
What's the point of talking jargon when the OP uses full auto mode?
 
Hi there Jim.

I too didnt think the above image was overexsposed then again I was not there at the time. I've only owned 2 cameras and the first was a 450d. That said I think they all act the same way. I was and still am never happy with images that contain a lot of sky. I found that centre weighted metering gives me the best results I use the camera in that mode all the time, unless someone is backlite then maybe I use partial. I believe it is an old fashioned way but it works out ok for me.

Gaz
 
ecoleman said:
Non of those can be set on either of my Canon in Auto mode. 6D or 7Dmkii.
Click to expand...
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Elliott,

I just realize that we are both aware of the something in two different worlds!
I can speak only Nikon, as I said in post #4, I know nothing of that gear!

So basically, we agree but in others worlds… I can live with that! :)
 
I think perhaps it's time to make the jump off auto. You're using shutter priority already which is good, that's where I started. Now try apature priority, obviously not on planes though lol. My advise is to play with your camera, even just sat on the sofa. It will all click one day and it will seem simpler than it does now. Also take a look in you camera manual for metering modes, you can adjust it so it meters on the focus point.
 
One more thing. I find it's very rare a photo comes out of a camera perfect. Try playing with contrast, saturation, shadows and highlights if you aren't already.
 
Agree with Mike. Digital photos are effectively free so just take LOTS. Every shot comes with its EXIF data so you can see the settings used. If a photo does not turn out the way you wanted try to work out what went wrong. If you can't put your finger on the cause, post it up here and someone will be able to help.

If you don't know about the exposure triangle have a look online. Understanding aperture, shutter speed and ISO will help you get the best out of your camera.

Dave
 
ecoleman said:
And in plain English.......what I said.
What's the point of talking jargon when the OP uses full auto mode?
Click to expand...
You said it was trying to trade off between foreground and sky. It's not that clever. It thinks everything has the luminance of grass/Caucasian skin in black and white.

If it hasn't you need to add or subtract.
 
You lost Jim in all this tittle tattle guys ? (His thread)

Gaz
 
@OP
Can you do a little test for us to check out the problem?
Go out and find a scene with a bright sky. Take a picture on full AUTO with the centre of the frame just above the horizon and another with it just below the horizon and note the shutter speed aperture and ISO. Are they different? Is one better?
Next switch it out of full Auto to, say, Shutter priority. Now take a picture of a scene with no sky. And fairly even lighting. So no bright areas. Now set the exposure compensation to +1 then +2. And then - 1 and - 2. And see which one you think is the best. Maybe others here could think of further tests. It'll be a bit of fun and perhaps very informative.
 
If you take a lot of picture with bright skies, mnaybe use a filter to darken them? That way you could leave it on Auto if you wanted.
 
Your metering mode must be in Evaluative mode.
And also expose for the sky , this way your picture must be darker not brighter,and as other guys sudgest see your exposure compensation.
 
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