Is it just me ?

[90blackcrx]

It seems like every pic I take, that if I darken it a tad it looks better. Is it just me, here is a picture. When I darked it, it seems better. So are they coming out over exposed ?

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y72/90blackcrx/IMG_2512.jpg

[yodasarmpit]

You used aperture priority and it must have read the lighting slightly wrong and auto set the sutter speed too slow.
Try retaking the shot in manual and adjust the shutter speed a little faster.

[90blackcrx]

You used aperture priority and it must have read the lighting slightly wrong and auto set the sutter speed too slow.
Try retaking the shot in manual and adjust the shutter speed a little faster.

Yeah but it seems like all my pics look better when I darken them one step

[E-K]

What metering mode were you using? It looks like it may have been evaluative. It tried to get everything exposed correctly at the expense of some of the smaller highlights scattered around your image.

Experiment with the different metering modes. Use partial and meter on the object you want to expose correctly (you may have to get closer with either the zoom or by walking), lock it (* button) and see if it is closer to what you want.

e-k

[cataclysmcow]

What metering mode were you using? It looks like it may have been evaluative.
I'm not very familiar with evaluative as I rarely use it. On a shot that's not so low key like E-K's would you still get blowouts like that? And wouldn't it be easier to just use exposure compensation rather than switch to M to get a slightly slower shutter speed?

[iamskew]

Then why not use exposure compensation and take it down half a stop or so?

[freefallu]

i am guessing ( from this and your other garage photos ) that you experience this with high contrast scences. If you for example take an exposure reading of something black and then something white ( with the camera in manual mode ) you will see just how easy it is to fool your camera light meter with exactly the same light falling on both things. Its called reflectance . I read a book that gave me loads of insight into exposure only called " Understanding exposure " . Whether im interpretting it correctly is another thing as its only now im working towards my suggestion... My suggestion ( but i have limited experience ) would be to shoot in manual and meter zoomed in on the part of the picture you want correctly exposed and see how that works for you. Or even just to watch the meters reading in apperture priority mode change as you move the zoomed in lens from one part of the scene to the other.

[E-K]

I'm not very familiar with evaluative as I rarely use it. On a shot that's not so low key like E-K's would you still get blowouts like that?

It's possible that it might as it is trying to analyse the entire image and specular highlights are always a little tricky for the camera. It's actually 90blackcrx's picture not mine but I assume that was just a typo ;)

I mostly use partial myself as it's the closest I can get to spot on my camera. Evaluative is handy for snapshots though when I don't have much time to think about it.

And wouldn't it be easier to just use exposure compensation rather than switch to M to get a slightly slower shutter speed?

EC would work as well in most cases.

e-k

[90blackcrx]

Metering mode is evaluative, and I read understanding exposure. I did go threw a ton of pics and I did not have to mess with an of them. I think sometimes its all about peferance.

[cdifoto]

Either your scene is primarily "dark" as far as the meter is concerned, so it was fooled into overexposing, or your monitor's brightness is set way too high, making you think every shot you ever take needs darkened.

[gasrocks]

Are you sure your monitor isn't the fault?

[liza]

Use your histogram while you shoot to avoid over and underexposure issues. In that way you can make adjustments while shooting, rather than after the fact.

[th3r0m]

When you say darken, do you mean dropping exposure by a step or bringing shadows and contrast up? I have had favorable results when bringing the shadows up on some of my photos.

[90blackcrx]

Either your scene is primarily "dark" as far as the meter is concerned, so it was fooled into overexposing, or your monitor's brightness is set way too high, making you think every shot you ever take needs darkened.

Could be my pc

My histogram looks pretty well

And I mean adjust the brightness

[Mark_Cohran]

Maybe it's just subjective and the OP likes darker images.

Mark

[kram]

I think Mark is probably right here. I have a similar preference for darker pictures - I then realized that I like the contras and saturation levels on the slightly higher side on my snaps.