Drebel Color Issues

[daniell]

Just got a new Canon EOS Digital Rebel, and I love it:

But sometimes, the images that show up on the LCD of the camera look much nicer than what I see when I read the CF from my computer?

Is this a calibration issue or what?

The images on my PC look much darker, and almost underexposed compared to what the LCD shows.

[Ogrt48]

Dont judge pictures by the crappy lcd, use the histogram instead

[Olegis]

DO NOT TRUST YOUR LCD MONITOR !

It will always show you the images brighter than they really are. Trust only your histogram, it will show you whether the image is exposed correctly or not.

[tim]

Images from a digital camera often need to be played with a little to make them look their best. Photoshop's the usual tool, but there are cheaper and free programs around that will do the job just as well. If you post a link to a full sized image or two someone might have a little play with them for you to show you an example. I can do it when i'm at home this evening if you like.

[daniell]

I have Photoshop Elements, and I've played with Version 7 at school.

I was just wondering why the images on the LCD are like that? Why wouldn't they represent what the actual image looks like?

[Hellashot]

I have Photoshop Elements, and I've played with Version 7 at school.

I was just wondering why the images on the LCD are like that? Why wouldn't they represent what the actual image looks like?

The LCD is a general picture of what was taken basically to show if you got all or not enough of your subject in the shot. The Drebel LCD has about half the pixels in the screen as the 10D or 20D. It's a quick preview on a cheap screen. Take it at that.

[drisley]

The LCD is a general picture of what was taken basically to show if you got all or not enough of your subject in the shot. The Drebel LCD has about half the pixels in the screen as the 10D or 20D. It's a quick preview on a cheap screen. Take it at that.
Don't spread mis-information Hellashot.
The LCD on the DRebel is exactly the same as the one on the 10D and both have the same resolution (118,000 pixels) as does the 20D.
But still you are correct in saying that the preview on the screen is just that, a preview.

[Medic1]

I had the same problem.....for some reason when I first got my 300D, I went to take photos at a local conservation area to test the camera and being new to SLR photography just started shooting away....got home and everything was dark.....discovered that when I first started up the camera and went out the exposure compensation was -2....check your camera..I have a feeling this might be the problem.

Good Luck

[daniell]

Nope, as far as I know the compensation was at 0, or off.

[jrm]

Just got a new Canon EOS Digital Rebel, and I love it:

But sometimes, the images that show up on the LCD of the camera look much nicer than what I see when I read the CF from my computer?

Is this a calibration issue or what?

The images on my PC look much darker, and almost underexposed compared to what the LCD shows.


Turn your brightness all the way up - picture is too light. Turn it all the way down - picture is too dark. In other words, your monitor settings (and the settings on the camera LCD) will certainly affect the way the picture looks on screen. The camera LCD will give a rough idea, but really shouldn't be used to verify exposure.

Your problem is likely a calibration issue. Is your monitor calibrated? If not, it should be.

The histogram will give you a better indication of proper exposure (as others have already pointed out). A properly calibrated monitor will provide a more accurate representation of the picture.

Calibrate your monitor first, even if it is only with a simple or free tool. Anything is better than nothing.

Then see how the picture looks on screen. Look at the histogram - is there info on the "right" side (lighter areas)?

Look at the file on another computer/monitor - does it look the same as on your screen? Print out a test picture on your own printer - does it match what is on the screen? Take the file to a local photo lab - does their printout match what is on your screen?

Also, you say "sometimes." Is the "darker" problem consistent? Or does it only happen on some shots? If only on some, then you need to get a better understanding of how the DRebel meters a shot to determine exposure. There are many posts in this forum that discuss this. (I am terrible at explaining this, otherwise I would.)


--Joe

[daniell]

I don't understand why you posted about that after everyone already explained that the LCD isn't perfect...

Thanks anyways.

[Persian-Rice]

Hell, it aint that much better on the 1D either.............
Use it to check the composition and histogram. I don't even have an auto-preview anymore.

[blinking8s]

and I find Canons LCD's a hellava lot nicer than nikons...

[Jesper]

I have Photoshop Elements, and I've played with Version 7 at school.

I was just wondering why the images on the LCD are like that? Why wouldn't they represent what the actual image looks like?How the image on the LCD looks depends a lot on the ambient light. If you're outside and the sun is shining, the LCD will probably look dim. But if you're inside and the lights are low, it will look bright. There is no setting that will make the LCD show the image exactly correct under all circumstances.

Like everybody said, use the histogram function on the camera to judge if your photo is properly exposed.
Read this for a tutorial: Understanding Histograms (http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/understanding-histograms.shtml)

And Joe is right, you should calibrate and profile your monitor to make sure that it displays your images correctly. If your monitor is too bright or too dim, the image also won't look like it should on your monitor.