Photos come out too dark or too bright

Symptoms

• Photos look washed out and overly bright
• Photos look too dark even in decent lighting
• Exposure seems inconsistent between similar shots
• Auto mode produces unexpected brightness levels

Likely causes

• CommonExposure compensation accidentally set away from zeroA small dial or menu setting can bias every shot brighter or darker.
• CommonMetering mode not suited to the scene, like backlit subjectsDifferent metering modes read the scene's brightness differently.
• PossibleManual exposure settings left from a previous shooting situationSettings from indoor low light can overexpose bright outdoor scenes.
• PossibleFlash compensation set too high or lowCan throw off exposure specifically in flash photos.
• Less commonLight meter or exposure sensor malfunctionWould cause consistent errors across all modes and settings.

What to do

1. Check the exposure compensation setting and reset it to zero if it's been adjusted.
2. Switch to a general or evaluative metering mode for typical scenes.
3. If shooting in manual mode, double check shutter speed, aperture, and ISO for the current lighting.
4. Reset the camera to default settings if you suspect several settings have drifted from earlier changes.
5. Test in fully automatic mode to see if the camera exposes correctly on its own, isolating a settings issue from a hardware one.
6. Check flash exposure compensation separately if using flash and results seem off specifically with it.
7. If automatic mode also consistently over or underexposes with no unusual settings, have the metering system checked professionally.

When to call a pro

If even fully automatic mode consistently produces wrong exposure with no unusual settings applied, a camera repair shop can check the metering system.

Safety