topic Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto" in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

Images always over exposed in "Auto"

Drbrown — Mon, 14 May 2018 03:32:53 GMT

I am a new 80D user and this is the first Canon I have owned. I know how to use "manual" mode (i always have to stop it down three stops to get a decent picture). When I use "Auto" mode the images are extremely over exposed. This means I cannot give the camera to someone else that is not familiar with it to take a picture. Are all Canon cameras like this or is mine defective? It does not matter which of my three lenses I use. I have a Canon ESF 18-55mm kit lens, a Canon ESF 55-250mm and a Rokinon 8mm Fish eye. All of these lenses produce a very over exposed image. I have tried using different number of focus points to no avail. Any help would be much appreciated.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

jr8 — Mon, 14 May 2018 04:10:59 GMT

What metering mode are you using? Also, in "Auto' mode, what is your Exposure Compensation setting? Does this happen with or without flash? The touch screen can play havoc in your settings: while looking through the viewfinder, if your face brushes against the screen, it could change the Exposure compensation, ISO, etc settings. Check that too. Happened to me once.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

diverhank — Mon, 14 May 2018 04:19:46 GMT

What do you mean by Auto? The Green Square?

I'd reset the camera back to factory default and try again.

It sounds to me that Exposure Compensation has been inadvertently increased a couple of stops in a certain mode(s). The camera will remember the setting until you change it unless you reset it back to default.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

StanNH — Mon, 14 May 2018 11:53:36 GMT

It sounds like your exposure compensation is not set to zero. It's a simple adjustment and easy to check in the display.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

RobertTheFat — Mon, 14 May 2018 13:23:54 GMT

@Drbrown wrote:
I am a new 80D user and this is the first Canon I have owned. I know how to use "manual" mode (i always have to stop it down three stops to get a decent picture). When I use "Auto" mode the images are extremely over exposed. This means I cannot give the camera to someone else that is not familiar with it to take a picture. Are all Canon cameras like this or is mine defective? It does not matter which of my three lenses I use. I have a Canon ESF 18-55mm kit lens, a Canon ESF 55-250mm and a Rokinon 8mm Fish eye. All of these lenses produce a very over exposed image. I have tried using different number of focus points to no avail. Any help would be much appreciated.

Forget what it does in "Auto". If the metering system is three stops off in manual mode, either the camera is defective or you have something (probably exposure compensation) set very wrong.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

Drbrown — Mon, 14 May 2018 14:10:56 GMT

Thanks a lot. I already have the exposure compensation set down two stops. From what I have read that setting does not effect the "auto" mode. I hope that is correct.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

Drbrown — Mon, 14 May 2018 14:14:23 GMT

Thanks I will have a look.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

TCampbell — Mon, 14 May 2018 15:34:48 GMT

Full auto mode (the green box) locks out many changes that would be permitted in other modes... one of which is exposure compensation. If you had dialed in exposure compensation in another mode, it would be ignored when you switch to auto mode.

I do not own an 80D but I have compared the reflected meter readings with my various Canon bodies against what my dedicated Sekonic meter reads and have found them to all be very accurate.

1 photographic stop represents a doubling or halving of the amount of light. If you have to dial the exposusre down by 3 stops, then that means you have to dial it down to 1/2 of 1/2 of 1/2 (or 1/8th) of the exposure that the camera wants to use. That's a huge difference.

You can test the camera on a bright sunny day.

In mid-day sunshine, the sun pumps out a very reliable amount of light. A correct exposure for the Sun based on the "Sunny 16" rule says that that IF (and only if) you use f/16, then the shutter speed should be the INVERSE of the ISO setting.

In other words if you use manual exposure, set your aperture to f/16, set your ISO to 100, then the shutter speed should be 1/100th sec. And in doing that... if you "meter" the scene with those settings dialed in, the built-in meter should show the digital needle near the center point.

CAVEAT: Keep in mind this is a "reflected" light meter. If you point the camera at a scene which is dominated by darks, the meter will read less light being reflected (because darks don't reflect as much) and the camera may indicate an under-exposure to encourage you to boost the exposure a bit. Conversely if you point the camera at a scene dominated by light colors, the opposite can happen. In other words, if the camera metering differs by a small amount (maybe a 1/3 of a stop) then I wouldn't worry too much. But if it differs by 3 stops (which is what you are saying seems to be happening) then that's a defect and needs to be addressed.

There are a few other issues you could check but I think are unlikely... I had wondered if the aperutre blades on your lens were stopping down as they should. You can dial in a high f-stop value then look at the front of your lens and press your depth-of-field preview button and make sure you see the aperture blades constrict.

You aren't using any filters on the front of the lens? I can only imagine that would result in the camera under-exposing but you are saying it is over-exposing so I doubt it's that.

Are you using "Evaluative" metering or some other mode such as "Spot" or "Center weighted", etc.?

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

StanNH — Mon, 14 May 2018 16:19:32 GMT

Just as a note, I use an 80D with a variety of both Canon and non-Canon lenses. The exposure is almost always spot on, barring any unusual lighting situations.

If your exposure issues are not related to the camera's exposure compensation, and persist with more than one lens, you may in fact have a problem with the camera itself.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

Waddizzle — Mon, 14 May 2018 23:08:48 GMT

@Drbrown wrote:
I am a new 80D user and this is the first Canon I have owned. I know how to use "manual" mode (i always have to stop it down three stops to get a decent picture). When I use "Auto" mode the images are extremely over exposed. This means I cannot give the camera to someone else that is not familiar with it to take a picture. Are all Canon cameras like this or is mine defective? It does not matter which of my three lenses I use. I have a Canon ESF 18-55mm kit lens, a Canon ESF 55-250mm and a Rokinon 8mm Fish eye. All of these lenses produce a very over exposed image. I have tried using different number of focus points to no avail. Any help would be much appreciated.

The two Canon lenses should be spot in in Green [A] mode and the creative P mode. If you are not using the Rokinon in M or Av mode, then you are likely using the lens incorrectly. Let’s put the Rokinon to the side for now, until the exposure issue is resolved.

Can you post a sample photo of the issue, one which includes the EXIF data?

I advise going into the menus and resetting the camera back to factory defaults. The camera should take good photos with the 18-55mm kit lens in Auto mode. If not, then contact Canon Support.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

Drbrown — Mon, 21 May 2018 16:33:20 GMT

@TCampbell wrote:
Full auto mode (the green box) locks out many changes that would be permitted in other modes... one of which is exposure compensation. If you had dialed in exposure compensation in another mode, it would be ignored when you switch to auto mode.

I do not own an 80D but I have compared the reflected meter readings with my various Canon bodies against what my dedicated Sekonic meter reads and have found them to all be very accurate.

1 photographic stop represents a doubling or halving of the amount of light. If you have to dial the exposusre down by 3 stops, then that means you have to dial it down to 1/2 of 1/2 of 1/2 (or 1/8th) of the exposure that the camera wants to use. That's a huge difference.

You can test the camera on a bright sunny day.

In mid-day sunshine, the sun pumps out a very reliable amount of light. A correct exposure for the Sun based on the "Sunny 16" rule says that that IF (and only if) you use f/16, then the shutter speed should be the INVERSE of the ISO setting.

In other words if you use manual exposure, set your aperture to f/16, set your ISO to 100, then the shutter speed should be 1/100th sec. And in doing that... if you "meter" the scene with those settings dialed in, the built-in meter should show the digital needle near the center point.

CAVEAT: Keep in mind this is a "reflected" light meter. If you point the camera at a scene which is dominated by darks, the meter will read less light being reflected (because darks don't reflect as much) and the camera may indicate an under-exposure to encourage you to boost the exposure a bit. Conversely if you point the camera at a scene dominated by light colors, the opposite can happen. In other words, if the camera metering differs by a small amount (maybe a 1/3 of a stop) then I wouldn't worry too much. But if it differs by 3 stops (which is what you are saying seems to be happening) then that's a defect and needs to be addressed.

There are a few other issues you could check but I think are unlikely... I had wondered if the aperutre blades on your lens were stopping down as they should. You can dial in a high f-stop value then look at the front of your lens and press your depth-of-field preview button and make sure you see the aperture blades constrict.

You aren't using any filters on the front of the lens? I can only imagine that would result in the camera under-exposing but you are saying it is over-exposing so I doubt it's that.

Are you using "Evaluative" metering or some other mode such as "Spot" or "Center weighted", etc.?

I was using "Evaluative" metering. The "Sunny 16 Rule" turned out to be correct on the camera. I guess my biggest problem is that this camera is nothing like my Pentax that I used for years. I will keep experimenting with the metering. Thanks for your insight.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

jentekllc8888 — Thu, 31 Oct 2019 00:18:36 GMT

If experiencing overexposure in auto mode (greenbox dial mode), it is likely an issue of metering sensor, which located near the view finder. I have had such issue and resolved it:

https://youtu.be/9fHDxXn7h1E

Hope this helps.

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

TaliaW — Fri, 14 Aug 2020 20:40:27 GMT

Hello

Did you ever get this issue resolved? I bought a Canon EOS800D last year and have the exact same issue. As a total amateur, I used an 1100D for several years on the various auto settings and got lovely shots. With this one the auto settings are awful: over exposed and sometimes just blurry, with no apparent focus on anything. The plus side is that I have since learnt how to use the manual settings and made an effort to learn about photography. If I work really hard, I can get some decent shots using AV and TV, but like you, I almost always have to dial down the exposure. It would be great to be able to use auto sometimes, as when photographing the kids in particular, by the time I have set the camera up I have missed the shot!

Thanks.

Talia

Re: Images always over exposed in "Auto"

Drbrown — Sat, 15 Aug 2020 01:55:24 GMT

The issue has not been resolved. Like you, I have an old camera, a Pentax K200D which takes much better images than my 80D. That being said the 80D has a whole host of other disappointing features connected to "exposure". The aperture priority setting in the time lapse feature does not work. It apparently is not designed to. I also have a heck of a time getting "tack sharp" images or even decently sharp images. I have about given up on that camera. For the price my phone does a better job. Just as something to try..... If you ever mount your 80D on a tripod try "masking", covering the eye piece with a piece of black tape and compare shots. It's very interesting and slightly scarry. I also do not understand the difference in manual mode when you switch between eye piece and "live veiw" the exposure setting is compleatly different, same scene different settings. Go figure?