What am I doing wrong?

[paws55]

I sell on Etsy so photos are very important.  When taking pictures I can't seem to get the detail like it should be.  It's most difficult with white, ivory or black.  By the time I lighten the photos in editing they have lost the detail.  The satin ribbon is hazy and you can't see the detail. 

I'm using the best quality on my Powershot elph 160.  The settings are 1 or 1 1/3 on brightness and I set the white balance before taking the pictures. The ISO is 100 but should it be higher? I use a tripod most of the time also.  When uploading the photos to Etsy they become darker so I have to lighten them up more than I normally do.  I guess they cut the quality when they are uploaded. 

Here is a sample of an unedited photo.  When I lighten it up the detail is gone.  If I put more light on the front of the item it's too bright and the detail is gone.  Do I have too much light? Thanks for any help.

[TTMartin]

Use exposure compensation to increase your exposure, so you don't have to lighten your photos in post processing.

edit: also consider forcing 'ON' your cameras built in flash so you have a little fill flash from the front and some highlight reflections.

[paws55]

How do I use the exposure compensation and force the 'on' flash?  Sorry I'm not familar enough with the camera to know the terms.

[Waddizzle]

 When uploading the photos to Etsy they become darker so I have to lighten them up more than I normally do. I guess they cut the quality when they are uploaded.

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I have a similar problem uploading to these forums.  Many photos become darker, or the White Balance seems to change.  Sometimes they upload just fine.  And, I haven't the.slightest idea as to the cause.  I can upload the same photo files to other web sites, and they are fine.

[jrhoffman75]

paws55 - see pages 47 and 55 of your manual

Exposure Compensation means that you can increase or decrease the exposure that the camera applies to the photo. There are times to do that when the in-camera exposure meter is being"fooled" by the gerneral lighting and not giving the exposure you want on your subject.