Do all my pictures seem dark?? - DPChallenge Forums

05/19/2004 09:55:59 PM · #1

.. been getting comments on some of my entries that they seem too dark. They look fine on my monitor.

Sony 19" SDM-N80
Brightness 60%
Contrast 95%

05/19/2004 10:16:02 PM · #2

Any comments?? Suggestions?? Anyone??

BooZon

Canon EF 17-40mm f/4.0L USM

05/19/2004 10:17:32 PM · #3

The easiest way to tell is to look at someone elses pics next to yours on the same monitor. You can then see for yourself. In saying that I do think your pics are dark.

faidoi

Pentax K10D

Pentax DA 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF

05/19/2004 10:18:26 PM · #4

In which way have you calibrated your monitor? Adobe Gamma? Using Mac or PC?

Message edited by author 2004-05-19 22:19:14.

05/19/2004 10:20:09 PM · #5

Default.. i don't touch the gamma settings.

Using a PC.

Message edited by author 2004-05-19 22:20:32.

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro

05/19/2004 10:24:35 PM · #6

Funny thing is they look ok on any flatpanel.. my parent's LCD desktop, my sister's laptop.. etc.. when viewing them on a CRT they come out too dark.

Btw, they look just fine when i get them printed out aswell.

TechnoShroom

Canon EOS-30D

05/19/2004 10:38:59 PM · #7

Yes, all are on the dark side.

Rooster

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

Sigma 28-105mm f/2.8-4.0 Aspherical for Canon

05/19/2004 10:40:46 PM · #8

most prob you need to calibrate your monitor. What do the bars at the bottom of your dpc shots look like?

faidoi

Pentax K10D

Pentax DA 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF

05/19/2004 10:53:14 PM · #9

Even moving a monitor to a different location or a lighting change will change the the way the colors will be perceived.

mocabela

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6

05/19/2004 10:54:11 PM · #10

They look good to me, but I have an LCD monitor. I will look next time I have my calibrated CRT on.

Message edited by author 2004-05-19 22:54:43.

05/19/2004 11:33:22 PM · #11

Originally posted by mocabela:

They look good to me, but I have an LCD monitor. I will look next time I have my calibrated CRT on.

I guess they only look good on LCD monitors. Thanks Mocabela.. i thought it was just me.. i'm going thru my portfolio using my CRT in the office. They look terrible :(

05/19/2004 11:33:54 PM · #12

Originally posted by Rooster:

most prob you need to calibrate your monitor. What do the bars at the bottom of your dpc shots look like?

I can see the whole range perfectly.

Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D

05/20/2004 02:16:36 AM · #13

Anyway, i guess i'm in a disadvantage here seeing most people view my pictures as too dark.

David.C

05/20/2004 03:15:12 AM · #14

Originally posted by Jovi:

Default.. i don't touch the gamma settings.

Using a PC.

Take a look at this.

Stand back a few feet, squint a little, does the grey box within the gamma box disappear? If not, you probably need to adjust the gamma your monitor is displaying. You say it is at default, but the 'default' for each monitor varies widely, so calibrating it is best. Working under a different gamma (even the so-called default for the monitor) instead of the standard 2.2 will cause your images to appear lighter or darker on a monitor that is standardly calibrated.

BTW: that site is great for fully calibrating your monitor's white and black points along with the gamma.

05/20/2004 03:19:21 AM · #15

Oh thanks! I'll try it out as soon as i get home :)

Thanks a bunch!! Much appreciated :D

Jose

mocabela

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6

05/20/2004 03:31:57 AM · #16

Originally posted by Jovi:

I guess they only look good on LCD monitors. Thanks Mocabela.. i thought it was just me.. i'm going thru my portfolio using my CRT in the office. They look terrible :(

I just checked them with my calibrated CRT monitor, and while they are of course slightly less defined and maybe a tad darker in parts because there is less contrast/definition with CRT vs LCD, your photographs look perfectly fine and lovely to me.

I use dual display and have the CRT and LCD side by side, so I can see the differences in colour, etc., with everything, but overall I don't see too much darkness at all with either monitor.

Just me, though. I'm very picky about my display. :)

05/20/2004 03:47:11 AM · #17

Originally posted by mocabela:

Thanks Mocabela :D i was going thru your portfolio seeing how your pictures look since you use an LCD aswell (they're remarkably well toned and very pleasing btw).. i'm still in the office using a really really old 15" run-of-the-mill CRT. The brightness and contrast are on full and my pictures still look sooo dark. Now that you mentioned that you use dual displays, you have the advantage to see what they would look like on either type of display unlike me :( I guess i should check what they look like at the office before uploading :P

As i mentioned earlier, the funny thing is when i have my photos developed they look exactly (well, almost) like they do on my flatpanel.

mocabela

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6

05/20/2004 03:52:04 AM · #18

Originally posted by Jovi:

i'm still in the office using a really really old 15" run-of-the-mill CRT. The brightness and contrast are on full and my pictures still look sooo dark.

Adobe Gamma is how I counteract the funkiness of my CRT monitors. For that matter, I use it to perfect my LCD display as well :) Since it is a work computer you may not have that available, though. I think we all get people saying our photos are too dark, and then ones who say they are overexposed. I've seen people completely contradict one another in comments on the same photo. So I wouldn't worry about it too terribly much, unless it really seems to be the majority.

Nikon AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 28-70mm f/2.8D IF-ED

05/20/2004 03:57:21 AM · #19

Originally posted by mocabela:

I think we all get people saying our photos are too dark, and then ones who say they are overexposed. I've seen people completely contradict one another in comments on the same photo. So I wouldn't worry about it too terribly much, unless it really seems to be the majority.

Yep, point well taken.. was just worried that maybe the majority found them too dark. As with my current submission, i think about 3/10 of comments so far say that its too dark.. well without giving too much away, i guess it should be pretty easy to spot my submission :P

Thanks again for being such a big help!

Jose

caba

Nikon D800

05/20/2004 04:01:46 AM · #20

Look OK on my ViewSonic CRT, but I've gotten that comment before as well with some of my photos. Nice shots.

Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D

05/20/2004 04:06:05 AM · #21

Thanks Caba :)

Getting mixed comments here... anyone else care to add more to this thread? This is quite interesting.

David.C

05/20/2004 06:28:49 AM · #22

Well, it is also possible the color-set you work in has something to do with it. Always save the final image in sRGB, as that is basically the web standard. This thread discussed this in more detail. It is less likely this is the cause of your concern, but it is worth looking into just to make sure.

BTW: Do not worry overly much about how others see your images. Use the link above and set your white and black points to give you the full range and compensate for gamma if needed; then if someone still tells you your images are too dark you know one of two things. Either you and they have different tastes in images or their monitor needs to be calibrated.

After you calibrate your monitor you can be certain it is displaying properly without resorting to subjective comparisons. But, as was mentioned earlier, changes in the lighting in the room your monitor is in can have a big impact on how it appears. If you work under several different light settings (such as day and night by a window) it is probably worth-while to make more than one profile.

David

05/20/2004 06:37:15 AM · #23

Thanks David. Anyway, i work with the lights off... i only have time to fiddle with my photos at night. My monitor has this ambient light sensor so it dims the screen according to lighting conditions. That could possibly be the problem as well... but when turned off, the photos still look the same only much brighter. Anyway, i'm home now and trying to calibrate this flatpanel properly.

Thanks again David, you've been a big help :)

e301

05/20/2004 07:34:28 AM · #24

TFT screens are a lot more tricky to calibrate. Viewing on mine, all your shots look OK ... which is to say, darker than some, but I think most people produce images that are too bright. And before anyone shouts this is from looking at thngs with simultaneous TFT and CRT system, both calibrated.

One thing though, i wouldn't work with the lights off completely - after all, few people are likely to look at your shots that way. And definitely turn off the light sensor thing - fine for typing, but how on earth are you to know what it's doing whilst you're image editing?

E