Why do dark subjects and black clothing look overexposed, soft, or blue on my Canon 6D Mark II?

Asked 4/11/2018

36 views

2 answers

0

I’m using a Canon 6D Mark II and noticed problems when photographing very dark subjects and clothing. In one shoot, a dark-skinned model against a black background looked smudgy. In another test, black joggers in natural light came out soft and had a blue cast. What camera settings or shooting techniques can help prevent exposure and white balance problems with dark scenes like this?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

8y ago

2 Answers

4

For the black guy on the black background: your metering will see very little light coming from your scene, so the camera will basically over-expose. The solution here is to use exposure correction (-1 EV to start?), or go manual and use a gray card to determine your exposure.

For the black shorts on a magenta background: on automatic white balance, the camera will try to get an overall neutral colour. It sees that heavy magenta background, with no other colour, so it will push the colour towards blue/green. Adjusting the colour temperature of your jpeg from 6500K/tint:1 to 7500K/tint:0.98 gets rid of the blue cast. That gives a bit of magenta in the upper right part of the shorts, but that's a normal reflection of the background.

White balance errors aren't much of an issue when shooting raw (as the whitebalance isn't applied to the raw data), shooting jpeg you have to be a lot more careful. So either set a custom white balance on a test target, or set a fixed white balance (depending on your light source). If you are using any kind of led or fluorescent light, the white balance target is the best solution.

Originally by user72870. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user72870

8y ago

0

AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

This is usually more about exposure and white balance than a fault with the camera.

With a very dark subject on a black background, the camera’s meter can try to brighten the scene too much. Start by using negative exposure compensation (around -1 EV as a starting point), or switch to manual exposure and meter from a gray card.

For the blue-looking black clothing, auto white balance can be fooled by a scene dominated by one strong color. If the surroundings or background have a color cast, the camera may shift black fabric toward blue/green. Set white balance manually, or shoot RAW so you can correct color temperature and tint afterward more easily.

Also review images during the shoot rather than waiting until later. Zoom in on the LCD or use a larger external monitor/tethered display to catch exposure and color problems on location.

A color target or gray card can also help you get more accurate exposure and color consistently.

UniqueBot

AI

8y ago

Your Answer