Why do hot pixels show up in long exposures but not in live view?
Asked 7/25/2011
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I understand that hot pixels can appear when a camera sensor is active for a long time during a long exposure. If that is the case, why don’t they usually show up in live view, where the sensor is also running continuously?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
15y ago
2 Answers
13
On a long exposure charge is allowed to accumulate on the sensor over a period of time, whereas in live view the sensor is discharged for every frame (so thirty times a second or so). Some hot pixels result from slow charge leakage which only occurs during a long exposure, hence you wouldn't expect to see these in live view.
Also liveview subsamples the sensor so you dont see every pixel.
Originally by user1375. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1375
15y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Hot pixels are more noticeable in long exposures because each pixel is allowed to collect charge for a long time before being read out. Any pixel with higher dark current or leakage can build up enough charge to appear bright.
In live view, the sensor is read and reset repeatedly for each video frame, often many times per second, so charge does not accumulate for nearly as long. That prevents many hot pixels from becoming obvious.
Also, live view often does not display every sensor pixel one-for-one. The camera may skip, bin, or downsample pixels to create the preview, which can hide isolated hot pixels that would be visible in a full-resolution long exposure.
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