[Studio20]

im gonna put the original screen back in and see what happens, i could have sworm i was at +1 on the exposure comp, maybe needed to go to 1.5

[Peter Zack]

But you're not explaining why you didn't like that shot. Were you expecting the Palm tree to be brighter? if so you'd have to meter off the top part of the tree and then risk washing out the sky and sand.

[Studio20]

But you're not explaining why you didn't like that shot. Were you expecting the Palm tree to be brighter? if so you'd have to meter off the top part of the tree and then risk washing out the sky and sand.

i'd like the overall scene to be brighter, and felt it was still underexposed

[jmbradd]

i think thats a "new pentax user" vs "old pentax user" issue

it seems pentax's exposure system favors detail over brightness. The sand and sky looks well exposed to us but to you coming from canon is not as bright as you'd expected. To us, as users of pentax for quite awhile it looks right.

Its not that one is better than the other, they're just different. I personally thought it was a very nice looking image.

[Lowell Goudge]

I would have to agree with everyone here. At best, without burning out a lot of highlight detail in the sand and sky, you could maybe over-expose by perhaps 1/2 to 2/3 of a stop but not much more

[Sailor]

But you're not explaining why you didn't like that shot. Were you expecting the Palm tree to be brighter? if so you'd have to meter off the top part of the tree and then risk washing out the sky and sand.

Exactly.

Jer

[asdf]

Having come from canon systems, i really like the colors on the k20d but i seem to get alot of noise and under exposure as well, i have tried using my sekonic L558 and that doesnt even come close to how far off my exposures are?
wondering if im setting something wrong on it?

Look at the histogram. It's NOT underexposed.

Look at the shadow of the palm tree. If you want the tree brighter, shoot at a different time of day or a different angle. EDIT: Alternatively, you can dodge and burn, etc.

[creampuff]

The overall scene is very bright and the camera has actually exposed pretty well, compensating for the bright sand and sky.
The shot is not underexposed looking at the histogram.
Just a simple levels or curves adjustment to punch up the overall contrast is needed.
This is basic post processing.

[Marc Sabatella]

i'd like the overall scene to be brighter, and felt it was still underexposed

Any scene that is dominated by bright sky and sand will cause a meter to try to render that as medium value. This has been true since whener they standardized on the 18% gray card for setting exposure - maybe half a century or so ago?

So yes, it's totally normal and correct behavior when taking pictures that are dominated by bright sky or sanf to need to dial in positive exposure compensation. Any book on photography will explain this.

[Studio20]

Any book on photography will explain this.

my point is the scene looks dull compared to the canon 40d i used and the metering is off, i know how to punch up the levels in post process ect....to me the camera underexposes constantly in matrix mode....also my sekonic doesnt even come close its a full stop or more off....where on the photo exif can i tell if i was at +1 compensation? maybe i wasnt? maybe im just used to my old camera overexposing the scenes?

[Studio20]

im almost sure the katz eye is screwing up the metering in the camera, going to swap it back out and try that, my biggest complaint is the noise when it underexposes.....i can deal with it being off a stop, my issue is i wish i could match my light meter to the ISO settings.

[asdf]

my point is the scene looks dull compared to the canon 40d i used and the metering is off, i know how to punch up the levels in post process ect....to me the camera underexposes constantly in matrix mode....also my sekonic doesnt even come close its a full stop or more off....where on the photo exif can i tell if i was at +1 compensation? maybe i wasnt? maybe im just used to my old camera overexposing the scenes?

I tend to use spot or center weighted metering and sometimes exposure lock. I never tried the other mode (random metering?) on the K20D--what does it do? BTW, looking at the histogram is not chimping, unless you make the associated sounds.

[Studio20]

I tend to use spot or center weighted metering and sometimes exposure lock. I never tried the other mode (random metering?) on the K20D--what does it do? BTW, looking at the histogram is not chimping, unless you make the associated sounds.

spot with a katz eye wont work, so im just going to change it out

[Marc Sabatella]

my point is the scene looks dull compared to the canon 40d i used

OK, try that exact same and see if your memory is correct here. I'd be really surprised if the Canon exposed this scene any brighter - it's dangerously close to clipping in spots as it is, and the scene is totally dominated by bright sky and sand that is already being exposed *way* brighter than ISO standards would suggest.

In any case, what we are saying stands - the Pentax exposure here is *correct* according to ISO standards. But "correct" doesn't mean "what you want" - ISO doesn't have a standard for mind-reading. It's totally normal with an exposure system that sometimes you need to override the camera's suggestion. That's been true since the dawn of photography and is discussed in every book on photography ever written, as I mentioned before.

So yes, maybe you want this scene brighter. That's why the camera - like all DSLR's - gives you the ability to override its suggestion. That's normal. We're not talking about PP here - we're talking about applying exposure compensation - an absolutely normal part of DSLR photography.

maybe im just used to my old camera overexposing the scenes?

canon is indeed known for a tendency to expose on the bright side - the be willing to blow out highlights. Pentax is is indeed known for a tendency to expose on the darker side - to refuse to blow out highlights. Neither method is likely to *exactly* match what you want all the time. The point is to learn to anticipate what settings will lead to what results, so you'll know in advance when to apply compensation.