Can a dark picture taken during the day by a cheap camera be lightened?

Question

I always buy those disposable cameras to take pictures and most of the time, the pictures come out pretty good. I had one picture that I took during the day come out really dark. I want this picture for my 2007 Christmas cards. Can a photo place make the picture a little bit lighter without disorting the entire picture?

Answer 1

Yeah actually the other day I did that there wasnt a problem with it so you should be able to do it too most of the time when it is daytime and pictures come out dark, the problem with those disposable cameras is most of the time the Flash isn't on so you can them lighter than what it was the first time. Yeah my pictures were very dark until they got them lighter ! It was amazing ; )

Answer 2

on the most part no, because the coloring and the pixilation of the picture has already been compromised. It also depends on how dark the picture is, and if in that darkness if it is blury or if it is nicely defined. Photoshop is an expensive program but works wonders on photos. Some of the programs that come with your cameras and printers can help, but sometimes don't have enough options to get themt o the correct coloring. If you have photoshop or some other program, or even at a kinkos or copy place, they can help you lighten the photo up without compromising the picture. just make sure that when you lighten it, you don't lighten it so much that you can see the pixels. A little lighter is usually ok, its when you try and drastically change it that you will have problems. I would say the best thing to do would be go to a copy place, this is there job so they can tell you if it will work, and if they cant get it to work right, they usually don't charge you and all you are out is the time that you spent there.

Answer 3

When the roll was developed and printed, they may have over looked the darkness in the photo. Take the film and print to a professional photo developing shop. Tell them what you like about the picture and how you want to use it.

My iPhoto library has 4488 photos. I am totally digital. But for film, the pro will do it right. I know I would not want to scan the photo. It takes a special high resolution scanner to scan the negative. Scanning the print will not make as good a picture.

;-D They can make it look as good as possible. They call also crop it and size it to show just the right area which will be best for a Christmas card. If you are not an expert at this, and it is important, then get the pro to do it right.

Answer 4

I lighten pictures all of the time using computer software. If it's a regular photograph, I scan it into my computer and use the software to brighten it. I do this many times for pictures on the internet that I come across in order to see the details, like pictures of clothing that I can't tell the true detail of. I don't know if they used a cheap disposable camera to take the photos or just didn't take the time to format the picture correctly before posting it. Scanners, digital cameras and other devices often come bundled with this software. The one I have used for years is Microsoft Picture IT. It was bundled software that came with my computer from Dell.

Answer 5

It is possible to lighten a picture that is underexposed, but you will end up with a washed out picture, the black being replaced by gray. In photography, you can doctor a picture to a degree, but you can't add detail that isn't there.

I recommend that you buy a small digital camera. They have become very inexpensive, and they set the exposure for you. All you have to worry about is back light (when your subject is standing in from of an illuminated background. This will cause your subject to photograph too dark. The opposite is taking a flash picture at night with nothing in the background to reflect light. Your subject will be washed out from too much light. Most of these cameras have controls to overcome these problems.

Answer 6

Yes but it will take some work.
1. Do you only have the print? Thats not good enough and the quality will be very poor.
2. If you still have the film you have a good chance of digitally mastering the lighting flaw.

Now find a place that will scan film, give the film to them and tell them what you want. The whole process will be easy for the photo editing software they generally have in use.

Answer 7

Yes, when they are actually making the photo, they can just expose the negative to light a little longer than usual, though in some rare instances in may look a little washed out. The reason that one picture came out not looking it's best is because photo developing places give all of your pics the same light exposure time. If they customized the light exposure time for just one photo, it should come out OK. Hope this helps!

Answer 8

Yes it can be lightened to an extent.....remember that a NEGATIVE is the opposite of the picture you took.....

That means your Dark picture is pretty clear and to get a lighter picture will require various exposure times to get a picture out of it.....

So a professional photographer or a professional processing center can CUSTOM-expose that negative for a reasonable fee....

In Fort Wayne, it's Stellhorn Photo....in your neck of the woods, look for a Photo company that has been around for 20 years....you're kinda looking for a "family-owned" business that is pretty large....they'll have custom-photo equipment....

Can't find one? Call a photographer nearby and ask them if they know a good one....

BTW.....a good Digital Camera only costs $150 to $200....AND with software....you can lighten anything...I had a Boston lighthouse in a perfectly black picture....I lightened it myself and it looks......well the lighthouse was there and fully viewable, but lightening it also makes it kinda foggy looking....you lose contrast.

Don't expect a NON-Foggy looking picture....

Answer 9

Since you shot the photo with a disposable camera, you have a negative. You'll need someone to scan the negative to make it into a digital photo. Many ordinary flatbed scanners have the ability when equipped with a slide & negative light source, but they typically provide only a mediocre result. You need to get it done by someone with a scanner designed specifically for this task to get the results that you'll need for a Christmas card. Then the digital version of the photo can then be edited with PhotoShop or similar program, and perhaps you'll get satisfactory results.

Good Luck!

Answer 10

With all these people out there saying Photoshop, I'm gonna say GIMP. it Stands for THE GNU Image Manipulation Program. It's free at gimp.org.

That said, if you have the film, it's much better to get the film printed If you want quality. Go to a camera shop, not a 1 hour photo. It makes a huge difference in quality.

Answer 11

Yes it can, you can scan it to your computer if you have a scanner, then through any photo program, lighten it and fix colors. You can also buy photo paper and print your own fixed version of it too and actually make your own cards. My printer isn't very good for printing them but I can certainly lighten pictures if you want to try it, send it to me, (have someone scan it and email it) and I'll see what I can do, I have 4 picture programs on my computer. If I can't lighten it, then you'd have to take to a photo shop. Some of the drug stores like Walgreens have a machine sort of like a copier that you can use to print a sheet right then and they have alot of tools on the machines to fix with, the tech could help you.