How to under-expose a photo....?

Question

Can anyone explain to me how I would under-expose a photo? If I set the aperture to 5.6, and I want to underexpose the photo, would I do this by adjusting the shutter speed? I have a Canon Rebel X camera, and inside the viewfinder it tells me by + - when I have the correct settings, but sometimes my photo will still appear washed out, so I thought if I under exposed it, it would make the photo less washed out looking. Any suggestion?

Answer 1

Two easy ways:

a/ Set a higher speed so the camera' s sensor is unable to receive as much light as it should

b/ Place a gray /density uniform/ filter or a double set of polarizer filters and close the light input to the camera without altering the aperture/speed settings....

As a simple explanation, if your images come out too white, you are overexposing, so underexposing would mean too darky. Both result in less detail....

Have fun

Answer 2

By far the easiest way is to set the exposure compensation to a minus number.

If you're using film, you can rate the speed higher than the ISO. For instance, if you're using 200, set the ISO to 400, that is one stop under. Underexposure on film is not usually a good thing, though. In fact, on film, I usually set the ISO to about a third stop over. (Rate 200 at 160, or 100 at 80.)

Some digital users routinely under-expose by a little to avoid blowing the highlights. Underexposure is easier to lift digitally than blown highlights, for which there is no cure.

You may also use the aperture and shutter speed to achieve underexposure by adjusting either or both.