Digital Rebel XT underexposure

 > Quick report on my DR XT and underexposure, particularly when using flash.
 >
 > I'm still a newbie when it comes to metering amongst other things. It
seems
 > the DR XT is still up to a stop underexposed without flash, and much more
 > underexposed when using the built-in flash.
 >
 > I took some shots last night while cooking and with no exposure or flash
 > exposure compensation the photos looked dark and there were no bits in
more
 > than the right third of the histogram. Bumping up FEC by a full stop
moved
 > the histogram to the right considerably but the photos were still
 > underexposed.
 >
 > What's the best set of shots to determine how far off the flash metering
is?
 > I was in the kitchen with a few 100 watt bulbs and a lot of white paint.
 > But then I tested on a bookshelf with mostly dark books in a dim dining
room
 > with the same results.
 >
 > Is anybody else seeing this with their XTs?

I'm certainly not - it's VERY rare for me to get an over- or under-exposed
image with my D350 - unless it's my fault.

In fact, it even makes it harder for me to make a mistake. For indoor
shots, I find myself getting lazy and doing things like setting it to
"manual", and choosing a shutter/aperture value that would normally be very
underexposed, and letting my Sigma flash take care of the rest - as the TTL
metering shuts it off when it finds there's been enough light, exposure is
*remarkably* good that way.

.. With my first D300, I had severe underexposures with the external flash,
but not with on-board flash. I tried various flashes from Sigma and Canon,
all with the same results. However, the flashes worked fine on other
D300's. I sent it back, and waited and bought the D350, which works
wonderfully. However, because that D300 underexposed consistently where
others would not, I strongly suspect that it was defective, and although I'm
not going to jump to that conclusion right away with yours, keep it in mind
as a possibility.

steve<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Digital Rebel XT underexposure 

I am having the same problem shooting yesterday. But I guess I
underestimated the lighting requirement (it is a windy, foggy at 5-6 PM in
NYC), and had gone ahead to use ISO 100 instead of 400.

Anyway, coming from a Digital P&S background(exclusively use of Spot
metering), I am struggling with the XT metering esp with bright background
and dark subject. Can anyone give some tips on how to use the metering on
the XT?

Thanks
CJ
G.T. wrote:

 > Quick report on my DR XT and underexposure, particularly when using flash.
 >
 > I'm still a newbie when it comes to metering amongst other things. It
 > seems the DR XT is still up to a stop underexposed without flash, and much
 > more underexposed when using the built-in flash.
 >
 > I took some shots last night while cooking and with no exposure or flash
 > exposure compensation the photos looked dark and there were no bits in
 > more
 > than the right third of the histogram. Bumping up FEC by a full stop
 > moved the histogram to the right considerably but the photos were still
 > underexposed.
 >
 > What's the best set of shots to determine how far off the flash metering
 > is? I was in the kitchen with a few 100 watt bulbs and a lot of white
 > paint. But then I tested on a bookshelf with mostly dark books in a dim
 > dining room with the same results.
 >
 > Is anybody else seeing this with their XTs?
 >
 > Thanks,
 > Greg<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Digital Rebel XT underexposure 

GT,
I am having the exact same problems. I even purchased the 580 flash to
see if it would help, and it did not. Pushing the flash up one stop
helped, but obviously not the non-flash pictures. I reciently went on
a trip to New York and took over 450 pictures for a school. I'd say 60
- 70% of the pictures were underexposed.
There is brighness/contrast settings in the Parameters sections that I
have found that are already turned up to 3/4 of the way. I had one
friend tell me that could account for the histogram offset.

Please let me know if you hear from anyone else.
 >> Stay informed about: Digital Rebel XT underexposure