LCD vs Monitor Color/Exposure Difference

fujitasenpai

New member
​Hi, I'm still quite new at digital photography but now a proud owner of a Nikon D600. I was experimenting with it the other day and found a discrepancy between what I saw on the LCD and what I got after downloading the NEF to Adobe Camera Raw.

On the LCD, the exposure looks correct and the color is vibrant but as soon as I transfer the photos to my mac, everything looks really dull and most of the time, underexposed.

I've read before that any modifications to the picture control will only be shown on the LCD (a jpg?) and for RAW users this won't matter. I accepted that and that's why I totally ignore picture control and set it to standard.

I've tried changing the color space to AdobeRGB (I use this color space for my adobe workflow) and no change.

This is a little frustrating for me. Is this normal, or is there some kind of setting I'm missing?

Any input will be greatly appreciated. Cheers! :D
 

nikonpup

Senior Member
this is normal using raw files. Explaniations are on the web. If you where shooting jpeg they should be about the same. :) then the fight started jpeg or raw. Lol when you convert the files in post processing your files will be "normal"
 

fujitasenpai

New member
Thanks for the input Nikonpup.

I shoot raw for the flexibility it offers.
I guess I just have to accept the fact that even if my photo looks great on the LCD, I'd still have to add about +0.60 to +1.00 exposure to it in ACR to get the right exposure.
 

crycocyon

Senior Member
Is your LCD display set to "auto"? That could be the problem. If you shoot in dimmer light the display will be brighter. But that can mislead you into thinking the image is brighter.
 

fotojack

Senior Member
What you see on your camera's LCD screen is an "indication" of what the photo will look like. It's not an actual representation of the final output you'll see on your monitor. Remember...you're going from a 3" screen to whatever size your computer monitor is. Big difference. Also, try using sRGB. I'm thinking you'll see a difference, too.
 

fujitasenpai

New member
Crycocyon, nope, it's set to 0 and I adjust depending on situation.

Fotojack, thanks for the input. Yes, going from 3" LCD to 27" iMac screen is definitely a big jump. I was just surprised that the difference is so big. Had I increased the exposure by 1-stop, it'll look blown over on the LCD.

I just read about using histogram as a better way to judge the shot instead of relying on the LCD. I guess I'll need to get into a habit of doing that from now on.
 

Dave_W

The Dude
Also keep in mind that the camera itself is processing the image from RAW and applying presets to it including sharpening and contrast before it arrives on your LCD screen whereas the image you see on your computer screen has not been processed yet.
 

Geoffc

Senior Member
Here's how it works. When you shoot raw, a jpg is also taken and embedded in the raw file. That's how the LCD on the camera or devices like iPads display the proprietary raw files. Picture controls are applied to the embedded jpg just like when you shoot jpg only. A raw file opened in Lightroom etc does not have all the enhanced contrast, saturation, sharpening etc applied, hence it looks more flat. When you shoot raw you either tweak to your taste each time you process or apply some presets.

I only keep 5-10% of my shots so I tweak each one typically. If I was shooting weddings I would probably use presets.
 
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