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SL3/Q3 exposure preview glitch


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Posted (edited)

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Has anyone ever figured out a work around on the Q2, Q3, and any of the SL bodies for this issue (see videos attached) I’ve been told the SL3 does this as well  
 

On Manual Exposure - PASM - Manual ISO - In AF-S (Field) when back lit the camera will gain down to grab focus. In AF-C while tracking it will stay gained down while half pressed. This will also do the opposite when in you want to intentionally under exposure an image, it will flash brighter. This is very distracting and at times impossible to see my subjects face while shooting. I’ve tired it with all the metering modes too, spot is better but not always.  

I’m a commercial advertising photographer and have been shooting for 20 plus years. Used Canon, Nikon, Sony and Fuji. None of the other mirrorless camera systems do this (except Panasonic which I assume Leica is getting the tech from)

I’m also an M11 user and would love to invest in the SL system but I can not shoot with this exposure preview issue especially as I shoot AF-C tracking and backlit a lot.

I’ve read a few other posts that are similar but it was from awhile back and no one could answer it. 

From my other Leica friends they either shoot AF-S and it really doesn’t bother them much but now that AF-C is actually useable I’m hoping there’s a fix  

videos here: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/6l6t43rkynvz3hrj2tqu0/h?rlkey=s4xi1vsl1mlbc6x4843vq5fn0&dl=0

Edited by Steve Babuljak
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What do you mean by gain down? Many manufacturers occasionally brighten the EVF/LCD to acquire focus if the subject under the focus point is too dark.

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2 hours ago, Photoworks said:

I don't see it happening on the SL3. but you are using a q3, which is a special camera due to the central shutter in the lens.

I’ve experienced the same thing on an SL2 and friends have said the SL3 behaves the same. If you have a SL3 I’d love to know. I’ve  preordered one. Please try putting a subject in front of a window in all manual exposure and try it. I really hope it doesn’t happen!

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9 hours ago, SrMi said:

What do you mean by gain down? Many manufacturers occasionally brighten the EVF/LCD to acquire focus if the subject under the focus point is too dark.

If you look at the videos, you’ll see that the preview will get darker. Incidentally, if you use auto ISO, aperture priority, or shutter priority this doesn’t happen. It only happens in manual settings. None of the other mirrorless camera systems I’ve ever used need to do this.

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1 hour ago, Steve Babuljak said:

If you look at the videos, you’ll see that the preview will get darker. Incidentally, if you use auto ISO, aperture priority, or shutter priority this doesn’t happen. It only happens in manual settings. None of the other mirrorless camera systems I’ve ever used need to do this.

that is doing it on SL3 with ISO in M

I would think it is the Focusing contrast option

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3 hours ago, Steve Babuljak said:

PAS will darken the screen as well and then of course you don’t get any preview of your exposure as well.

The screen will actually brighten since the autofocus system needs a reasonably bright image in order to focus.  In my studio I have to turn off image preview since my shutter and aperture settings produce an EVF image too dark to compose.  Outside the studio if I am trying to underexpose and have exposure preview active, I get a brief flash in the EVF when the shutter releases due to the camera shifting out of exposure preview while autofocusing.

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1 hour ago, Luke_Miller said:

The screen will actually brighten since the autofocus system needs a reasonably bright image in order to focus.  In my studio I have to turn off image preview since my shutter and aperture settings produce an EVF image too dark to compose.  Outside the studio if I am trying to underexpose and have exposure preview active, I get a brief flash in the EVF when the shutter releases due to the camera shifting out of exposure preview while autofocusing.

I was thinking of when in a back lit situation. I shoot on location so PAS wont really work for me. And when in AF-C and tracking it will stay in the underexposed or underexposed preview until release which makes seeing the subjects face very hard and not helpful at all.

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Posted (edited)
40 minutes ago, Steve Babuljak said:

I was thinking of when in a back lit situation. I shoot on location so PAS wont really work for me. And when in AF-C and tracking it will stay in the underexposed or underexposed preview until release which makes seeing the subjects face very hard and not helpful at all.

Just played around with my SL2 and a back lit subject. PASM & PAS showed pretty much the same.  If I wanted to see the subject clearly, I had to go to spot metering and spot AF.

 

Alternatively, I could dial in about a stop of positive exposure compensation.

Edited by Luke_Miller
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24 minutes ago, Luke_Miller said:

Just played around with my SL2 and a back lit subject. PASM & PAS showed pretty much the same.  If I wanted to see the subject clearly, I had to go to spot metering and spot AF.

 

Alternatively, I could dial in about a stop of positive exposure compensation.

Yeah I find that spot metering helps but it doesn't always. Just frustrating to me that a pro level camera operates this way. The other major brands don't do this. Exposure preview should be just that, it shows you what your current settings should do. 

Even in flat lighting conditions if your meter is not reading exact at 0 on the scale the camera will preview either a darker or lighter image once you half press or use AF-C tracking. Its very distracting to me. It's like it is trying to tell me what my exposure should be, but that should not happen in a manual mode. Its feels like a prosumer feature.

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I just watched the videos in the original post and here is what I believe is happening. The manual exposure of the dog is about 1 and a third stop above zero on the meter and the Exposure Preview on the LCD shows the image as somewhat overexposed. When autofocus is initiated in AFS or tracking starts in AFC the image darkens. I think this is because the camera wants more contrast in the subject in order to focus as so turns off Exposure Preview and reduces exposure during autofocus operations.  If you reduced aperture 1 and a third stops below zero on the meter you would see an underexposed image on the LCD which would then brighten during autofocus operations.  Since autofocus is done on the image sensor sufficient contrast is needed for accurate focus and while Exposure Preview will "honor" under or overexposure settings, and those settings will reflect in the image captured, autofocus will do its own thing in order to achieve correct focus. 

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44 minutes ago, Luke_Miller said:

I just watched the videos in the original post and here is what I believe is happening. The manual exposure of the dog is about 1 and a third stop above zero on the meter and the Exposure Preview on the LCD shows the image as somewhat overexposed. When autofocus is initiated in AFS or tracking starts in AFC the image darkens. I think this is because the camera wants more contrast in the subject in order to focus as so turns off Exposure Preview and reduces exposure during autofocus operations.  If you reduced aperture 1 and a third stops below zero on the meter you would see an underexposed image on the LCD which would then brighten during autofocus operations.  Since autofocus is done on the image sensor sufficient contrast is needed for accurate focus and while Exposure Preview will "honor" under or overexposure settings, and those settings will reflect in the image captured, autofocus will do its own thing in order to achieve correct focus. 

Hi Luke - thanks for thinking this though.

In your example even if I had the actual exposure adjusted 1 and 1/3 stops darker I would then have an under exposed subject. The example with my dog was just for reference but I’ve experienced similar things in brighter areas with lots of light to have the camera focus. 
 

Also in general even on an evenly lit environment if the meter is indicating anything that is not at zero the half press in the shutter will preview a compensated view brightening or darkening the screen. 
 

I’ve just never seen any pro camera do this and have been shooting mirrorless since the A7 was first released. 

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10 hours ago, Steve Babuljak said:

Also in general even on an evenly lit environment if the meter is indicating anything that is not at zero the half press in the shutter will preview a compensated view brightening or darkening the screen.

I think this is the reason why Exposure Preview can be disabled in Manual Mode.  I suspect when Exposure Preview is turned off the image seen in the EVF or LCD is optimal for the autofocus system and won't change during autofocus operation.

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5 hours ago, Luke_Miller said:

I think this is the reason why Exposure Preview can be disabled in Manual Mode.  I suspect when Exposure Preview is turned off the image seen in the EVF or LCD is optimal for the autofocus system and won't change during autofocus operation.

Unfortunately that would be challenging way to shoot, having to turn it on and off. And it still doesn't solve the issue as when back lit the screen would just adjust to compensate for the bright background and also darken the subjects face.

I really think it is just a design flaw. All the other major brands don't require this. It's a shame as the files are so beautiful and the rest of the camera is so enjoyable to work with. I was hoping with the new AF system it would handle this better.

I should also mention I work fast moving environments where the camera and subject are constantly moving with lighting that can also vary a lot.

 

 

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On 3/21/2024 at 12:48 PM, Steve Babuljak said:

Has anyone ever figured out a work around on the Q2, Q3, and any of the SL bodies for this issue (see videos attached) I’ve been told the SL3 does this as well  
 

On Manual Exposure - PASM - Manual ISO - In AF-S (Field) when back lit the camera will gain down to grab focus. In AF-C while tracking it will stay gained down while half pressed. This will also do the opposite when in you want to intentionally under exposure an image, it will flash brighter. This is very distracting and at times impossible to see my subjects face while shooting. I’ve tired it with all the metering modes too, spot is better but not always.  

I’m a commercial advertising photographer and have been shooting for 20 plus years. Used Canon, Nikon, Sony and Fuji. None of the other mirrorless camera systems do this (except Panasonic which I assume Leica is getting the tech from)

I’m also an M11 user and would love to invest in the SL system but I can not shoot with this exposure preview issue especially as I shoot AF-C tracking and backlit a lot.

I’ve read a few other posts that are similar but it was from awhile back and no one could answer it. 

From my other Leica friends they either shoot AF-S and it really doesn’t bother them much but now that AF-C is actually useable I’m hoping there’s a fix  

videos here: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/6l6t43rkynvz3hrj2tqu0/h?rlkey=s4xi1vsl1mlbc6x4843vq5fn0&dl=0

Turn off iDR in JPG setting menu may solve the problem.

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