"white pictures" in Nikon 3000 I NEED HELP!

<p>Hi! I hope you experts could help me. I got a Nikon 3000 for Christmas, I don't know to much of photography, so I need your help. When I took pictures outside, I got them all burnned...I tried different settings, even using the camera in automatic...the pictures are "white"...I'm really frustrated...I tried also in manual trying to adjust the settings increasing the speed or closing the lent....but nothing is working. I think that I have to modify something in the settings that I don't know...Is not strange to get "white" pictures in AUTO?...PLEASE EXPERTS, HELP!!</p>

<p>Yes is it strange. However, did you play around with your settings when you first got the camera. It can be easy to accidentally change some controls and not remember what you did.</p>

<p>First, (I don't have a Nikon, so I can't help you here, but consult your instruction manual) reset the camera to its default settings. This will reverse any settings you might have done. Then take a photo. Let us know what happens.</p>

 

<p>Hello,<br>

There are two immediate possibilities. One is somehow you have set a +2 or 3 exposure compensation (don't know what the max is on the Nikon 3000). Second - if the above advise from John regarding reseting the factory setting doesn't help - check your lens. See if the aperture is actually closing when you press the shutter down (and the aperture is set to something small like f16). I had a diaphragm in a lens stuck once that gave me similar results.</p>

<p>are you using manual shutter speed?</p>

Do they also look "burned" when you use it indoors?

<p>Thank you all for your responses!!!!! This oly happends outdoors. I'm lucky that I can at least take nice indoor pictures!! lol. I'll try all of your advises asap and I'll let you know. If them work...you'll make my day!</p>

<p>I would like to hear from D3000 users who are experiencing <strong><em>good</em></strong> exposures outdoors in bright sunlight. Like you, Barbara, my D3000 images are way overexposed. I sent it to Nikon Service along with a CD full of overexposed images, and it came back marked, "Within Nikon standards." Huh?</p>

<p>It's not like I'm inexperienced. I've worked with many Nikons D40 through D200, and this D3000 is the only one that behaves this way. So, if you have a D3000 and are getting good outdoor exposures in aperture preferred mode, please let us hear from you.</p>

<p>See related thread at <a href="http://www.photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00VmKC">http://www.photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00VmKC</a>.</p>

<p>Will</p>

<p>so, it's better to return the camera and get another one?...now I'm more frustrated!! ( I'm reading the manual guys...)</p>

<p>So, I did what you advise me...I still have problems outdoors...</p>

<p>What lens are you using? If the lens has a separate aperture ring, make sure it's locked in at the minimum aperture (highest number, usually f22). If you're using a G series lens, it doesn't have an aperture ring so this wouldn't help. If you have a different lens, try it and see if you get the same results. I have one lens that always over exposes by about .3 to .5 stops. If you can't try a different lens, try using exposure compensation at +1 or +2 and see if you get better images.</p>

<p>Could you also upload a sample "burned" outdoor pic here?</p>

<p>Here I'm sending some examples so ,..you will see<br>

Thank you all for your advises!! I'm afraid nobody answer to Will...Is somebody having success outdoor with my camera??</p>

<p>That does look over exposed for sure, by at least 1 stop. Maybe it's the snow. Try dialing in some exposure compensation and experiment with it till you get satisfactory results.</p>

<p>Barbara, the EXIF data for your photos shows something unusual is happening, but not why.</p>

<p>In the first photo (3/8/10, 4:28 pm), the following data appears:<br>

ISO 100<br>

Shutter speed 1/125th second<br>

Aperture f/8<br>

Assuming the time is correct (mid-day), the ambient light was probably around EV 15, give or take, so the appropriate exposure would have been around 1/500th sec at f/8. I'm not seeing anything else unusual in the EXIF data - no exposure compensation, spot metering or other custom setting that might have fooled the camera.</p>

<p>The second photo (3/8/10, 8:11 pm), is equally puzzling: ISO 200, 1/80th second at f/8. The time indicates it was taken very early morning, which may explain why it's not even more overexposed than it already is. The exposure probably should have been closer to 1/125th-1/250th second at f/8 for ISO 200.</p>

<p>With both the camera seems to be using mostly auto modes, which are usually reliable with most cameras I've tried. If anything, there's a tendency for snow scenes to fool auto modes into slight underexposure.</p>

<p>Very puzzling. If possible, try to get an experienced photographer or a knowledgeable employee at a local camera shop to take several photos using auto-everything mode: auto-exposure, matrix metering, auto-focus, auto-white balance, etc. The exposures should generally be acceptable and in most cases not so badly overexposed or underexposed.</p>

<p>That is weird. By all rights, that second shot, of all snow, SHOULD have fooled the camera into under exposing the shot and making the snow all gray. Unless there is a "Snow" settings and it's stuck there, I am rather perplexed.</p>

 

Lex, that is exactly the kind of stuff my D3000 is doing. Very puzzling is an understatement. The most puzzling and aggravating thing is that Nikon Service says my camera's meter is "within Nikon standards." It just sits in my bag as a backup now until I figure out how to fix this thing. Still waiting to hear from someone here who is getting good exposures with D3000.

<p>I have a D3000, and it works just fine, snow or otherwise on auto shooting. But I shoot mostly manual for total control.</p>

could you please post some nice outdoor pictures?...At this time, I'm really frustrated...

<p>If I were to take a wild guess.....</p>

<p>... I'd say you may have accidentally moved the metering dial to select spot metering, and are therefore overexposing most of your shots. The indoor ones are coming out okay because the light levels are much lower.</p>

Based on my experience and testing, Neil, I doubt that's her problem. I tested mine in both matrix and center-weighted metering, and the exposures are all over the map. Thanks, John -- wanna trade? (just kidding) Whatever the problem Barbara and I are experiencing, it seems to also afflict some D90s. See the other thread referenced above. Now that Nikon Service has told me that my ineffective, erratic meter is "within Nikon standards," I feel like I've bought a lemon and Nikon says, "too bad."

Deleted dual post. Sorry.

<p>Hi Guys!! I'm happy!! Who said about changing the "Exposure compensation"? I did it, and see the results!! One was taken in Auto and the other in P ,changing the Exp Comp to +5...What do you think?</p>

<p>Here is the better one...</p>

<p>Ah, looking at the EXIF - it's -5 EV you dialed in which makes sense to the improvement. They question is why do you need to do that. Very strange behavior indeed.</p>

<p>Yes a negative compensation would correct an overexposure, not positive like in my previous post (guess I got in a hurry there). This definitely indicates some sort of problem. However, it might not be a problem with the camera, but might be in the lens. Try taking the lens off of the camera, find the little tab that moves the aperture and move it with you finger while looking through the lens. Check to see if the aperture blades move smoothly and stop all the way down (it should close down to a pretty small circle of a few millimeters, but not completely closed). If there are any hitches in the movement of the blades this could indicate a problem with the lens aperture.</p>