Capturing the perfect photo isn’t always easy, and sometimes images turn out too bright (overexposed) or too dark (underexposed). Fortunately, you can fix exposure issues using simple editing techniques. Here’s a step-by-step guide to correcting overexposed and underexposed photos like a pro.
What Are Overexposed and Underexposed Photos?
- Overexposed Photo: Too much light, making the image too bright and washed out. Details in highlights (bright areas) may be lost.
- Underexposed Photo: Too little light, making the image too dark. Shadows may appear too deep, hiding important details.
How to Fix Overexposed Photos
🔹 1. Lower the Brightness & Exposure
- Reduce Exposure and Brightness in editing software (Lightroom, Photoshop, Snapseed).
- Adjust slowly to avoid making the image look unnatural.
🔹 2. Recover Highlight Details
- Reduce the Highlights slider to bring back lost details in bright areas.
- If details are completely blown out (pure white), they may not be recoverable.
🔹 3. Adjust Contrast and Shadows
- Lowering contrast helps balance light and dark areas.
- Increase Shadows slightly to bring back details in darker areas.
🔹 4. Use the Tone Curve Tool
- In Lightroom or Photoshop, adjust the Tone Curve by lowering highlights and balancing mid-tones.
- This helps to evenly distribute light across the image.
🔹 5. Apply Graduated or Radial Filters
- If only certain parts of the image are overexposed, use a Graduated Filter (sky, background) or Radial Filter (faces, subjects) to adjust exposure selectively.
How to Fix Underexposed Photos
🔹 1. Increase Exposure & Brightness
- Gently increase the Exposure slider to brighten the image.
- Be cautious—raising exposure too much can cause noise.
🔹 2. Recover Shadows
- Increase the Shadows slider to bring back details in dark areas without overexposing the entire image.
🔹 3. Adjust Blacks & Whites
- Increase Blacks slightly to add depth without losing contrast.
- Adjust Whites to prevent dull-looking bright areas.
🔹 4. Use the Tone Curve for Precision
- Brighten mid-tones using the Tone Curve, which helps lighten an image without affecting contrast.
🔹 5. Reduce Noise (If Needed)
- Underexposed photos often have noise when brightened. Use the Noise Reduction tool in Lightroom or Photoshop to smooth out grainy textures.
Pro Tip: Shoot in RAW Format
If possible, shoot in RAW instead of JPEG. RAW files retain more detail, making it easier to recover highlights and shadows during editing.
Final Thoughts
Fixing overexposed and underexposed photos is simple with the right adjustments. By balancing exposure, highlights, shadows, and contrast, you can restore details and create professional-looking images.
✅ Try these techniques on your photos and see the difference