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Old January 21st 10, 09:20 PM posted to rec.photo.digital.point+shoot,rec.photo.equipment.misc,rec.photo.digital,sci.electronics.repair
Whiskers
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Posts: 188
Default Olympus camera overexposes

On 2010-01-21, DaveC wrote:
Olympus FE-20
- - -
Are the pictures pale-looking even when you upload them to a computer?

Has the camera previously produced acceptable pictures?

Is the battery OK?

Could be a fault in the exposure meter or in the 'firmware'.


Wouldn't these faults be evident in the "viewfinder" mode (before taking the
exposure)?


Not necessarily. In 'viewfinder' mode one set of 'firmware' routines
operates to put an image on the screen; in 'picture taking mode' a
different set of routines determines the 'exposure' settings and then
encodes the image for 'saving' to memory, probably doing some 'processing'
and then compressing the data to a JPEG file, for point-and-shoot cameras.
Then yet another set of routines comes into play when you look at the
saved image.

Any of those firmware routines can become corrupted, for example by
physical damage to the camera or exposure to electro-magnetic radiation
that's powerful enough to scramble the bits and bytes stored in the
micro-chips.

When I aim the camera at light and dark subjects the camera
compensates by "irising" up and down to give what looks to be a
properly-exposed "preview" display. Only when the image is captured is it
overexposed.


OK, so the firmware that processes compresses and saves the image, may
be faulty; or the firmware that calculates the exposure; or the hardware
exposure meter (if there is one, as such).

Images downloaded and viewed on the computer are overexposed, identical to
when viewed on the camera's display.

This is a new-to-me camera (used) so I don't know the history.

Battery icon is green (fully charged).

It doesn't matter whether flash is on or off.

Ideas?


You've got a duff one. A camera shop may be willing to 'look at it', but
don't hold your breath.

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