Exposure (photography)

In photography, exposure is used to mean two things. Photograhic films or sensors have a certain senitivity. That means that a certain amount of light needs to be able to reach the film or sensor, before the image is correctly exposed. An exposure can also refer to a photo exposed that way.

Longer exposure times mean a lighter image.

Exposure (photography) Media

White chair: Deliberate use of overexposure for aesthetic purposes
Two similar images, one taken in auto mode (underexposed), the other with manual settings.
Buildings and trees photographed with an autoexposure time of 1/200 s
A street view of Taka-Töölö, Helsinki, Finland, during a very sunny winter day. The image has been deliberately overexposed by +1 EV to compensate for the bright sunlight and the exposure time calculated by the camera's program automatic metering is still 1/320 s.
A 1/30 s exposure showing motion blur on fountain at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
A 1/320 s exposure showing individual drops on fountain at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
A fair ride taken with a 1/3 s exposure
Example image exhibiting blown-out highlights. Top: original image, bottom: blown-out areas marked red

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