5DMk3 RAW Images Underexposed in Aperture

[bison]

I've just started shooting with a 5DMk3. On the camera, the images appear exposed properly.

When I import them into Aperture, they first appear to be exposed correctly (presumably from an embedded preview image):


But once Aperture has processed them, they update to 1-2 stops underexposed:


I have been shooting on a 5DMk2 and importing into Aperture for years and have never seen this behavior.
I'm curious if anyone else has seen this?
I'm hoping this is something I can "unset" either in Aperture or on the camera.

Thanks for your help,
Bison

P.S. Apologies for the poor quality screen caps.

[pwp]

Do you have display brightness up high on the 5D3? This could lead to a false exposure assessment. Did you have display brightness set way down low on your 5D2? What you were accustomed to evaluating on your 5D2 display may not translate to the 5D3. Shoot the same scene with both cameras, with the same lens at the same exposure & iso and see if the image displays differently on the camera display.

Also, this may be a good time to learn to read your histograms...

PW

[UngerPhotography]

I do not have a III or Aperture, but have you tried any other software? Possibly DPP that came with the camera or you could try a trial for LR or PS and see if it is doing the same thing elsewhere.

One thought is that in the in-camera settings (picture style) have the brightness too high. This would result in the jpeg preview appearing fine on the back of your camera, as well as the pre-processed preview you see in LR.

Do you have display brightness up high on the 5D3? This could lead to a false exposure assessment.

This would not result in the software showing a brighter image before it shows the actual image. It would be a picture style setting. But I do fully agree about using histograms. Though aren't histograms based of the jpeg preview as well?

One method I sometimes use to get a better idea of seeing how the RAW may look on the back of the camera is to make a custom Picture style with contrast and sharpness all the way down and leaving everything else at default. I don't do this much anymore as I now either have it set to monochrome as I do all my personal photos in B&W and like to see it in B&W on the back of the camera (shoot RAW so color info is still there) or when I shoot sports, I have it set to Landscape to get an idea of what my processed version might look like.

[bison]

Thanks for the quick feedback.  A friend reminded me that Tilt/Shift lenses can wreak havoc with metering. Most of the pictures I have taken on the 5DMk3 have been with a brand new T/S lens. I'm not sure I understand why the Camera and pre-RAW-processing previews would appear to be better-exposed though.

I owe you all some more debugging—isolating lens/body/software, checking if the histogram changes from camera to Aperture—before you spend more time guessing at this.

Apologies for posting prematurely.

Bison

[UngerPhotography]

I'm not sure I understand why the Camera and pre-RAW-processing previews would appear to be better-exposed though.

Noit 100% sure, but it could be the picture style settings in camera. I'll pull out my cameras tomorrow, as I can't remember if there is a brightness setting in them, but contrast i know is and can affect the exposure as well. Try different picture styles, or even make your own, and see what works best.

[neuroanatomist]

A friend reminded me that Tilt/Shift lenses can wreak havoc with metering. Most of the pictures I have taken on the 5DMk3 have been with a brand new T/S lens.

True - best to use Live View with TS-E lenses - makes focusing easier, and metering is correct (else, you have to meter with the movements at neutral, set the exposure in manual, then tilt/shift).

Might also check the default import settings in Aperture.

[awinphoto]

Do you have exposure compensation on accidentally?  Looks like what it is to me.  Unless you set the min shutter too fast and ISO range too low for the conditions... 

[bison]

I'm happy to confirm I'm not crazy—or the only person with this problem.

The problem seems to be a bad fit between Aperture and the 5DMk3's Highlight Tone Priority setting, as detailed here:
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3982858?start=0&tstart=0

Once I disabled this feature, my RAW files rendered correctly in Aperture.

Thanks for your help.

[bdunbar79]

I actually never look at the histogram.