Front-lit and back-lit scenes (extremes of contrast)

When the subject is shot against the light, the resulting high-contrast details tend to be under-exposed

The AE (automatic exposure) program is suited for shooting subjects that are frontally illuminated, so shooting such subjects is relatively problem-free. But there are problems when subjects are lit from behind. If the lens is receiving strong illumination directly from the sun or an artificial light, this will dominate the exposure and the subject itself will be underexposed. You can compensate for this when shooting close subjects by illuminating them with the built-in flash, but this technique will not work with scenery. Although it depends somewhat on how you point your camera, generally the CCDs used in digital cameras have less ability to capture subtle shades, so images end up underexposed or overexposed. Your best course of action is to simply avoid shooting scenes that have extremes of contrast.

Well-balanced photo, lit from the front

Compare:Understanding Printers/The contrast is too high

Compare:Understanding Digital Cameras/Adding light to back-lit subjects