I enjoy taking screenshots, but I'm increasingly frustrated by the exterior lighting model in MSFS 2024. Basically, scene lighting changes a lot when zooming in, playing havoc with terrain lighting and often making the whole image washed out.

I can understand this "Eye adaptation" effect working inside the cockpit - mimicking what our eyes would do naturally and making dark cockpit panels more readable - but to have this effect applied to exterior views seems like overkill. I appreciate our eyes adapt to/compensate for scenery lighting in RL, but mainly in *tone* (light/dark) and not in saturation.

Can this effect be disabled in 2024? We used to have a UseCfg.Opt setting in 2020, but not in 2024.

The original screenshot:

The comparison when zoomed in:

The effect increases with zoom level - and can be totally washed out at extreme levels.

 

There's an option in su2 beta - something like Exposure Ev change.

4 minutes ago, ryanbatc said:

There's an option in su2 beta - something like Exposure Ev change.

Good news! I'm not on Beta, so can't test. Does it work?

1 hour ago, Adamski_NZ said:

Good news! I'm not on Beta, so can't test. Does it work?

It works but it's not dynamic - for now you'd have to go in and change it to what you want.

Id add that those screenies illustrate well the comparative graininess of 2024 graphics over 2020.

I'm surprised that it gets no mention in Forums

2 hours ago, Rusty Spanner said:

I'd add that those screenies illustrate well the comparative graininess of 2024 graphics over 2020.

Not fair, I think - as the upper pic of the two is a straightforward [Photoshop] zoom & crop: a tiny part of the original/main image. I had to do it that way to avoid eye-adaptation kicking in. The lower image, bleached out as it is, is much clearer.

*However* I do agree up to a point. I still have 2020 on my system but haven't run it since installing 2024 (I don't want to risk it messing up 2024 in any way). I recently posted a few pics of the Tornado in MSFS 2024 (see https://www.nzff.org/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=32759) and was shocked (but not entirely surprised) to find that an old buddy of mine has posted much clearer, brighter pictures using 2020 with [get this] my old system (!!). See his here: https://www.nzff.org/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=32765

For all its new-ish eye candy, I do think something has gone awry with 2024 - not helped, IMHO, with all these lighting cock-ups. Let's face it, 2024 cockpit lighting *also* has problems.

Yeah whilst the Exposure Slider in SU2 Beta is a welcome addition it controls the overall exposure not the eye-adaption, so if you lower the slider it's like putting sunglasses on for example. But when you look down to the instruments then back up to windows the exposure is all over the place and slow to change. This may be OK for monitor flying once you get used too it, but for VR it's horrible, we simply need an eye-adaptation exposure setting to turn Off as our eyes in VR do all that for us, we don't need it to be software controlled at all. So a move in the right direction, but Asobo still have work to do in this area.

If this bothers you, please upvote these threads: 

https://forums.flightsimulator.com/t/higher-exposure-in-cloudy-conditions-is-good-but-a-tad-overdone/700450

https://forums.flightsimulator.com/t/latest-su2-beta-exposure-slider-does-not-address-the-issue-with-the-overdone-auto-exposure/713999

1 hour ago, MarcG said:

This may be OK for monitor flying once you get used too it

It is not, believe me. It is totally overdone and the decision to remove those line controlling it out of the usercfg.opt is another of those design desicion I guess not even Asobo itself knows why they did it. 

2 hours ago, Adamski_NZ said:

Not fair, I think - as the upper pic of the two is a straightforward [Photoshop] zoom & crop: a tiny part of the original/main image. I had to do it that way to avoid eye-adaptation kicking in. The lower image, bleached out as it is, is much clearer.

*However* I do agree up to a point. I still have 2020 on my system but haven't run it since installing 2024 (I don't want to risk it messing up 2024 in any way). I recently posted a few pics of the Tornado in MSFS 2024 (see https://www.nzff.org/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=32759) and was shocked (but not entirely surprised) to find that an old buddy of mine has posted much clearer, brighter pictures using 2020 with [get this] my old system (!!). See his here: https://www.nzff.org/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=32765

For all its new-ish eye candy, I do think something has gone awry with 2024 - not helped, IMHO, with all these lighting cock-ups. Let's face it, 2024 cockpit lighting *also* has problems.

2020 won't mess up 2024 or vice versa. I run them alternately all the time. And IMHO, 2020 graphics have improved greatly since the release of 2024, to the point where I'm beginning to believe they are secretly updating 2020 without telling anyone.

5 hours ago, Rusty Spanner said:

Id add that those screenies illustrate well the comparative graininess of 2024 graphics over 2020.

I'm surprised that it gets no mention in Forums

Because it isn't a thing.

6 hours ago, Adamski_NZ said:

Let's face it, 2024 cockpit lighting *also* has problems.

I searched far and wide a few years ago to find a solution to cockpit lighting in 2020 and finally got on to the GFE Details filter which has its own set of sliders within it.  It quite selectively brightens cockpit lighting with minimal and subtle but positive effects on external views, tending to add a little more definition to cloud structures.   In 2024 I have to turn its Sharpening slider down to around 35% to avoid seeing the voxel grid that 2024 clouds are built with.  When the NV app debuted I was so bummed because one could not use GFE filters and use NV DLSS Frame Generation simultaneously and I do not like 2020 nor 2024 w/o the Details filter active.  Fortunately one can install an older NV driver that give GFE install as an option, then going forward when one wishes to update the NV driver they can simply deselect Install NVidia App and so retain GFE filters functionality.

4 hours ago, SierraHotel BSc said:

2020 won't mess up 2024 or vice versa. I run them alternately all the time. And IMHO, 2020 graphics have improved greatly since the release of 2024, to the point where I'm beginning to believe they are secretly updating 2020 without telling anyone.

I have seen a little bit of this myself but wasn't sure, including lighting changes.

3 hours ago, Noel said:

Fortunately one can install an older NV driver that give GFE install as an option, then going forward when one wishes to update the NV driver they can simply deselect Install NVidia App and so retain GFE filters functionality.

Interesting!! I've steered clear of GFE for ages because of all the bloatware. So ... how do the filters [still] work once GFE is removed (genuine question)?

I've since created a separate Reshade profile that I activate when zoomed in (and paused) for screenshots. Not ideal, but at least I can get decent pics.

20 hours ago, ryanbatc said:

There's an option in su2 beta - something like Exposure Ev change.

Unfortunately, the slider does not effect auto exposure.  Most of us I think would prefer the ability to disable auto exposure completely - especially those of us in VR (where it is NEVER wanted or needed).  Asobo's implementation of auto-exposure is terrible and they don't seem to understand the problem (as evidenced by the almost useless slider in the current SU2 beta).