There’s nothing as disappointing for an Instax user as waiting for a photo to develop, only to discover that it has turned out completely white.
When this happens, it almost always means that the image has been overexposed.
Overexposure is caused when the film is exposed to too much light. Likewise, underexposure (excessively dark images) occurs when not enough light falls on the film.
If you are reading this article, you are probably wondering why some of your Instax Mini 9 images have turned out overexposed. Well, below we (hopefully) have the answer!
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The wrong setting was chosen
On the Instax Mini 9, you can choose between five different brightness settings on the lens adjustment dial: Very Sunny, Sunny, Cloudy, Indoors and High Key.
Each brightness setting corresponds to an aperture value – the higher the value, the smaller the aperture, and the less light hits the film.
- Very Sunny: f/32 (smallest aperture; very little light allowed in)
- Sunny: f/22
- Cloudy: f/16
- Indoors: f/12.7 (largest aperture; lots of light allowed in)
- High Key: Allows you to take brighter images with a softer look. Note that the camera will never choose this setting on its own. More on this setting further down.
The camera will automatically suggest the ideal setting by reading the intensity of the ambient light and illuminating the appropriate lamp on the dial.
The camera has suggested Very Sunny by lighting up the corresponding icon on the brightness adjustment dial.
Overexposure occurs when you choose a dark setting (such as Cloudy or Indoors) on a bright and sunny day. This is because you are telling the camera to let more light hit the film than is actually necessary for a proper exposure.
Below is a good example of overexposure occurring on an overcast day. Although the camera was telling me to use Sunny, I decided to use Cloudy because I thought it was too overcast to use one of the brighter settings. It turns out I should have listened to the camera! 🙂
Another good example is the pair of images below of my “better half” Mathieu eating an ice cream. I accidentally forgot to switch the setting from Indoors to Very Sunny and the resulting exposure is completely washed out. Since I liked the image, I decided it was worth re-taking – this time with the Very Sunny setting – and it turned out fine.
The take-home message here is before taking any shot, check to see which setting the camera has recommended and change it accordingly. Otherwise you might be in for a bit of a surprise!
The film was already exposed to light
One of the biggest mistakes you can make with instant photography is exposing your film to light before you’ve even begun taking photos, as doing so will turn completely overexposure the entire pack.
This can happen if you happen to be in direct sunlight while loading the film pack, or if you open the back of the camera and remove the film before you’ve used it up.
In either case, the only solution is to throw the overexposed pack away and start again!
Your subject is too bright
A few times while taking pictures on very bright, sunny days, I found that my images were brighter than I wanted them to be even though I was using the Very Sunny setting.
Take this picture of Aberystwyth Pier for example. Despite having used the Very Sunny setting, the image is still quite bright in certain areas of the frame, particularly the pier and the hill in the background.
There isn’t much you can do in these situations except to shoot later in the day or wait for some clouds to roll in.
Also avoid shooting in the direction of the sun: not only will any image you take be completely overexposed but even more importantly, you risk damaging your eyesight.
Overexposure for creative effect
Though no one wants to end up with a “polar bear in a snowstorm” type of image, many photographers do enjoy slightly overexposing their images for creative effect.
The most common practice with the Instax Mini 9 is to choose the setting that is one stop darker than the setting the camera suggests. (Remember, the darker the setting, the more light the camera lets in!) In the case of Very Sunny, that would be Sunny, and so on. Doing so can give your image a bright and cheerful feel without washing out too many colours or details.
Another way is to use the High Key setting mentioned above. When you are in a dimly lit place such as a restaurant, High Key does the job of both brightening and softening the image. Avoid using it during the day though, as it will completely wash out your image.
The moral of the story is that there is no right or wrong way to approach exposure. The important thing is that you achieve your desired effect … and don’t wind up with a series of blank frames! 😉
If you have any interesting shots you’ve purposely overexposed for creative effect, why not share them with us below!
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Thanks for the tips. I just got my camera and I had no idea how exposure works.
You’re welcome. Hope you enjoy your new camera!
Hi I got my camera a few weeks ago but when I use it and change the settings the light stays on the same one as before I changed it is that normal?
So, if you change it to Sunny for example, it stays on Indoors? That doesn’t sound normal at all. Try replacing the batteries with brand new ones to see if that works. If not, it’s probably best to contact Fujifilm directly.
Ok thank you
Hi there. Thanks for the info. We are having trouble with over exposure of every photo. Skin tone is bright white and the flash never turns off even when taking outside. In fact we cant use it for outdoor pictures at all. We have tried 3 cartridges with the same effect and feel like weve wasted our money on thus one! Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Katrena
Hi Katrena,
I assume you’re using the Mini 9? If so, the flash can’t be turned off, so it’s important to maintain a reasonable distance from the camera if you’re taking selfies (around 60cm) and to use the Very Sunny setting in bright situations.
To be honest, I generally avoid using the camera on bright sunny days because the film can’t handle it. Try sticking to indoors shots or early morning/evening shots when the light isn’t so intense.
Good luck!
Heather
Help!! I just got my instax mini and was totally excited until this happened…Everytime I turn it on it takes a picture on its own (all I’m doing is pressing the power button. I’ve wasted a whole pack of film already with no pics to show. Why is this happening? Thank you….Deenie
Hm, it sounds like your Instax Mini has a problem. I’d definitely return it!
Thank you Heather. I’m kinda bummed but will definitely try to return it today.
Hello well here’s an update…. sure enough I did return it and lo and behold that instax mini9 was a defective return which got out back “accidentally” on the shelf tsk tsk. Thank you!!! Got a new one. 😁
Hi Deenie, glad you managed to get a new one so quickly! Share some of your shots with me when you have the chance. 😉
I just got one and I love it! Although I do feel like the pictures are a bit dark, and I can’t work out if thats just the style of photo or if I’m doing anything wrong. All my photos have really dark backgrounds, even on sunny days. I assumed it was just the depth of field but your shot of Mathieu has a clear background.. hmmmm…
Big fan of your blog, I’ve just posted up my attempts with the Instax mini 9 too if you want to take a look and offer any advice?
http://www.bethstumbles.com/2018/02/instax-mini-9-review.html
Hi Beth and thanks for your nice comment!
I think it really depends on the background. If it’s bright, like in the picture of Mathieu, it should turn out bright in the picture as well. As for indoor shots, they’ll almost always have a dark background because the flash isn’t strong enough to expose it along with the subject.
Personally I love the shots you’ve taken so far – especially the portrait with the bluish background. Keep up the great work! 🙂
Hi I’m out in the sun or inside my house that’s really bright but my pictures still turn out dark help?
Hi
We bought a new mini 9 camera and put in the film. But every photo is going out of the camera and turning into completely dark after 5-10 minutes. No image is seen at all.
See pictures below.
Please aadvise.
Thanks
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/62b73fd99bb4e6dfb60cb308933dcc240cc0c2511f2b35488591a22e222a932d.jpg
Is the flash firing when you take a shot? Can you see anything in the images you take?
Hello,
I just received a new mini 9 as well and am having this same problem. I tried taking a photo indoors using the house setting then again using the Hi Key setting and both only produced a blank black image. Any suggestions would be a great help!
Make sure there is enough ambient light and that the flash is firing. If that doesn’t work, there is probably a mechanical issue.
Hello,
I just received a new mini 9 camera yesterday and I am having this same problem. I was trying to take a picture inside with the house setting and the flash does go off when I take the shot. I also tried the Hi Key setting but that also produced a blank black image. If you have any suggestions it would be a great help!
Maybe you exposed the film to direct sunlight when loading the film pack. or touch the two rectangles of the film
Hey
I’ve tried taking a mirror selfie on my Instax but the only thing coming out in the picture is the flash, otherwise everything else is dark. Any suggestions? See image below. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/00bb8a9cc5f78b00f8165928739c6e1b204dc61eea8200e29f735e2447688584.jpg
Mirror selfies generally don’t work well with the flash on. This is because the camera is metering for the intense light from the flash, making everything else look dark. If you want to take a mirror selfie, make sure there is lots of natural light in the room and try to diffuse the flash by covering it with a layer of tissue.
Hi so um i got a mini 9 for christmas and I recieved it yesterday so when i opened it i’m excited to take a picture so I did but all I see is white even though the camera setting was right
How do I true off the flash on a mini 9?
You can’t 🙂
I tried taking pictures of me and my friends today but the film only showed WHITE…
What do you think is the problem of my instax mini 9?
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/4438d4ea9b66d4e2d512cc75e57a44605523d78d3d6af521031278e6529fab14.jpg
There’s likely a problem with the camera itself. Can you return it?
Just bought a Instax Mini 9, when I put in new film the pictures come out fine. Once I turn the camera off (pushing the lens in) the rest of the pictures taken when turned back on are all black.
Did you try inserting a new roll of film?
Yes, it did it as well. As soon as I put the film in an started taking pics they were fine. But when I turned off the camera and turned it back on on the pics after that were black. It has been 3 rolls now. It’s fine initially and all pics come out fine until I turn the camera off and any I try to take after turning it back on are black.
Did anyone took a good photo with this camera? As I’m just reading not great reviews on the simpler camera ever… we have all the problems above and just looks like it’s not worth the money 🤷♀️
I tried to take a picture with my partner with the Instax mini 9. Previously, when we were indoors, we used the indoors setting and everything turned out very black. We used the indoors setting again for outdoors at a waterfall area and it turned out fine but still just a little dark thats all. And today when we were at the beach area, the camera suggested the very-sunny setting so we used it, but then it came out overexposed in the middle, leaving only the edges with correctly exposed colours. These few days when we followed the camera’s suggestions, it has all backfired. Wonder what was wrong? It is also a new camera we bought a few days ago.