What is the primary purpose of exposure compensation in photography?

The primary purpose of exposure compensation in photography is to adjust exposure from the camera's default setting. When a camera meter evaluates a scene, it attempts to set exposure based on an average light level, which may not always suit the photographer's intention. Exposure compensation allows photographers to directly influence the exposure value, enabling adjustments either toward brighter or darker images depending on the specific requirements of the scene.

For example, if a photographer is capturing a backlit subject, the camera might underexpose the subject because it is trying to balance the light. Using exposure compensation, the photographer can instruct the camera to increase exposure, ensuring the subject is properly lit.

While altering exposure for creative effects does play a role in photography, it is not the primary function of exposure compensation, which is more about correcting the camera's default biases. Enhancing clarity in high contrast images and automatically adjusting scene brightness do not accurately define the purpose of exposure compensation either, as this function is about manual adjustment rather than automatic corrections.