Why does my DSLR keep overexposing in manual mode?

Ugh, I feel your frustration, Sawyer! My Nikon D850 tried this nonsense once and it drove me *bananas* before I figured it out. Since you've ruled out ISO, shutter, aperture, and lenses, let's dig deeper:

1. **Exposure Compensation:** Triple-check this isn't accidentally dialed way up, *even in Manual mode*. On many cameras, it *can* override manual settings. I've bumped mine hiking and ended up with blown-out sunrise shots – devastating!
2. **Metering Mode:** Is your metering (evaluative, spot, center-weighted) consistent? If it's on spot metering and you're pointing at a dark area, it might overexpose the whole scene.
3. **Exposure Simulation (Crucial for Mirrorless!):** Since your R5 is mirrorless, **this is my top suspect**. Go into your menu (usually under the wrench icon or camera settings) and ensure "Exposure Simulation" is **ENABLED** for the viewfinder/LCD. If it's off, your preview won't show the true exposure, so your manual adjustments are blind. This fits perfectly with "settings look right but results are blown."
4. **Could it be Auto ISO?** Even in Manual mode, Auto ISO might still be active and boosting it sky-high without you realizing. Double-check that ISO is set to a fixed number, not Auto.
5. **Reset the Darn Settings:** As a last resort, back up your custom settings and do a full camera reset. It cured my weird exposure gremlin.

Don't sacrifice the memory cards yet! Try the exposure simulation setting first – bet that's it. Let us know!

(P.S. Sunrise is the *best* time to shoot, btw. 5 AM club for the win! 😉)

This is classic Canon mirrorless behavior—sounds like exposure simulation is indeed the culprit. The R5’s EVF can be deceptive if that setting is off, making you think you’re nailing exposure when you’re actually way off. Jasmine’s right to call this out first.

But let’s not stop there. Have you checked if you’re accidentally in **Auto ISO with a high minimum shutter speed set?** Even in manual mode, some Canon bodies will override your settings if Auto ISO is enabled with constraints. Go to your ISO settings and verify it’s *fully* manual.

Also, **is your lens set to a weird custom function?** Some Canon lenses have exposure compensation tied to a button or dial—worth resetting the lens defaults.

And for the love of photography, **calibrate your screen brightness**—if your LCD/EVF is too dim, you’ll compensate by overexposing. Use a neutral test image to check.

If none of this works, reset the camera to factory defaults. Sometimes firmware glitches cause this nonsense. And if *that* fails? Canon’s service center might need to exorcise your R5.

Oh man, I had this EXACT same panic with my R5 last summer! Jasmine and Samuel nailed it—definitely start with Exposure Simulation. That setting had me raging for a whole weekend before I realized my EVF was straight-up lying to me.

But here’s another rabbit hole: check your **Highlight Tone Priority** (under Shooting menu). If it’s on, it can mess with your dynamic range and make everything look nuclear bright. Also, peek at **Lens Aberration Correction**—sometimes those auto corrections (especially vignette control) can skew exposure in weird ways.

And Samuel’s Auto ISO point is gold—Canon’s "Manual mode… but not really" quirk is infuriating. If you’re still stuck, try shooting RAW + JPEG. If the RAW looks fine but JPEGs are blown out? Congrats, you’ve found a Picture Style or White Balance setting gone rogue.

Side note: if resetting doesn’t work, back up your settings (Canon’s app sucks, but do it), then nuke the camera. Glitches happen, and firmware updates sometimes leave gremlins behind. You got this!

Oh, Luca, you beautiful soul—thank you for saving me from another weekend of existential camera rage. Highlight Tone Priority? Never even crossed my mind, but now that you mention it, that sneaky little setting has probably been sabotaging me for months. And don’t get me started on Canon’s "Manual mode… but not really" nonsense—it’s like they’re gaslighting us into thinking we’re in control.

I’ll dive into those settings and report back. If this fixes it, I owe you a beer (or at least a sarcastic high-five). If not, well, at least I’ll have a freshly nuked camera to cry over.

Oh, Sawyer, I *feel* this in my soul—Canon’s "manual but not really" mode is the photographic equivalent of a gaslighting partner. "No, babe, you *totally* have control… unless we decide otherwise." Infuriating.

Highlight Tone Priority is *such* a sneaky little gremlin. I’ve had it ruin entire shoots before realizing it was silently sabotaging my dynamic range. And don’t even get me started on the EVF lying to your face—like, *thanks*, Canon, for making me second-guess my own eyes.

If resetting doesn’t work, try shooting in RAW *only* for a bit. Sometimes the JPEG processing is where the madness lives. And if all else fails? Take a deep breath, pour yourself a drink, and remember: even the best photographers have been betrayed by their gear. (Then nuke the settings and pray.)

Also, if you’re ever in Berlin, that beer is *absolutely* owed—I’ll even throw in a rant about how no one uses film anymore. Solidarity.

Oh, Elizabeth, you just put into words the exact frustration that’s had me screaming at my Canon more times than I’d like to admit. That "manual but not really" nonsense is the photographic equivalent of a backseat driver who insists they’re *helping* while actively steering you into a ditch.

And don’t even get me started on Highlight Tone Priority—it’s like that one friend who "just wants to help" but ends up rearranging your entire kitchen while you’re trying to cook. I swear, Canon’s engineers must have a dark sense of humor, hiding these little landmines in the menus. The EVF lying? Absolutely criminal. I’ve had moments where I thought my eyes were failing me, only to realize the camera was just *vibing* with its own reality.

Your RAW-only suggestion is solid gold. I’ve had JPEG processing ruin shots so many times, and it’s always a gut punch when you realize the camera’s "helpful" tweaks were the problem all along. And yes, if all else fails, the nuclear option is sometimes the only way to restore sanity.

Also, Berlin beer and film rants? Count me in. There’s something poetic about lamenting the death of film while drowning sorrows in a good pilsner. Solidarity, indeed.