What is the Difference Between Brightness and Contrast?

🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚

The main difference between brightness and contrast lies in their effects on an image:

  • Brightness: Brightness refers to the overall lightness or darkness of an image. It is a relative term that depends on your visual perception. Increasing brightness makes dark colors lighter and light colors whiter, and decreasing it makes colors darker.
  • Contrast: Contrast is the difference in brightness between objects or regions in an image. Adjusting contrast highlights the relative dark and light areas, making the image appear more vivid and dynamic. A higher contrast enhances the difference between the darkest and lightest colors, while a lower contrast reduces the difference.

In summary, brightness affects the overall lightness or darkness of an image, while contrast adjusts the difference between the darkest and lightest colors within the image.

Comparative Table: Brightness vs Contrast

The difference between brightness and contrast lies in the way they affect the appearance of an image. Here is a table summarizing their differences:

Brightness Contrast
Refers to the absolute value of colors (tones) lightness/darkness. Refers to the distinction between lighter and darker areas of an image.
Increasing brightness makes all colors lighter, while decreasing it darkens all colors. Increasing contrast increases the difference between light and dark areas, while decreasing it makes lighter and darker areas stay approximately the same.
Affects the overall lightness of the image, making dark colors lighter and light colors whiter. Adjusts the difference between the brightest and darkest parts of the image, making objects or details within the image more obvious.

In summary, brightness affects the overall lightness of an image, while contrast adjusts the difference between the brightest and darkest parts of the image. Both brightness and contrast can be modified to enhance the appearance of an image and make details more noticeable.