Display illumination system and method

The present invention provides automatic adjustments to an image presentation based upon changes in ambient light. The adjustments can be made to the back-lighting and/or the pixel data. The ambient lighting can be measured by a variety of sensors (e.g., a digital camera) from a variety of orientations. For example, the sensor can be directed away from the display (e.g., towards the user) or the sensor can be directed towards the display (e.g., from an angle comparable to the users view). In one exemplary implementation a graphics control system utilizes real time ambient light sampling input to calibrate a back-light illumination level and/or pixel illumination levels. The present invention can be implemented in a variety of devices (e.g., laptop, PDA, cell phone, headsup display, etc.).