The invention provides an automatic exposure control method and system, and the method comprises the steps: enabling a to-be-photographed object to enter a photographing region, carrying out the graphic collection of the to-be-photographed object, and obtaining the position information of a to-be-photographed part; determining an exposure radiation field of the flat panel detector based on the relative position of the to-be-photographed object and the flat panel detector; and selecting an exposure irradiation radiation field of the flat panel detector, exposing the to-be-photographed part, and triggering image acquisition by the flat panel detector after exposure is completed. According to the invention, the visual device is used for collecting information, the irradiation radiation field selection range is obtained through calculation and analysis, the subjective influence of operators is reduced, and the exposure irradiation radiation field selection is more accurate; automatic exposure control is realized based on exposure dose detection of an exposure irradiation radiation field area, the structure is simple, and the cost is low; the exposure dose is predicted through an algorithm, so that exposure dose errors can be effectively avoided, accurate exposure control is realized, and the imaging quality is improved; and an image is automatically acquired immediately after exposure is detected, so that the image acquisition period is shortened.