Photo tips camera settings, methods of metering

.........................................................................................................
METHODS OF METHERING

The exposure meter of the camera measures the amount of light and then make a suggestion about the best exposure settings (light and photography - principles), but focuses only on certain parts of the scene.

.........................................................................................................
EVALUATIVE METERING (more field measurement)

The view is divided into a number of areas. The camera evaluates the light conditions, such as the position of the object, brightness, background, direct light and lighting from behind, and adjusts the exposure automatically. This is the default setting for every automatic function.
This works well if there are no specific "sensitive" areas in the scene or your subject fills up the whole scene. The brightness varies in most scenes, and the suggested exposure setting could be correct only for a part of it. Scenes with high contrast can cause some difficulties, because the human eye has a much greater contrast range than most camera has. The contrast range varies also by model.

.........................................................................................................
CENTER-WEIGHTED AVERAGE METERING

The average exposure is based on the entire composition, but the attention is focused on the middle of the view, sometimes highlighted with a circle or a rectangle in the viewfinder. The result is more predictable than by evaluative metering.
If you use the centre-weighted metering, you need to measure first the key area of the scene, then lock the exposure and re-determine the composition. How to do this is in the manual of your camera.

.........................................................................................................
SPOT METERING

Spot metering is the most accurate system. Only the area within the spot metering frame would be measured. This method is usually used for manual exposure. If it is correctly used, a spot meter is one of the most effective and accurate of the available systems. You can get perfectly exposed pictures in the most demanding situations.

back