Metering Modes - Used most often?

run_Forrest_run

Given the three main metering modes:
1. Matrix
2. Centre Weighted
3. Spot

Which one do U use most and why? Just wondering as I am still pretty ignorant as when to best use each one. I am set to Matrix most of the time.

Also if anyone can provide an example pic of when one type of metering mode was used that would be helpful.

Morlar

Depending on the picture but often I prefer spot metering.

DaireQuinlan

run_Forrest_run wrote:

Given the three main metering modes:
1. Matrix
2. Centre Weighted
3. Spot

Which one do U use most and why? Just wondering as I am still pretty ignorant as when to best use each one. I am set to Matrix most of the time.

Also if anyone can provide an example pic of when one type of metering mode was used that would be helpful.

Spot and centre weighted for the most part, Ironically considering I bought my F4 specifically so I could matrix meter with my old MF nikon lenses. Spot metering can be a bit of a hit and miss affair though. Don't forget that any metering will dumbly meter off what you've got it pointed at and then try and make that exposure the middle tone in whatever EV it calculates. So meter off some white flowers for example, and the entire shot is going to be underexposed. Centre weighted sort of averages it out a bit more. What I do sometimes if I have the time is to spot meter off a bunch of different parts of the scene and try and work out a good EV and then manually set it.

ThOnda

The biggest metering area or the smallest. I am switching those two according to what is the scene like and what are the light conditions.

bp_me

99% of the time, matrix metering..

Spot metering in some circumstances.

Can't remember using centre weighted.

Fajitas!

Closly knit between Evaluative and Spot for me!

leinsterman

My camera has four basic modes plus an extra one more called Muliti-Spot -

• Spot which does 3.8% of the image
• Evaluative which averages across the entire scene
• Centre Weighted which averages across the entire scene but favours the centre area
• Partial which is like spot but does 13.5%
• Multi Spot which measures at multiple user configured points and lets the user then decide

I have it configured to only allow Spot or Evaluative to be selected via the custom setting menu.

I generally have spot linked to the active AF point because most of the time I use it I take the camera out of full AF and use single AF points instead.

I'd like to try multi-spot some time because I suspect it could be useful but it is a little on the cumbersome side ... and I need to practice with it a bit.

DadaKopf

Mainly centre-weighted and sometimes evaluative (matrix) on my 400D. I find that CW metering usually gets the exposure I'm looking for, and I have more control over exposure. The 400D doesn't have spot metering.