Engadget Primed: Camera Metering Explained -- Engadget

7/31/2019 Engadget Primed: Camera Metering Explained -- Engadget

1/10

Engadget for iPad - get the app now!

BACK TO SCHOOL E3 2012 NEXUS 7 MACBOOK PRO THE NEW IPAD ENGADGET DISTRO

By Sean Arbabi posted Mar 23rd 2012 12:00PM

Cameras

Engadget Primed: Camera metering explained

Primedgoes in-depth on the technobabble you hear on Engadget every day -- we dig deep into each

topic's history and how it benefits our lives. You can follow the series here. Looking to suggest a piece

of technology for us to break down? Drop us a line atprimed *at* engadget *dawt* com.

Is learning how to meter with your camera really necessary? With all the intelligent models out today,

who needs it, right? Well, you may, depending on the type of killer photography you hope to produce.

When it comes to the person behind the camera, there are a few types of photographers. First, there's the

photog who just wants to snap away, not terribly concerned about how their photos turn out -- or, at the

very least, not interested in knowing how to alter the camera. If this describes you, that's fine -- the

latest-and-greatest compact cameras may be your cup of tea. But then there's the amateur shooter who

desires a better understanding of how their cameras determine exposure, and if you fit into this category,

this piece should be right up your alley.

Metering is not a subject you can easily master, let alone explain entirely in an article of this length, but

we can give you an idea of how it all works. I consistently see the faces of my workshop students glaze

over as I wax rhapsodic about the wonders of metering, but I also notice wry smiles from time to time,

which shows me the wheels are turning -- they begin to realize all the things they can do if only they can

conquer this aspect of photography. However, comprehension and applied mastery are two separate balls

of wax. Putting what you learn to practice is the start, and you can improve over a number of months, but

true metering control in any situation requires years of practice.

So for our 2012 pre-apocalyptic installment of Primed, we'll break down the world of camera metering,

giving you a bit of history, dissecting the main components, describing what your camera wants to do and

telling you what the future may hold. By the end, you'll have a better understanding of this vital

photographic topic... either that or you'll be in a nice deep sleep.

Note: Check out our recent Primed articles on aperture and image sensors to add to your metering

knowledge.

Table of Contents

The history of metering

Why learn metering?

The three meter-ka-teers

A speed date with your meter

All modes aren't created equal

The assistants

Exposing the future

Wrap-up

The history of metering Return to top

Since its inception as early as the tenth century A.D. by Ibn al-Haytham, a Muslim Persian scientist born

in southern Iraq in 965, the primary function of a camera was, and is, to collect and record light. Yet notuntil the early nineteenth century was a process created to make a photograph permanent. By the mid

1820s, a French man named Nicphore Nipce (don't ask me how to pronounce his name) captured an

IRL: Mailplane, VerizonWireless iPad and the SamsungGalaxy S running CM9

1 hour ago

Inhabitat's Week in Green:go-kart made of Lego bricks,

TOTO toilet bike and the launchof 'Willow Glass'

5 hours ago

Ask Engadget: is iPod Touchand Wireless Printer-basedcredit card processing possible?

16 hours ago

Mobile Miscellany: week ofAugust 27th, 2012

17 hours ago

Alt-week 9.1.12: growing bones,repairing voices, and a pair ofsatellites

22 hours ago

The most commented posts on Engadget over the

past 24 hours.

pple adds Samsung's Galaxy S III,

Galaxy Note and Galaxy Note 10.1

to ongoing patent lawsuit

0

Next Apple earbuds potentially

sighted in Vietnam, may fix an iconic

design (video)

0

Engadget's back to school 2012

sweepstakes: win one of 15 gadget-

illed bags!

0

Engadget's back to school guide

2012: printers

0

Engadget's back to 0

MAIL You might also like: Engadget HD, Engadget Mobile and More


2/10

A look back on popular stories from today in a

specific year.

In the year 2011

DirecTV adds AMC-HD nextweek, too bad Mad Men is stillsix months away0 comments

In the year 2010

Mercedes-Benz updatesmbrace app with fancy pants'Concierge' service0 comments

In the year 2009

Sony announces VAIO Xultraportable102 comments

In the year 2008

Sprint leaks XOHM WiMaxservice details and devices14 comments

In the year 2007

Vista users in Swedishcommunity can't get online69 comments

eight-hour exposure -- View from the Window at Le Gras -- using a rudimentary yet remarkably

innovative setup resembling a pinhole camera, with an asphalt-like substance coated on pewter

(hardening when exposed to light), to process the image permanently. The world was visually changed

from that moment on. (It should be noted there has been a recent dispute with a claim Thomas

Wedgwood, an inventor who created a method to copy visible images chemically to permanent media,

captured the first photo in the 1790s, while another states Nipce produced a photograph in 1822, an

engraving of Pope Pius VII, using the heliographic process -- perhaps there can be a dance-off to settle

the score.)

In the years to come, a number of chemical processes were invented and refined to create a permanent

photograph through glass plates, film and photographic paper. From the 1820s up into the 1980s,

metering really hadn't changed much. Even as the photographic medium progressed from the chemical

process using silver halide (film), to the digital process with a charged-couple device (CCD), the

sensitivity of the material used was still measured using the ISO rating. However, the way you metered

changed, from photographic charts to handheld incident light meters, on to reflective meters built into

the camera. (We'll address incident versus reflective meters later in this article.) Nevertheless, the basic

equation of light + medium sensitivity = exposure, pretty much stuck from photography's inception. How

much light you have (measured in exposure value, or EV) combined with the material's sensitivity to light

(measured in the past using ASA or ISO rating, ISO being the main one used today), gives you an

exposure (the total amount of light permitted to enter a camera and be received by the image sensor or

film).

Back in the 1800s, when photographers coated their own plates -- in essence making their own film and

prints in portable darkrooms -- exposures were too long to capture portraits, so the first subjects

documented were still lifes, buildings and street scenes. Essentially working in low ISO numbers,

processes such as daguerreotypes and calotypes were less sensitive to light, thus slow. The standard

outdoor lens was the Achromat Landscape, featuring an f/16 non-adjustable aperture. With small

apertures came longer capture times -- twenty to thirty minute outdoor exposures -- resulting in ghost

images of people in various cityscapes (imagine the documentation of the 1906 San Franciscoearthquake). As portraits became possible and popular, deadpan expressions and slightly blurred facial

features were also evidence of these long exposures.

school guide 2012: fun

stuff!

Trending posts from Engadget on Twitter,

updated hourly.

IRL: Mailplane, Verizon Wireless

iPad and the Samsung Galaxy S

running CM9

361

Car accident stops 80eDays Tesla

Roadster from completing world

tour

292

Car accident stops 80eDays Tesla

Roadster from completing world

tour

231

Inhabitat's Week in

Green: go-kart made of

Lego bricks, TOTO toilet

bike and the launch of

'Willow Glass'

4

Prototype dual-screened

2-in-1 Android smartpad

rom Imerj preview

4


3/10

Then the wet collodion process broke through in 1851, and the increased sensitivity of the medium meantdramatically shortened exposure times. Soon after came lenses with adjustable f-stops, followed by more

aperture control when it was discovered that aperture size affected depth of field. The invention of film

roughly hit at the same time as the collodion process, in the form of glass plates coated with photographic

emulsion. Then, in 1885, the first flexible photographic roll film was released by Eastman Kodak, offering

increased light sensitivity which enabled shorter exposures. As the twentieth century took hold, the Zone

System, a new systematic method of metering and exposing to maximize proper tones in any given scene,

was perfected by Ansel Adams and Fred Archer, stretching the capabilities of photography. From the

time Kodak sold its first roll in the 1880s, to the early 1990s, film quality continued to improve -- grain

became tighter in higher ASAs or ISOs, color more accurate or vivid (depending on the brand and type of

film chosen), and latitude covering higher contrast increased some -- yet the process of metering

remained somewhat consistent, even if the models in the Kodak commercials made life look pretty darn

special.

Why learn metering?Return to top

Creating high-quality images is a marriage of three facets: using photographic techniques, knowing your

gear and having the artistic ability to react at a moment's notice metering is a huge part of this

amalgamation. It is one of the most important aspects of photography, yet most photographers struggled

with. Exposure is the foundation of all great images, and when you learn how to control your in-camera

meter, the door towards photographic creativity opens, empowering you to make more effective

decisions. It's a technical subject that builds you a solid base on the path to capturing extraordinary

photographs. You can create mood, enhance color, emphasize light and add subtly to detail when you

capture a proper exposure, whether you are photographing a portrait of a friend, a grand landscape, a

vacation moment or a hamburger for an ad.

Another reason to learn metering is that you can apply the concept to almost any art or craft, knowing the

limitations of your tools -- in this case, your camera and image sensor. Being well-versed in what's

possible, and figuring out ways around potential disadvantages, helps to create better final images.

Through lighting, contrast and exposure, pros use this knowledge to their advantage on every shoot.


4/10

From camera to computer

In this day and age of the digital darkroom, where editing programs are so robust, the phrase "fix it in

Photoshop" seems to be here to stay -- and because of this, many question the need for metering

knowledge. I explain this doubt with the analogy of the camera's exposure being the recipe or items you

carefully select and mix together, and Photoshop being the oven you cook it all in. You need both to

generate a high-quality final creation. Capture as much possible information in-camera and the easier

post-capture editing becomes. Less adjustments are needed, and because your RAW image file stores the

appropriate detail, the better the final result; tones and colors match more accurately, and less highlight

and shadow detail is lost. Image editing programs are a wonderful expansion of photography, but if you

rely on adjusting every aspect of your photo using software, your images with lack impact andconsistency, quality will level off, and computer time will exponentially rise. Finally, the knowledge of

metering also prepares you for processing your digital files in computer -- the added knowledge of tonal

range, contrast and light helps to create the most realistic renditions.

Bracketing

Photographers who lack the understanding of how to meter use a technique called bracketing on a

regular basis, capturing a series of exposures of one scene hoping to nail one solid frame. However this

adds post-capture time, forcing you to review a higher number of images, while also filling up more

storage space on your memory cards. In many cases, bracketing may not be an option due to a moving

subject or a single precise moment that can't be captured in a series of shots.

There are some advantages to bracketing, the biggest being the higher percentage of chance you capture

the exposure you desire, and with extremely contrasty scenes sometimes there are a mix of exposures

that work, therefore the decision becomes which type of mood or detail you desire instead of which

exposure. Bracketing can also assist in the education process of metering, showing you how your camera

reacts to colors, tones, over and underexposure. This is best applied when combined with the knowledge

of metering.

The three meter-ka-teersReturn to top

Reiterating the aforementioned basic equation, exposure is the total amount of light allowed to enter a

camera and received by the image sensor or film through the course of capturing an image. This is

created through three main components: aperture, shutter speed and ISO.

Aperture is defined as an adjustable iris (circle, hole or opening) inside your lens that changes depending

to your setting (called the f-stop). It controls two aspects of exposure. First, the amount of light entering

the camera and lens, through the f-stop -- a measurement used for the size of the lens opening; the larger

the aperture, the more light, the smaller the aperture, the less light. Secondly, the f-stop adjusts the depth

of field in a scene. Measured in inches, feet or meters, this is the range of distance over which the image

is not unacceptably less sharp than the sharpest part of the image. For more on apertures, see our recent

Primed article:What is aperture, and how does it affect my photos?

Shutter speed is defined as the rate at which the shutter, a mechanism inside the camera, opens and

closes to expose a scene -- whether on film or onto a digital image sensor. It too controls two aspects of

exposure: the amount of light entering the camera and lens, and the speed at which the scene is captured,

measured in time (fraction of seconds, seconds, minutes or hours).

Digital ISO (known as ISO or ASA with film) is the third factor of metering, and one that gives you more

choices with your exposure settings. Since you can control shutter speed and aperture through ISO, the

number you choose can affect the final outcome greatly. ISO determines the sensitivity of your image

sensor or film to light. The higher the number, the more sensitive; the lower the number the less

sensitive. As with any aspect in exposure, there are trade-offs. The "faster" or higher number ISO (i.e.

400, 800, 1600), the less light is required (a shorter time is needed to expose the scene onto the image

sensor). The lower the number, the more light is needed (a longer exposure). For more information, see

our recent Primed article and review the section on ISO:Why your camera's sensor size matters.

These metering components can be altered in 1/3, 1/2 or 1-stop increments, and the combination of allthree when balanced just right creates a solid exposure. If you are wondering what a stop is, it's a unit

used to quantify ratios of light, one stop either halving or doubling the amount of light entering the

camera.

A speed date with your meterReturn to top

As the foundation for all great images, without the knowledge of exposure, your creativity lacks, you miss

moments, lose subtle colors and spend more time in post-capture editing. Unless you comprehend how

your meter works, capturing a good shot becomes hit or miss. The resulting image may not be what you

expected, and if it is, you may not understand how to repeat it.

Your camera's internal reflective meter is the best tool for calculating exposures, if you understand how it

operates, and how it can be fooled under a variety of circumstances. It measures light reflected off your

subject and is influenced by the amount of light, the tones, color and contrast, then converts this reading

into a recommended exposure setting. There are handheld versions called incident meters, whichmeasure the amount of light that falls onto your subject, held next to your subject, then pointed toward


5/10

the light to measure the source. Incident meters aren't as easily fooled as their reflective counterparts,

however the option to place the meter next to your subject or in the same light is not always practical

during a shoot -- and it's yet another piece of equipment to carry. So, one detects the light after it hits

your subject (reflective), while the other reads it before it strikes the subject (incident). Which is more

accurate? Neither. They both read light differently. For this article, we'll address in-camera reflective

meters, since 99 percent of photographers use these to read light and expose.

Your meter has a one-track mind

Point your camera at any scene and its main objective is to make whatever it's metering middle grey. Say

what? I'll clarify. Referred to as Zone V by Ansel Adams, middle-toned or 18-percent grey by others, this

grey is not a color, yet a tone halfway between white (highlights) and black (shadows). Your meter is

telling you to shoot at a certain setting, but what it's really saying is 'take the photo at this exposure if you

want to make this area or subject middle grey in tone' -- whether a tan face, the bright white moon, a

landscape with a mix of colors or a dark burnt log. If your subject is middle grey in tone your exposure

will be accurate, but if it's not, then you have some adjusting to do. Of course not everything we shoot is

middle grey, so I use the term "meter's recommendation" when it comes to the exposure settings it offers,

since your meter is not necessarily giving you the correctexposure. How do you distinguish what's

middle grey, how much brighter or darker the tonal values in the scene may be, and how much to alter

your meter to fix a tone from what is recommended? This is the part taking time, experience,

miscalculations and trial and error -- a massive learning curve requiring years to perfect.

Your Metering Needle

Found in your camera's viewfinder or on the top LCD screen, your metering needle is another important

tool, coordinating shutter speed, aperture and ISO to create a well-exposed photograph. Normally a

linear area with notches, and typically denoted by a "0" in the middle, with "+" and "-" on each side, most

metering needles (or levels) show a four-to-six stop range, depending on your camera model. Zero is the

default setting whenever your camera is in an auto exposure mode. These modes include aperture (Av)

priority, shutter priority (Tv), or program (P), telling the camera to determine an exposure based on the

meter's middle grey-toned goal. Switch to manual exposure mode (M), and once you set your needle to

"0", you can either overexpose or underexpose, overriding this recommendation to match your subject'strue tone or create a mood; overexpose if you want to make your subject lighter than middle grey,

underexpose if you want to make it darker than middle grey. You can also make this adjustment in an

auto-exposure mode using exposure compensation (EC). Often seen as a "+/-" symbol on one of your

camera buttons, EC offers the same method of moving to the plus side to brighten an exposure or match

a brighter tone, or the minus side to darken a tone or scene.

A good initial question to ask yourself during this metering process is "what is my subject?," then meter

attempting to match your subject's tone as accurately as possible, and let the rest of the scene fall where it

may -- this method won't insure a perfect exposure every time, but it's a good starting point toward

learning how to meter. It should be noted there are a myriad of exposure modes in cameras today,

including pre-programmed scene modes, but these are considered auto exposure modes since they

determine exposure in a way similar to aperture priority, shutter priority and program.

The Latitude from Highlight to Shadow

One big misconception of exposure is that you have to maintain detail in every area of your scene, all the

time --- this is simply impossible, due to film or an image sensor's limitation in handling contrast

(measured in stops of light). Film is capable of a five to six stop range, and an image sensor covers

roughly six to nine stops. Human vision can pick up roughly 14-20 stops of light in one scene (without

adjusting the pupil), so the assumption of trying to maintain all detail in all of our images is an exposuremyth. If the contrast ratio from light to dark stretches more than six to seven stops, in most cases you


6/10

cannot obtain every bit of detail in a single frame. Another strong belief is that by using your LCD screen,

histogram or Photoshop, you can fix exposures, but unfortunately this can lead you astray -- your

creativity lacks, you miss moments, lose subtle colors and detail and spend an inordinate amount of time

in post-capture editing. Technology has come a long way and these new digital tools provide an

advantage in the metering department, but they cannot replace a good understanding of exposure --

more on this later.

Learning how to judge tonal values is the big exposure challenge, so having a reference point always

helps. One starting point to recognize is that two stops overexposed from "0," middle grey, gives you

white with detail, and two stops under produces black with detail -- this depends on light and contrast,

and is not exact, yet it's a rough reference point for you to begin to understand tones and metering. Go a

half-stop further on each side, and you begin to lose most if not all detail in the bright highlight and

darkest shadow areas.

All modes aren't created equalReturn to top

Once you have some knowledge of how your camera meters a scene, metering modes are the next

function to grasp, learning how the differences between each can drastically affect the recommended

exposure. The mode you choose can and will change your meter's recommendation for any particular

shot.

Spot or Partial metering

The toughest mode to master, spot metering reads the light from a small section, defaulted in the center

of the frame (usually between 1-5 percent), whereas Partial meters a slightly larger area (5-9 percent).

Using this mode allows you to select a small part of the scene, meter it directly without the influence of

any other area, and judge the tone. In studying exposure for years this became my favorite mode,

utilizing it more as an advanced method of reading various parts of a scene, similar to the way Ansel

Adams used the Zone System. A bit of math on the fly is required with this method but it has its

advantages.

Center-weighted (CW) or Center-weighted Averaging

Another main type of metering mode used in cameras going back many years, Center-weighted meters


7/10

roughly 13-15 percent of the center area. If you choose the Center-weighted Averaging option, the entire

composition is included in the reading, with the meter concentrating 60 to 80 percent of the sensitivity

towards the central part of the viewfinder. Center-weighted metering is good for a variety of uses,

especially where one tone is relatively large in the frame, such as a similarly toned area of sky, lake or

grassy hillside.

Using certain metering modes like Spot, Partial or CW, can show you exactly where you are metering.

This becomes a tool for learning since you can determine if you guessed a tone correctly once you review

the image in computer. As you make mistakes or nail a tone, you learn, and your accuracy improves over

time.

Pattern metering

Also known as Evaluative (for Canon users), Matrix (for Nikon users), Average, Multi-metering or Multi-

pattern, this metering mode reads the light intensity in several points around the frame, averaging them

for the final suggested exposure setting, favoring no major portion of your composition. Many feel it's the

most accurate of all metering modes, but it depends on the subject, as well as the balance of light and

tones. Metering using Pattern when in manual exposure mode is tough since you are really in a black box,

not having a clear idea of how the camera determines the exposure -- how it weighs highlights versus

shadows at various points -- thus any manual adjustments are hit or miss, unless you meter one

continuous tone throughout the frame, such as the sky, a like or snow. It is best for auto exposure modes

when you have little choice or time to meter, such as when capturing a fast-moving subject coming in and

out of shadows. The comparison below gives you an idea of how metering modes react to a specific scene

depending on the tone, light and subject matter.

The assistantsReturn to top

There are three others features of digital that add to this metering conversation: autofocus, your LCD

screen and the histogram. The autofocus (AF) point can play a part in the meter's recommended

exposure, depending on the camera you own and the setting you use. Some systems allow you to link or

unlink autofocus to metering with the option of locking an exposure once AF confirmation is achieved

(through auto-exposure lock). It's hard to determine how much weigh is placed on the autofocus spot, as

compared to the metering mode used, adding some confusion to the recommended setting and requiring

a bit more experience.

Some feel they can work around exposure by reviewing the LCD screen to see if they correctly metered

the scene; then a miscalculated exposure could be fixed. The main problem with this method is, under avariety of circumstances, reviewing your image for exposure on your LCD screen is not preferred --

whether due to bright outdoor conditions reflecting on the screen, the size of it as compared to a large


8/10

computer monitor in controlled conditions, or simply because it doesn't have the quality to judge

exposure. Imagine watching your high-definition television in the backyard on a bright sunny day, then

again at night in a darkened room -- although you hadn't adjusted the television brightness, contrast or

color, there is a drastic change in the way the screen looks to your eye; the analogy of how your LCD

screen can fool you on exposure. You can get a ballpark figure of exposure from your screen, but not true

accuracy.

It's hard to get away from this habit, but it's good to know why your images may look different in your

computer than on your LCD screen. Deciphering a histogram is critical to unraveling its real purpose,

and similar to in-camera meters, it is often misunderstood and misused. The statement I routinely hear

in my photo workshops is I don't know why my image wasn't well exposed -- I used my histogram. Thefallacy of being your exposure solution has tricked most photographers into believing that digital solved

the difficulties of exposure. Working in tandem with the LCD screen, many use the histogram to judge

exposure, and although it is a wonderful digital tool, it is more sophisticated than most realize.

Histograms may help you determine certain aspects of exposure, such as pixel value, but most seasoned

pros rarely review them in the field. First off, there is no such thing as a correct, or proper histogram.

Having a perfect bell curve to your histogram does not create a perfect exposure -- this only tells you

there is an abundance of middle tones in your exposure. This would be fine if you are photographing a

grey rock, but not if you were capturing snow. Well-exposed photos can have awful looking histograms,

where the graph is all the way to the left or to the right, maybe even cutting off highlights or shadows.

This goes back to the fact that capturing every detail in every shot is impossible due to the limitations of

an image sensor.

Other photographers rely on 'blinkies' (bl inking areas on your LCD indicating overexposed highlights) to

determine exposure, but once again, your image sensor's dynamic range cannot cover certain areas

within many contrasty scenes, so this too can throw you off. If you judge your histogram, allowing it to

control your exposure, or darken your exposure until the blinkies go away, you might underexpose the

most important part of the scene: your main subject. The histogram is a better tool to utilize in

post-capture processing -- to help study the range of our image sensors and ensure that you retain

specific highlight or shadow detail. Would you ever use the histogram in the field? Sure, but this should

be when you first comprehend exposure and how to meter light, then it might add to the metering

decision. For instance, if you want to keep detail in a subject whose tone is close to white or black, youwould meter your subject, expose the scene and check the histogram to guarantee no loss of detail in the

critical areas.


9/10

JOYSTIQ

To the Moon hits Steam September 7,

next episode incoming

Halo 4 adds Grifball to the multiplayer

menu

Monster Hunter Frontier G announcedfor April 2013 in Japan

TUAW

Three handy Mac tools for working with

QR Codes

Clutter, clarity or random apps: What's

on your Menu Bar?

Apple adds form to report intellectualproperty infringement on the App Store

TECHCRUNCH

Iterations: The New Movable Type

Berkeley Study: Half-Star Change In

Yelp Rating Can Make Or Break A

Restaurant

In The World Of Tech, Women CanHave It All

HUFFPOST TECH

WHY CAN'T WE PLAY NICE?

This Is Your 2-Weeks Notice On The

iPhone 5

The 9 Biggest Tech Myths You Should

Stop Believing

blog comments powered by Disqus

Exposing the futureReturn to top

Frdric Guichard, chief scientist at DxO Labs, sees metering innovations coming through application of

high dynamic range (HDR) technology -- we agree. HDR has altered and stretched the bounds of

metering, and new systems including cell phone cameras have begun incorporating these options with

relative ease and decent success. "Other metering opportunities include a trend towards mirrorless

cameras, pushing manufacturers to innovate and find solutions for better autofocus speeds in these

models, possibly through ways of measuring autofocus directly on a mirrorless camera's sensor," says

Guichard. "Innovations regarding phase detection, a common type of autofocus, being integrated to the

pixels is yet another potential metering advancement; Fuji's discontinued FinePix F300EXR model

contains this feature."

Wrap-upReturn to top

Metering systems today have advanced and improved in many ways, yet the general concepts remain the

same - get as much in-camera when it comes to detail, light, and exposure, and you images will shine. I

compare metering a scene with a racecar driver anyone can press on the gas, but it takes someone with

experience and knowledge to drive that car well. So goes exposure metering systems will continue to

become more automated and intuitive, but learning how to operate these cameras and knowing how to

choose the best mode for the scene will still require a bit of know-how.

There are no easy ways to capture consistent solid exposures outside of learning the fundamentals of

metering, understanding how your camera's meter works, and recognizing the parameters of your image

sensor. Then by following a step-by-step method you practice, play, and practice some more. Learning

exposure can take years, but if you do so this newfound knowledge can give you full access toward

creating the images you have in mind, or replicating what you see in a powerful way.

Sean is a commercial photographer, author of The Complete Guide to Nature Photography, photo

expert, and all around nice dude.

af, autofocus, bracket, bracketing, camera, camera metering, CameraMetering, canon, ccd, center-

weighted, center-weighted metering, Center-weightedMetering, charged-couple device, Charged-coupleDevice,cw, cw metering, CwMetering, engadget primed, EngadgetPrimed, evaluative, evaluative metering,EvaluativeMetering, exposure, hdr, high dynamic range, HighDynamicRange, histograms, iso, matrix, matrix

metering, MatrixMetering, metering, meters, nikon, partial meter, partial metering, PartialMeter,PartialMetering, pattern, pattern metering, PatternMetering, photoshop, primed, spot, spot metering,

SpotMetering

20 24 0 34


10/10

TECH

gdgt

Slashdot

MAKE

Technology Review

Ars Technica

TechMeme

Phone Scoop

DESIGN

FFFFOUND!

Core77

Popcorn Shower

MoCo Loco

Design*Sponge

The Sartorialist

NEWS

HuffPost Politics

The Daily Beast

Huffington Post

Taxes

Stock Quotes

DJIA

LIFESTYLE

Lifehacker

HuffPost Women

StyleList

Automotive

Gadling

ENVIRONMENTAL

Inhabitat

Good

Autoblog Green

HuffPost Green

ENTERTAINMENT

Massively

The Onion

i09

HuffPost Celebrity

Spinner

Moviefone

2012 AOL Inc. All rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Trademarks | AOL A-Z HELP | Advertise With Us

Engadget Primed: Camera Metering Explained -- Engadget

Documents

Transcript of Engadget Primed: Camera Metering Explained -- Engadget