tcthome Loc: NJ

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Yup, some people analyze the crap out of stuff, making it more complicated than it needs to be.

Picture Taker Loc: Michigan Thumb

Like your approach "CHG CANON". (PS I do most of the time)

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

Give the others a try and see what happens. I have found that Evaluative metering is best 99% of the time. There are times when the subject is shaded and I might quickly try the others, but usually I just keep in on EM and just use the Exposure Compensation up a stop or 2. It's quick and easy.

photoman43

For me, it is matrix or evaluative metering, 99% of the time. I use highlight metering for special nature situations. For moon shots, spot or highlight. For some landscape situations, I may use Center weight.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

I use spot for the moon.

lamiaceae Loc: San Luis Obispo County, CA

I usually use spot metering, comes from my film zone system days. But sometimes I use the other two modes on my cameras. It all depends on the subject, background, and lighting.

Mustang1

Are you taking pictures in Program, or shooting photos in Manual?

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Of whom are you asking the question?
("Quote Reply" works well for identifying that.)

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Evaluative (or Matrix, as some call it) is what I use most of the time.

Center Weighted is an "old school" method. It was the primary metering pattern in cameras I used in the 1970s. It measures the whole scene, but puts a bit of extra emphasis on the center of the image. That would be fine if you put your subject right in the center of every image. But I don't do that.

In fact, Evaluative is similar, but smarter. It also measures the whole scene, but puts extra emphasis on the area right around active AF point(s). In other words, it assumes that the AF point is where your primary subject is located in the image area.

Spot Metering can be useful at times, but needs to be used carefully. Because only it's only a small portion of the image area, you have to take into account if there is any variation from "average gray" tonality in the area being
measured. Because Evaluative or Center Weighted are measuring a broader area, it's more likely to be a mix of tonalities that average out and won't need any Exposure Compensation (E.C.). I find Spot requires more careful E.C.

Partial Metering is merely a larger version of Spot.

Both Spot and Partial in most cameras are only in the center of the image area, usually defined by one or more circles etched into the focus screen. This can mean having to do your metering, then recomposing the image if you don't want the subject perfectly centered. One alternative I've used in the past were cameras with Active AF Point Linked Spot Metering... but that's now only found on the most advanced (and expensive) pro models. However, Evaluative Metering performs similarly... and might be a little more forgiving or less likely to need E.C. than AF Linked Spot.

I also usually carry a separate light meter: a Sekonic L358. This is an incidence/flash meter.

The light meter in your camera is reflective. It measures the light bouncing off of the subject and scene. As a result, the meter's readings are influenced by the tonalities in front of it. Often this isn't a problem with the broader methods of metering (Evaluative and Center Weighted) because all the stuff in the scene averages out to "18% gray" tonality. But if the scene is unusually dark it will cause the camera to want to over-expose.... or if it's unusually light, it will cause the camera to under-expose. This is where Exposure Compensation comes in with any of the auto exposure modes. E.C. lets you override the metering and exposure system to compensate for unusually dark or light scenes (if shooting purely manual exposure, you can skew your settings similarly).

An incidence meter instead reads the levels of light falling onto the subject(s). When done correctly, this requires no exposure compensation. (Though you still might tweak settings as a personal preference or for a particular effect.) The flash meter is handy when using multiple lighting units and needing to balance them carefully. My L358 accepts radio modules to remotely trigger some lighting gear. This model is no longer available... the Sekonic L308 is similar, but doesn't have the radio module option.

This reminds me... I need to pick up a new battery for my L358!

Mustang1

ImageCreator

Timmers Loc: San Antonio Texas.

The old method of exposure is what I use, it called knowing exposure. I come from the time when there were on light meters and the ones that did exist were mostly unreliable. So I learned what was an exposure. It is the basis of the rule of 16, which I explained in your other post about exposure.

To be sure, when you have an 8X10 camera and a hulking tripod doing landscape images, light meters can help, but mostly not. Learn exposure and you will get free of technology and back to creative control.

I ONLY shoot in manual mode, ever!

selmslie Loc: Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

I get the warnings before taking the image with my A7 II and my iPhone. I don’t get them on my Z7 or X100T.

I guess you are wrong about that. But I won’t harangue you about it for several pages. That would be childish.

User ID

I never use modes.