dabbleshots Loc: Richmond,va.

ok,, got a question for right exposure,, Im slowly getting things figured out in right settings for whatever,, problem I encountered lately,,,isif the light meter is set at zero and reading correct light etc for the shot,,, how come sometimes when you take the pic,, its too dark as if the shutter is too fast,,,, still learning but I thought if the meter is set on zero by the factors,, shouldn't that be the correct exposure to take the picture ?? signed,,, confused!

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

Check your Exposure Compensation setting. Make sure it's set to zero also.

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

Dabble, I don't think the meters in cameras are wrong very often, it's a VERY mature technology.
The problem is more likely to be WHAT you are metering on and what mode you're using to meter. The reason there are different meter modes in the camera is to deal with different types of light situations. Get the mode wrong and the metering will be wrong.
Also if you are recomposing, that will also throw the meter off.
Likely be be user error. Good luck
SS

dabbleshots Loc: Richmond,va.

Ok,, thanks,, still learning the exposure thing so I will check things you mentioned,,, thank you very much!

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

The camera's meter doesn't know what you are shooting, or what is important and what isn't. It just sees light, and responds. If you are using some form of evaluative metering - usually the default mode on most cameras, the metering system has a bunch of rules that it will impose to try to get the best image. You'll probably notice that when you have a subject of average brightness range everything is fine, but when you have lots of dark or light areas or an image with a very wide range of brightness, the result will be unexpected. If there is a large bright area, the meter will try not to overexpose the scene and it will appear dark. If there is a large dark area, it will try to provide a good exposure for the dark parts, and you may find the image is lighter, and some highlights will be captured without any detail at all (blown highlights).

You should become familiar with the histogram view (I think all digital cameras have this), and highlight warning - that you can enable and will show up either as striped or blinking areas. If with a given set of exposure settings you get blinkies, then you would dial in a little negative exposure compensation (the +/- comp) to reduce the exposure setting (which will be either a faster shutter speed, a smaller lens opening or a lower ISO), and vice versa. A good histogram generally is one that does not have the right side of the image data touching the right edge of the chart. When you search for information on histograms you'll begin to understand how to better use it.

PattyW60 Loc: Northwest Illinois

SS hit on the thought I was going to mention. I used to get frustrated with my inconsistent problems with exposure. Turns out, when I would recompose my shot, my camera was metering off of something else like a brighter background of sky or sun, for example. Then, my subject was too dark. I shoot in Aperture Priority Mode 99% of the time...I need to get comfortable with Manual Mode. Hope this helps.

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

On the surface it seems that it should be a correct exposure, but there are many factors at work to obtain a correct exposure. I suggest you watch this youtube video. There are others. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PH8spP4bO8

DanCulleton

Ulitimately there is no "correct" exposure.
The right exposure is an artistic choice you make in PP.
Evaluative metering is weighted toward your focus point, remember that if you focus and recompose.
Shoot in RAW, and fine tune your exposure adjustments in PP.

photoman022 Loc: Manchester CT USA

I've come to the conclusion that many of the through the lens light meters in DSLRs are incorrect too many times. In the old film days the rule was meter off the ground and then take your shot; it worked well. When I'm in full sun and the light meter "suggests" f/16 at 1/15 of a second, I know that something is wrong! I bought an external light meter that I use regularly; since using it my exposures have been spot on (usually disagreeing with the camera meter reading).

There is also the "sunny 16" rule from film days, but I find that that doesn't always work either with DSLRs.

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

An exposure meter is simply an instrument to measure light. I am sure you know that the metered light can be incident or reflective measures depending on the meter used. All in camera meters measure reflective light, that is the light reflected by the subject.
When the in camera meter shows the meter pointing to the zero mark that means that the meter has averaged all the light from the subject to make it the equivalent of an 18% reflectance, that happens to be a neutral gray color. If you meter a dark subject or a bright one the meter when indicating a "correct" exposure is actually underexposing the bright subject while overexposing the dark one. It assumes a bright subject is too bright and a dark subject is too dark and represents them as a middle tonality. If you know how the meter works you make the necessary corrections.
Matrix or evaluative metering is a different story although they still measure for a middle tonality because the meter is computerized they have a tendency to compensate the exposure. I do not believe anybody can predict how much that compensation will be. Using matrix or evaluative metering the final exposure could or could not be to your liking. The photographer is not in control unless help is obtained through exposure compensation.
I seldom use matrix. My most used modality is center weighted although I reserve spot metering for some difficult lighting situations.
Many times, regardless of the type of meter you use you will notice that even for a middle tonality the meter will not show a properly exposed histogram and usually when this happens the middle tonalities are underexposed. This is common and easily fixed with digital editing programs.
I have been using exposure meters for more than 50 years and at times it amazes me that a "correct" exposure was not that correct after all.

JPL

You have usually 3 metering options. Spot metering, center weighted and matrix or the full frame metering. The problem you describe is very common when using spot metering. Check this on your camera and try taking some shots with different metering settings. Read about metering in your camera manual or online and then you will soon learn all you need about this.

Armadillo Loc: Ventura, CA

Hello Confused,

There are many things that can cause the effect you are experiencing. For a general rule you have the right idea on exposure. More precisely you need a deeper understanding on what is going on inside the camera.
Your camera may have several exposure metering points when you depress the shutter button half way down. Normally these metering points measure specific points within a scene and average the reading for a given exposure setting. Many advanced digital cameras have options to manually set the metering points by the owner. Including 'Single Point Metering'.

Let us take single point metering. In this setting the camera will use a single point of the scene to measure exposure, this may be a 3 degree arc from center of the viewfinder. If you have a scene with 20 variations of illuminations, and you point the center spot at a bright white sheet, the camera will measure the illumination of the sheet and the surrounding elements in the scene will become under-exposed.
If you have an eight point metering system selected your camera will measure all eight points and average the reading to produce an exposure value.
If you have an eighteen point exposure system selected the camera will measure all 18 points and average the illumination for an exposure measurement.

This does not mean you will get a correct exposure for the scene, it simply means you have a better chance of getting a correctly exposed capture.

You need to thoroughly understand how your camera exposure options work, and use the one that suites your style of photography. Example, you could select single point metering, knowing how the illumination of the scene will affect the overall exposure, select a subject within the scene to set exposure on, accept that some elements may be over-exposed, and some fall into dark shadows. But, the principle subject is correctly exposed.

Study your owners manual on exposure, practice various settings, review all your trials, and take good notes on the subject and camera settings.

Only practice and experience will resolve your exposure problems.

Michael G

MtnMan Loc: ID

Check your metering method. If spot small movements can greatly affect exposure.

Usually use matrix or whatever your camera calls averaging.

GENorkus Loc: Washington Twp, Michigan

My first thought brought a smile to my face. I passed it on as a joke.

Besides all the others talking about metering and such, it might be possible that your taking a photo in a dark location. (LoL again)

Elliern Loc: Myrtle Beach, SC

Thank you for this simple answer. I had a similar problem today as the OP. The exposure seemed completely off. I forgot that yesterday I set my exposure to spot metering.

I hope that corrects my problem.