Question to M7 Owners -- do you use the AE that much?

The M7 has a little dot in viewfinder that appears and does not flash when the shutter is partially depressed to indicate the exposure is locked. Its really the same as using an external meter in that you expose on the portion of the scene that you want the exposure for if you have a high contrast scene. Partially depress the shutter until the dot lights up and then frame and shoot.
If your subject does not need this then just go ahead and shoot, I have two M7's and they are ther best of the lot. Only drawback is if using Motor M's in that the initial exposure if locked will not be retained for further exposure with the Motor M. You really need to use an M7 and draw your own conclusions.-Dick
 
maddoc said:
Sure, AE is faster to measure the exposure and keep the settings (only a locking button is needed) but that is exactly the pitfall for me... Without having the hold-button pressed (which I would forget to do when I have to take a photo very fast, within parts of a second) and suddenly facing a backlight situation for example, the AE will change the exposure according to the backlight (with a underexposed subject).
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Fair enough. I've gotten used to it, but not after mistakes along the way!
 
PATB said:
Thanks for the comments everyone. It seems the owners find the AE very useful.
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Of course, it's always possible that M7 users are a subset which is more inclined to accept AE than the average for the overall Leica M user base. Those who feel they don't want/don't need AE may not have bought an M7 in the first place.
 
Or you could expand that, Tom, to include all who choose AE RFs other than the M7; I've not had an M7 but use CLE, Z-I, HexarRF, Bessa R4A, Contax G2, Bronica RF645, Fuji GA645. CLE is roundly criticized for not allowing metered manual, but I don't find that a drawback.
 
AE is only any use (quickly) if the compensation controls are intuitive to use. You will therefore have to have a play with a M87 to decide if that would work for you. I prefer to understand what is going on with the shadows and lock in exposure so the camera exposure does not twitch every time there is a bit or bright sun in the frame (losing you your shadows). I use AEL all the time on the Mamiy 7II because its more of a spot meter and i know exactly what it is metering every time. AE is more useful with slides than B&W, the latter being all about shadows rather than highlights, the reverse being true with slides. shooting 35mm one rarely gets the chance to control development for specific scenes, so I would rather get the shwdows I need and then if the scene is too contrasty i pre-flash. I can choose to back off on the indicated reading if I am happy to let the shadows drop off to black though. I prefer light levels to be interprested by my brain first, but thats a personal thing. I work in very contrasty light a lot and thats a recipe for disaster if one relies a lot on AE. still, you can always shoot your M7 in manual! I personally would not bother changing cameras tho. Just get into the manual groove of looking at the light periodically and adjusting your settings. If that gets in the way of a nice day out, then the M7 is the better decision. My shooting kinda takes over if i have a camera with me so I dont mind 😀
 
I bought an M7 because it fits great in along with my M8 - and I use the AE quite often. However, I mostly use it as an initial reading, measuring the different parts of a scene and making up my mind about the exposure - then going into manual.

I will perhaps change if I get into classic ´street´ again, but for me that entails going somewhere on my own and totally getting into shooting with one camera & one lens... Cant see that coming, but if so I think I would use the AE a lot. At least before really getting into seeing the light - when I am able to be 100% focused I still think manual is the way to go...

Another way I am using my M8 is as a light meter for the 4X5 springback that I have started using, it is just perfect for that. One shot with it and then going into the levels of different areas to check the range of exposure... I would do something of the same with the M7 if digital was not an option, I like having backups along with 4X5 og 6X7 which is more prone to undetected errors...

Overall, I find the M7 (and M8) just perfect for really working with a scene, they never get in the way when I am shooting. It has happened too many times with dSLRs, somehow there is always a minor point nested into the menus somewhere, which needs attention... With an M7/8 you set the aperture, and in AE gets a clear and clean aperture speed in the viewfinder - perfect!

(It might sound strange, but when using my nikons I NEVER remember to look at the settings in the viewfinder! I guess it goes back to the time when I really got into using an M2 - and got used to finishing with the exposure settings even before raising the camera to my eye...)
 
notturtle said:
AE is only any use (quickly) if the compensation controls are intuitive to use.
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Agreed, and it is not on the M7. I never actually used the dial on my M7s. Having to remove the cam from your eye and fiddle with that dial is ridiculous, as you point out AEL is a practical solution, but Leica unfortunately decided to do something "simple". A design weakness in the M7 IMHO.
 
since your question is whether ae metering will speed up the process of taking a photo or not, the answer is yes, definitely. anytime you cut a step out of a process, it makes that process quicker. i personally like having ae on my cameras, but if you enjoy the process of manual metering and adjusting exposure before taking the shot, that's something you'll have to get used to.

as far as those who are suspicious the m7s ability to meter correctly, those suspicions are unfounded. i've put about 12 rolls through my m7 since december - 1 roll of slide, the rest b&w. i've had no problems printing any of the b&w shots and the slides came out exposed as well as i could expect. daylight, lowlight, whatever lighting the scene presented the meter was very accurate. of course, the ae lock function came in handy for a few shots.
 
notturtle said:
AE is only any use (quickly) if the compensation controls are intuitive to use.
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Well, you got to understand how to use compensation on the M7 then. It's not the exposure compensation dial on the back. It's by adjusting the aperture on the lens while holding the shutter release button halfway.
 
waileong said:
Well, you got to understand how to use compensation on the M7 then. It's not the exposure compensation dial on the back. It's by adjusting the aperture on the lens while holding the shutter release button halfway.
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No. You select your aperture for a very good reason - DOF. Changing the aperture is unacceptable as a means of exposure compensation.
 
unless you are entering camere shake territory (or need a particular max/min speed for other reasons) in which case aperture changes might be teh desired option. Otherwise, I too work around the desired aperture.
 
I had an M7 and sold it because I found I was NOT using the AE enough. I do tend to trust it on my digital cameras, less so with film (although I really do trust the metering in my F4 and in the Contax G2). Now I have M2, M3, M5 M6 and meter manually. Truth be told, I don't often shoot in situations where the light is changing rapidly. If I am on the street and f:5.6 at 1/250 sec is right, then it is not likely that I will need to change that setting until something about the moment fundamentally changes. But these idiosyncrasies are definitionally personal. It really depends on how you shoot.

Ben Marks
 
I use AE nearly 90+% of the time on moth my M7 and M8. For me it frees my mind to focus on the subject and composition.

Everyone's different but it works for me 🙂
 
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