Mamiya 7ii Exposure Compensation

[salmacis]

hi!

I'm not really sure about the exposure compensation dial on the Mam7ii, so maybe someone can shed some light...

1. does it only work in auto (A) mode? i can see that while adjusting the exp. comp. the shutter speed changes (in the viewfinder) - but it does not when working in manual mode, so if i set the camera to 1/8 and adjust by +1.0 it's still at 1/8th...

2. shutter and aperture are set in full stops, but how does the camera adjusts by let's say 0.3 EV ?

many thanks
salmacis

 

[sevres_babylone]

Exposure compensation only works in auto mode.
In manual mode, you can't set intermediate shutter speeds, but you can set aperture between the stops (at least as far as I can recall).

 

[davidpg]

Exposure compensation only works in auto mode.

I don't think that this is correct. According to the instruction manual, the exposure compensation works in both AE and manual mode. On my 7ii, that is the way it seems to be.

David

 

[rphenning]

Exposure compensation only works in auto mode.

I don't think that this is correct. According to the instruction manual, the exposure compensation works in both AE and manual mode. On my 7ii, that is the way it seems to be.

David

the 7 manual states EC is overridden when in Manual mode. Weird to me that the 7II would have EC in manual.

 

[salmacis]

but you can set aperture between the stops (at least as far as I can recall).

well yes, but that's not very accurate - there are no 'clicks' between the stops...

 

[salmacis]

Exposure compensation only works in auto mode.

I don't think that this is correct. According to the instruction manual, the exposure compensation works in both AE and manual mode. On my 7ii, that is the way it seems to be.

David

Hi David,

Where is that written? Have you tried? For me if you set to 1/8th for example and set +2.0EV it's still 1/8... (also according to the shutter sound)

Cheers

 

[salmacis]

the 7 manual states EC is overridden when in Manual mode. Weird to me that the 7II would have EC in manual.

Yes, agree, just curious where is that written? Thanks!

 

[Bob Michaels]

hi!

I'm not really sure about the exposure compensation dial on the Mam7ii, so maybe someone can shed some light...

I have never used the exposure compensation dial on my Mamiya 7 in the six years I have owned and used it. I just find it too difficult to dial in some compensation from some funky meter reading. Instead, I use the meter to guide me in making some intelligent decision, like f8 @ 1/500th then set the camera to that and shoot.

 

[davidpg]

It is on page 33 of the instruction manual. It is in both a pdf version that I downloaded and a printed copy. I will try to upload a clipping from the page. As you will see, it is a little bit vague, because it only mentions AE versus manual in the context of filter factors.

As I said, the compensation dial does seen to work in manual mode on my camera.

Having said all that, I have never really used the compensation dial.

David
Hi David,

Where is that written? Have you tried? For me if you set to 1/8th for example and set +2.0EV it's still 1/8... (also according to the shutter sound)

Cheers[/quote]

 

[salmacis]

It is on page 33 of the instruction manual. It is in both a pdf version that I downloaded and a printed copy. I will try to upload a clipping from the page. As you will see, it is a little bit vague, because it only mentions AE versus manual in the context of filter factors.

many thanks, david! yes, according to the manual exp. comp. should also work for manual mode...

As I said, the compensation dial does seen to work in manual mode on my camera.

hmm, i'm still not convinced... shutter speed always stays the same when adjusting by 1 or 2 stops (according to the sound)... also the speed displayed in the viewfinder is the same... have you tried setting manually to 1 sec. and adjusted by +2.0 stops - any difference?

thanks!
cheers
salmacis

 

[chris000]

The compensation dial seems to work in manual on my 7ii.

The following is a guess because, to be honest, how these things work is witchcraft to me:

The readings in the viewfinder stay the same because they are linked to the settings that you have applied manually for shutter speed and aperture. They are relatively crude in that they only show steps of 1 stop. The exposure compensation, if used, applies the changes via the electronic leaf shutter, which I assume can deal with sub 1 stop changes.

The above may be rubbish of course, and if anyone with greater technical knowledge can demonstrate that it is then I certainly wouldn't argue ... but I use the EC dial to apply adjustments for filter factors and I don't seem to have any exposure problems when using manual.

 

[salmacis]

The readings in the viewfinder stay the same because they are linked to the settings that you have applied manually for shutter speed and aperture.

yes, but the readings do change in A mode when you set exp. comp. to at least 1 stop +/-

if you say exposure compensation works for you, please set your camera to 1 sec and then dial in +2.0EV - for me it's still one second (instead of 4 secs) the shutter is open... and for you?

cheers
salmacis

 

[chris000]

I've never really looked at the viewfinder readings in manual mode - I set aperture and shutter using a hand held meter and just use exposure compensation for filters. This works, and is based on this statement which is extracted from Mamiya's website (http://www.mamiya.com/mamiya-7-ii.html):

"The Mamiya 7 II also have convenient and accurate built-in aperture priority AE (with 1/6 step increments), or completely manual metering with LED readouts. In both modes, +/-2 exposure compensation in 1/3 steps is possible. The AE system is able to provide excellent exposures for virtually any lighting situation, even with high contrast subjects. An AE lock is provided to give the photographer final exposure control. All shutter speeds can also be set manually on the camera’s shutter speed dial. In this mode the exposure meter can still be utilized by observing the LED readouts along the bottom edge of the viewfinder. Exposure compensation from +2 to -2 EV gives additional manual control to adjust for filters or to obtain certain desired effects."​

However, I did just take out my 7ii and try using the EC while in manual mode. I set the camera to 1/60th @f4.5 and the LED for 1/60 was lit in the viewfinder. I then dialled in +2 EC ... the 1/60 remained lit in the viewfinder but the 1/15th was also lit but flashing.

What does that mean? I haven't got a clue, it's all getting a bit technical for me 😕 - if you are still concerned why not e-mail Mamiya and ask them?

 

[salmacis]

Hi Chris,

However, I did just take out my 7ii and try using the EC while in manual mode. I set the camera to 1/60th @f4.5 and the LED for 1/60 was lit in the viewfinder. I then dialled in +2 EC ... the 1/60 remained lit in the viewfinder but the 1/15th was also lit but flashing.

Thanks for checking this out. Regardless of the readings in the viewfinder, what happens when you release the shutter in this example (just open the back or set multiple exp. to on) - logic says 1/60 + 2.0EC results in 1/15 effective shutter speed, right? However, according to the shutter sound it's still 1/60. If you can't tell the difference, try with 1 sec + 2.0 EC - it's still 1 sec and not 4 sec... any ideas??

Cheers

 

[mickster]

Double Negative has this right.
In manual mode the shutter will fire at whatever speed you've set on the speed dial.
Changing the exposure comp simply adjusts the speed that the meter suggests you use, indicated by a flashing shutter speed.

 

[salmacis]

Double Negative has this right.
In manual mode the shutter will fire at whatever speed you've set on the speed dial.
Changing the exposure comp simply adjusts the speed that the meter suggests you use, indicated by a flashing shutter speed.

yes, thanks - it seems exactly like this. i think the manual should make this more clear, this is not all obvious and kind of weird too IMHO.

cheers
salmacis

 

[chris000]

Double Negative has this right.
In manual mode the shutter will fire at whatever speed you've set on the speed dial.
Changing the exposure comp simply adjusts the speed that the meter suggests you use, indicated by a flashing shutter speed.

OK, but given that I can only adjust by 1 stop, and the viewfinder only gives readings in one stop values, how would I add a filter factor of 2/3rd of a stop. Mamiya seem to claim that I can do this so I'm still unsure, plus I have been using this method for some time and it seems to work, I end up with negatives that are well exposed. Admittedly I am normally only using half or two thirds stop compensation on B+W negative so it probably isn't quite as critical as say colour transparency.

Anyway, I have e-mailed Mamiya tonight to see if they can shed a a definitive light on this.

 

[mickster]

Chris

You'd add a filter factor of 2/3 by either dialling this in on the ISO dial or by setting the exposure comp to +2/3rds. This factor will then be taken into account by the suggested meter reading. Its then up to you to set the shutter speed manually to this meter reading (or not).

As you mention, its only possible to set manual shutter speeds in full stops, though this won't be a problem if shooting neg. This means you could be up to half a stop out of a 'true' exposure. As a workaround you can 'feather' the aperture ring either side of a given stop which will give you an idea of where the exact exposure lies, but its probabaly easier to just shoot on Auto if you need more precision.

 

[chris000]

Chris

You'd add a filter factor of 2/3 by either dialling this in on the ISO dial or by setting the exposure comp to +2/3rds. This factor will then be taken into account by the suggested meter reading. Its then up to you to set the shutter speed manually to this meter reading (or not).

As you mention, its only possible to set manual shutter speeds in full stops, though this won't be a problem if shooting neg. This means you could be up to half a stop out of a 'true' exposure. As a workaround you can 'feather' the aperture ring either side of a given stop which will give you an idea of where the exact exposure lies, but its probabaly easier to just shoot on Auto if you need more precision.

You are right, it seems I got away with it because of shooting neg and only needing to use relatively small adjustments. I received a reply from JP Distribution the Mamiya UK distributor - here it is and I quote:

"In manual exposure mode you will have to manually compensate for filters. Note that the aperture can be set anywhere between click stops, but the shutter speed can only be set to the click stops"

I'm glad to resolve this, I don't really do 'technical' so I'm not surprised I turned out to be wrong 😱 The manual could be clearer and I have e-mailed them back to suggest that they might suggest Mamiya do an amendment!