spot metering?

[back alley]

i'm curious…
do people use spot metering these days?
maybe use it less than they used to?

with today's built in metering modes, especially the multi/matrix type that seem to be able to handle pretty much any lighting situation, do people still use spot metering when available?

i used to use it almost all the time but i can't remember the last time i used it.

 

[Steve M.]

I use it because I find it's best for my type of photography (I only have one camera that has spot capability anyway). It's super fast to lock exposure on my subject of interest w/ the exposure lock, and then recompose and shoot. Usually I don't even have to do that. My subject is often in the center of the frame, so I just meter that and let all the other stuff fall where it may. I want the subject properly exposed, that's all.

 

[Matus]

I have done without a dedicated spot meter for years (I did use my DSLR at times like a spot meter though), but recently acquired one. Most of the time I will keep using my Digisix, but I would like to use the spot meter with E6 films.

 

[btgc]

Yes! My cameras don't have any of advanced metering modes. If some have, I may be unaware of them. Once I inspected my SLR and didn't discover any kind of matrix neither around mirror, focusing screen or in VF, and manual says there is matrix metering. If there's no spot mode then in need of one I set lens at longest FL and meter part of scene I'm interested in and then adjust either way.

 

[kshapero]

Yes I use it a lot on Fuji X-E2

 

[raid]

I use spotmetering with film cameras, and I use the metering of the M8 and M9 when using them.

 

[Spanik]

Regulary with the handheld meter. Certainly with things like stained glass or multi-coloured bright walls.

 

[rpinchbeck]

I still shoot slides, (E100G, Provia, Velvia) and still have a ton of APX100 so spot metering is still important.

Cheers,

Russ Pinchbeck

 

[Roger Hicks]

For negative film, with a true 1 degree spot meter, I read the darkest area in which I want texture and detail, using the shadow index. Without question the most accurate and reliable was of metering for negative. But quite honestly ANY metering system can be made to work reliably, including narrow-angle "spot" meter, so it's possible to get too excited about this, especially if (with neg) you err on the side of over-exposure.

Cheers,

R.

 

[back alley]

I still shoot slides, (E100G, Provia, Velvia) and still have a ton of APX100 so spot metering is still important.

Cheers,

Russ Pinchbeck

hey russ…long time no see!

 

[nikkor-watching]

Any metering of a known reflectance to be shot under the same light is useful to me. For instance I know a certain floor is going to be a half stop brighter than white skin tones on it so I can hold the exposure under manual. The matrix meter will get fooled by a changing proportion of bright floor and dark background even though the overhead lighting is fairly even. I often metered this with centre weighted but spot meter could be faster or more reilable.

 

[Moto-Uno]

I do, though my Pentax Spotmeter is sorta ackward to carry around. Peter

 

[Godfrey]

i'm curious…
do people use spot metering these days?
maybe use it less than they used to?

with today's built in metering modes, especially the multi/matrix type that seem to be able to handle pretty much any lighting situation, do people still use spot metering when available?

i used to use it almost all the time but i can't remember the last time i used it.

I have the E-M1 set such that when I feel I need to use AE Lock with the thumb button, separate from the shutter release half-press, it switches to spot metering. This way I'm ensured that what I want to be the metering basis is exactly what I'm pointing at. Normally, however, I use evaluative metering and watch the live histogram when needed.

With my film cameras, I mostly use a hand-held incident light meter.

G

 

[Pioneer]

This is one of the things that I absolutely love about the PZ1p. It has a very tight spot. I use spot metering and exposure lock all the time with that camera. It is also a great option with the P645Nii.