Pioneer
Veteran
With expired film I just keep guessing. All I change is the target ISO where I start my guessing at. 😀
What is your Light Metering Routine with Meterless Leicas?
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dee
Well-known
Even with a digital DSLR , I get more consistent results on manual after taking one reading and sticking with it unless the light or circumstances change ,
Just as I did with a Weston in the old days or even using the Contax bodied Kiev 4 meter with a little added thought .
Just as I did with a Weston in the old days or even using the Contax bodied Kiev 4 meter with a little added thought .
Huss
Veteran
rbrooks
Established
The best, most consistently good composition and highest hit ratio I had was around 15 years ago with a M3 and IIIf. I had a Sekonic 308 and tried to incident meter the shady and sunny sides of the street to get a feel for exposure range. Then I worked with that range by nudging the shutter speed up or down a notch. No need to look at the dial as the funny click around 1/50th let me know where I was by feel. Yes, I was one of those who complained with the M6 TTL which changed the direction of the shutter speed dial -- shame on you Leica! Also I played the game to see how good my guesses were against the meter to get better and better at predicting. So when I shot, the exposures turned out fine. I suppose in hind sight, I might have missed some shots where I didn't have time to meter and didn't want to burn a frame on a quick exposure guess. But the discipline did make me a much more aware shooter and hence the better composition. Funny enough, I started to stray away from the M3 as being too big and went often with my IIIf which is a better camera because it's smaller and pocketable with the 50 elmar. I only brought it out to shoot -- very quick in and out as the exposure I already knew and pre-set -- perhaps a nudge on shutter speed. Also my indoor base was ISO 400 (TMAX) with f2 and 1/60th. I memorised what that indoor light was like and opened up further where needed down to as low as 1/15th on occasion with hand shake bracketing.
Closely related to this is getting to know your one (or two) lenses. How they behave in certain light and how they focus. The digital has been great for this as we learn about focus shift. Tabbed lenses help here to know roughly where you are in a way non tabbed lenses don't. In that sense it's hard to beat the tabbed 35 and 50 crons for ergonomics.
I suppose the best would be to learn your lens on digital to really get a feel for how it behaves in all situations. But then shoot on an old M3 and get into the exposure routine.
Now I've fallen into a bad habit of ignoring exposure on my M240. If it's darker, I open as wide as I can, set the ISO to something that's ballpark, and then let the automation choose the shutter speed. If I notice the shutter speed is slow and hence will be blurry, I increase the ISO. So it's taken years to bond with digital Ms, but I'm getting there.
But film is gone for me as I don't have the time for the dev and scanning and I'm too cheap to accept the high cost of outsourcing that. And if you don't do the manual exposure and know your lens all the time you lose quite a bit of that instinct.
Closely related to this is getting to know your one (or two) lenses. How they behave in certain light and how they focus. The digital has been great for this as we learn about focus shift. Tabbed lenses help here to know roughly where you are in a way non tabbed lenses don't. In that sense it's hard to beat the tabbed 35 and 50 crons for ergonomics.
I suppose the best would be to learn your lens on digital to really get a feel for how it behaves in all situations. But then shoot on an old M3 and get into the exposure routine.
Now I've fallen into a bad habit of ignoring exposure on my M240. If it's darker, I open as wide as I can, set the ISO to something that's ballpark, and then let the automation choose the shutter speed. If I notice the shutter speed is slow and hence will be blurry, I increase the ISO. So it's taken years to bond with digital Ms, but I'm getting there.
But film is gone for me as I don't have the time for the dev and scanning and I'm too cheap to accept the high cost of outsourcing that. And if you don't do the manual exposure and know your lens all the time you lose quite a bit of that instinct.
Chubberino
Well-known
MR-4 works a treat for me
Godfrey
somewhat colored
With M4-2, I use either MR-4, Voigtländer meter, or an incident meter depending on what my mood is. When metering without a built-in meter, I generally prefer exposure readings with the incident meter and find them more accurate.
I meter the light to get a baseline and then tweak the setting based on experience. I use the same technique with my digital cameras, using the in-camera meter and the EC control on aperture priority most of the time.
G
I meter the light to get a baseline and then tweak the setting based on experience. I use the same technique with my digital cameras, using the in-camera meter and the EC control on aperture priority most of the time.
G
Roger Hicks
Veteran
Set exposure; consult meter (any meter). If my idea and the meter's differ (which they often don't), ask myself why. Decide which of us is likely to be closer, and adjust accordingly.
Cheers,
R.
Cheers,
R.
Rob-F
Likes Leicas
I often check the reflected reading against an incident reading. If the incident reading calls for a bit more exposure that the reflected one, I consider that normal (since it often happens). If this difference is only a half f-stop, I will probably go with the reflected reading. If the difference is large, greater than one stop, my reflected reading is probably being inflated by an overcast white sky or a large expanse of white wall within the picture area. Trusting the reflected reading would lead to underexposure. Then I go with the incident reading.
If in doubt, I select an exposure halfway between the two readings and then bracket.
With digital, I take a trial shot and check the histogram.
If in doubt, I select an exposure halfway between the two readings and then bracket.
With digital, I take a trial shot and check the histogram.
sara
Well-known
So I just kind of take a general metering around...if the light changes, I change the aperture or shutter speed by one, and then do a genera metering again to check.
Once that is sorted I just wing itttttt!!!
Once that is sorted I just wing itttttt!!!
Phil_F_NM
Camera hacker
Yesterday I got out with my Leica M4, for the first time in many months. I've been shooting with a meterless Nikon F2 mostly for a couple years now.
Usually I'm shooting TriX so I feel pretty confident with my sunny 16 conversions in the changing light of the city as well as with clouds blowing by swiftly.
If I feel like I need, I'll take a meter reading then keep going, usually this is towards the evening.
I really need to replace the batteries in my Metrawatt handheld meter, then actually use it.
Phil Forrest
Usually I'm shooting TriX so I feel pretty confident with my sunny 16 conversions in the changing light of the city as well as with clouds blowing by swiftly.
If I feel like I need, I'll take a meter reading then keep going, usually this is towards the evening.
I really need to replace the batteries in my Metrawatt handheld meter, then actually use it.
Phil Forrest