Hi,
I traded for a 1Ds mkII a month ago and I have found that the metering over exposes by 2- 2.5 stops consistently, in all metering options (spot, partial, eval) and modes (P, A, S). I tend to have the exposure comp at -2 stops to get a proper image. This happens regardless of whether I use canon EF lenses or fully manual legacy glass.
The camera came with the split screen installed, but the appropriate function was set to account for that in the camera.
Any thoughts? I don't seem to be able to figure it out.
My first thought when I read your title was "focusing screen"? Those focusing screens make it so the light reaching the meter decreases drastically with stopping down. For example, when I added one to my 20D (no formal compensation so no appropriate function), a lens at f/1.7 would be about 1/3 stop overexposed, while a lens at f/5.6 was 2 stops overexposed. This made variable-aperture zooms impossible to use.
Have you noticed a difference as you stop down legacy glass? Have you had a chance to install the original focusing screen?
john_edwards wrote:
Mine has always been about 2/3 a stop over. Not a big deal for me as long as I remember to set it before hand. 2- 2.5 seems to be a lot to me though.
I generally have to adjust the exposure compensation by about 2/3 as well - but it's a bit finicky - I find myself checking every shot to get the maximum 'expose to the right' without blowing out the highlights.
Sometimes depending on the scene, I have to compensate up to -2.
I seem to be adjusting the exposure compensation an awful lot more than I did when I had a 5D2.
But it's all good. I love the shots coming out of my 1Ds2.
What is the shutter count on your camera? I heard that when your camera over-exposes too much, it might be because the shutter is failing, making everything a bit slower.
The shutter count is in the 60,000 range so relatively low for it's lifespan..
I will re install the original matte screen and see how i does, but when I checked the custom settings, the camera was set for the right screen type, so that should compensate for it.
I will also reset all the original settings to see if something was triggered that I was not aware off. If these fail, I will have Canon look at it..
I had a bit of trouble with mine when I first bought it. It would overexposed as well regardless of metering mode. Sent it toCPS and they calibrated the meter. No issues since - it has been spot on in pretty much all situations.
Mine is roughly 1/3 of a stop overexposed sometimes. Not usually a problem as it's generally not enough that I accidentally clip highlights-- but occasionally while switching bodies I forget about it
