I have a question I'm going to experiment with, but I'd also like some background info on.
After reading a bunch of John Shaw books, I often like to spot meter. I understand the concept, and I've had pretty good luck guessing +/-eV values that way.
My question is digital specific. Let's say you're metering something with a dominant color: mostly red, mostly blue, or mostly green. (Happens a lot with flowers.) How does the camera meter? My understanding is that the metering sensor is not color specific, but looks at the entire visible spectrum - is this correct? Will it tend to blow out the dominant color? In other words, if you meter on a red object at 0 eV, will it try to achieve middle gray by overexposing, to bring up the green and blue channels (for which there is not much light)?
My experience says yes, but I want verify how the thing actually works. If it matters (probably not!), I have a Nikon D300.
I hope I've articulated this clearly.
Thanks all,
Aram (also going to check Thom's D300 guide in case this info is in there....!)
get yourself a gray card and then in manual set your base EV till the meter reads 0
Now , without changing shutter or aperture , what does the meter read when you put it on a red flower? what about the dark green of the grass at your feet? It is the Relationship of these items to middle grey that will help you learn to Bias your spot meter readings in the future. If that red metered 1/3rd stop less than middle gray or the dark green grass 2/3rs of a stop down then in the same conditions in the future you have your starting point. And since we are talking about flowers I was Never without my gray card when i was doing exhaustive studies on them a few years ago
jmcfadden wrote:
it is complicated and easy at the same time
get yourself a gray card and then in manual set your base EV till the meter reads 0
Now , without changing shutter or aperture , what does the meter read when you put it on a red flower? what about the dark green of the grass at your feet? It is the Relationship of these items to middle grey that will help you learn to Bias your spot meter readings in the future. If that red metered 1/3rd stop less than middle gray or the dark green grass 2/3rs of a stop down then in the same conditions in the future you have your starting point. And since we are talking about flowers I was Never without my gray card when i was doing exhaustive studies on them a few years ago
