Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/03/29

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Subject: Re: [Leica] M6 Meter Area
From: TEAShea <TEAShea@aol.com>
Date: Sun, 29 Mar 1998 10:48:36 EST

<< 
 I guess I'm having trouble figuring out why this is a topic. I don't
 mind... but I fail to see it's meaning. When you meter, unless it's a grey
 card, or blue sky, or green grass, (a large solid color), there's a lot of
 stuff in the area where the meter reads. The exact defining lines around
 the precise metering area does not, at least to me, seem relevant. >>

Jim, if the illumination of the scene is fairly even it does not matter.
However, there are many times when the areas of the scence vary substantially
in brightness.  The classic case is a person standing in front of a bright
background such as a sky.  If you do not know the area that the meter is
looking at, the meter can be fooled by the bright background and the photo
will be underposed.

Knowing the metering area is pretty important for ensuring correct exposures
in tricky situations.

Tom Shea