Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/01/16

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Subject: Re: [Leica] Metering the highlights. Help!
From: Eric Welch <ewelch@ponyexpress.net>
Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 00:38:21 -0600

>So Ted (or anyone else), if you're reading, what do you mean by metering for
>the highlights?  If the hottest reading in the scene is the water at EV 10,
>what exposure value do you shoot?

I'll not propose to answer for Ted (he doesn't think much of the Zone
system, so zones aren't much help here <G>). To meter for the highlights is
to place the bright part of the scene where you want it.

I learned to shoot with chrome film, so this is a natural for me. Though
I'm way out of practice now because I shoot only neg. film at work. In your
example, you want to keep the brightest part of the scene at about Zone 6,
6.5 or even 7. Depends on how bright it is over the mid-gray tone you want
to represent. 

It would help to not think in EV at all. With an incident meter, EV would
be whatever the meter says. You use Zones if you're taking reflective meter
readings. So say you're shooting a bride with a white dress. You meter the
bright part of the dress at about Zone VII and leave it. Don't bother
metering the shadows. Let them go where they may. Slide film demands you
keep the highlights from blowing out. Lack of detail in the highlights
kills slides faster than about anything else.

Eric Welch
St. Joseph, MO
http://www.ponyexpress.net/~ewelch

Cynicism often masquerades for sophistication in our society, but more
often than not it's merely an indicator of resentment.