Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/05/08
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I'm a Nikon user, and have subscribed to this list with the intent to ask about R Leicas, but stumbled upon this and can't help but answer. > I've never used an F5, and most likely never will. Unless I'm mistaken, the > F5 and other new plastic fantastics have on board computers that analyze > the readings from many points on the film plane and come up with a meter > reading based on some algorithm. It could be that when the meter sees the > same exposure value across the entire film plane it assumes you are > shooting the sky, hence the greater exposure. the F5 in definitely NOT a "plastic fantastic", ti's very well built, metal not plastic, do not take it up for a Canon, PLEASE. but even Canons are not made of plastic (I can't believe I'm actually saying this :-), they are made of a very strong material, which is also the chosen material for space ships, among other stuff (that doens't mean they are well built, however). the F5 (and the F100, which is what I have) is built to last, and to survive professional abuse. of course Leicas are the best built cameras in the world, but that doens't mean all others are trash. and the spot meter of the F5 is probably the best and most accurate built-in meter of all times, and IT DOESN'T COMPENSATE NOR IT DOES WEIRD THINGS WITH ALGORITHMS!!!!!!!! what comes close to what you said is the RGB matrix meter, which is the first (and only, up to now) meter that "sees" colours instead of a grey scale. it first compares the *matrix* reading (NOT spot or CW reading) with a database with 30,000 possible photographic situations and only if it doens't find one with the same paterns it applies the refered algorithms. but this doesn't happen if you're using it in spot meter. that way, is almost like a handheld meter. best regards, Fernando Martins Systems Administrator fer@caleida.pt http://fernando.somewhere.net/