Selecting metering mode for sports

[jaypol]

I typically shoot outdooor sports (swimming, baseball, water polo) using a Canon 350XT with a Canon 70-300 5.6. My shots have always come out ok using partial metering but I keep thinking that maybe I'm missing something.

Would evaluative, partial or center-weighted average be the best choice for sports (I always use the center point for focus.)

Thanks.
Great forum.

[Zebceponaf]

would also like to here someone's advice on this. I'm shooting evaluative right now.

[dekalbSTEEL]

If the lighting is relatively constant, I would use a gray card to set your exposure(in M mode) and leave it , adjust ISO as needed to get the fast shutter speed you want to freeze the action.

[dmwierz]

I believe the OP wanted to know about metering, not necessarily exposure, although D-steel's suggestion of using a gray card is a good one to set exposure and white balance.

I rarely use anything other than evaluative metering and this has worked well for me for a while. Every so often, my metering mode gets bumped to something else accidentally and my shots come up looking odd, and sure enough I discover the change in metering mode is the culprit. YMMV.

Multiple metering modes is one of those things, like 45-point AF, that I still haven't found the need for, but this is probably a limitation on my part, and not Canon's. I'm sure somebody has a need to use 45 points for AF, or some exotic metering mode, but I just haven't found either of them necessary, preferring to operate under the axiom: Keep It Simple Stupid.

[dekalbSTEEL]

Shows the limitations of my 300d, no user selectable metering modes

And if you use a gray card to set exposure, it wouldn't matter which metering mode you use, no?

[dmwierz]

Originally Posted by dekalbSTEEL

Shows the limitations of my 300d, no user selectable metering modes

And if you use a gray card to set exposure, it wouldn't matter which metering mode you use, no?

Steel - The metering mode controls how the camera interprets the light it sees, and how it looks around the frame for light and dark spots. The result of this interpretation is fed into the exposure calculation when the camera computes which shutter speed to combine with a chosen aperture and ISO, for example, in Av mode.

Which metering mode you choose could impact your exposure if you had something really bright in the corner, say, and had chosen center spot metering. The camera would assume the scene was darker than it is and over expose the image.

However, if you are shooting a gray card properly, it should be filling the frame and be shot at a fairly small aperture (like f/16), and should also be out of focus. In this instance, the light on the card should be fairly uniform so the metering mode is going to have minimal impact on the exposure.

Here is an excerpt from the 1D MkIIn's manual:

[dekalbSTEEL]

Originally Posted by dmwierz

However, if you are shooting a gray card properly, it should be filling the frame and be shot at a fairly small aperture (like f/16), and should also be out of focus. In this instance, the light on the card should be fairly uniform so the metering mode is going to have minimal impact on the exposure.

Yeah, that's what I was getting at...

And I'm familiar with the different metering modes, spot metering is one thing I miss about my film Elan ( and that big bright viewfinder)

[totalbeginner]

Until recently I've always used evaluative and Av. Now I've started taking a spot reading and shooting in manual.

I find this works much better and gives more consistent results. It stops the S/S jumping up and down when the meter is thrown off by something, i.e large light or dark areas. You soon get used to using certain things to meter from such as grass, pavement etc...

[FZ1dave]

I only used evaluative for sports so far and it's worked well, but I'm a complete newb.

Now that you've got me thinking I'm gonna have to play with partial and center weighted.

[PhotosGuy]

If the lighting is relatively constant, I would use a gray card to set your exposure(in M mode) and leave it , adjust ISO as needed to get the fast shutter speed you want to freeze the action.

Gray cards are OK, but this is faster & the metering mode doesn't matter as much: Need an exposure crutch?

[pagnamenta]

It depends on the color and design of the uniforms. I mostly use partial or spot metering. Not to say evaluative won't do the job; I use all AF points to track the subject so I never know which point the metering is coming off of. The spot meter also allows you to check the exposure on their face, which is really important if they have hats or helmets.

When shooting white, you always have to overexposure a little. If the uniform is really dark, then you need to underexpose. Spot metering allows you to get it right.

I also shoot all manual, so when I meter with evaluative, no matter where I seem to point the camera, I get the same reading. If I use spot, the reading is different for the pants, the shirt, the face, and the background.

[S.Horton]

Evaluative, and adjust exposure for consistency in PP in RAW.

In short, we cheat.

[PhotosGuy]

I mostly use partial or spot metering. ...so I never know which point the metering is coming off of.
&
When shooting white, you always have to overexposure a little. If the uniform is really dark, then you need to underexpose. Spot metering allows you to get it right.

It's not like the actual light is changing... just what the meter thinks is "right". Shooting on full "M" solves that problem & allows you to concentrate on what's happening on the field. See post # 10 again.

[Roy Webber]

Evaluative...

[Dan-o]

Wow, revive a 6 month old thread for that.