Metering mode for portraits

Which metering mode do you use for portrait photography? thanks!

It's not so much what mode you use as it is how you learn to interpret what the camera is telling you. This is what I use: Need an exposure crutch?

I'm assuming you are using flash?

PhotosGuy wrote in post #18449865
It's not so much what mode you use as it is how you learn to interpret what the camera is telling you. This is what I use: Need an exposure crutch?

digital paradise wrote in post #18450206
I'm assuming you are using flash?

no flash, thanks for the replies!

Spot, in those rare cases I don't have my lightmeter with me.

I use Evaluative for EVERYTHING. Somewhere, way in the back of shriveled up, pea-sized brain, I think it is easier to completely understand how one metering mode works, than to mostly use one, and be confused when the others don't behave as expected. I got by just fine for 40 years with film cameras that only did Center-Weighted Average.

Bassat wrote in post #18450427
I use Evaluative for EVERYTHING. Somewhere, way in the back of shriveled up, pea-sized brain, I think it is easier to completely understand how one metering mode works, than to mostly use one, and be confused when the others don't behave as expected. I got by just fine for 40 years with film cameras that only did Center-Weighted Average.

thanks Bassat!

Bassat wrote in post #18450427
I use Evaluative for EVERYTHING. Somewhere, way in the back of shriveled up, pea-sized brain, I think it is easier to completely understand how one metering mode works, than to mostly use one, and be confused when the others don't behave as expected. I got by just fine for 40 years with film cameras that only did Center-Weighted Average.

^^^ this is the same reason I use Spot metering- pick one, read up on it, learn it's behavior and have fun.

Without any offense intended, Evaluative is the 'non-thinking mode'...if is what generally 'works most of the time' to provide usable (but not necessarily 'correct') exposures.

For a given skin brightness, sometimes Evaluative will result in a 'correct exposure', but there will be other times it will result in a 'somewhat underexposed' exposure, and yet other times it will result in a 'somewhat overexposed' exposure. A photographer, who needs to record with accuracy a shot so that the colors and tonality are recorded with precision might find Evaluative to be sufficiently wrong much of the time so that a client who demands ACCURACY of color (for example, someone in the textile industry) would be grossly unsatisfied.

Understand that ALL meters try it interpret the metering sample point to RENDER that point as 'midtone, 18% tonality'.

1. Evaluative prioritizes the AF focus zone(S) to have greater importance, but Evaluative includes the surrounding zones as well, to derive some composite brightness of all the zones and render that composite to average 18% tonality!
   
2. Center-weighted prioritizes the central zones but includes the surrounding zones as well, to derive some composite brightness of all the zones and render that composite to average 18% tonality!
   
3. Only Partial and Spot ignore all but the central area of the viewfinder
   

Bassat wrote in post #18450427
I use Evaluative for EVERYTHING. Somewhere, way in the back of shriveled up, pea-sized brain, I think it is easier to completely understand how one metering mode works, than to mostly use one, and be confused when the others don't behave as expected. I got by just fine for 40 years with film cameras that only did Center-Weighted Average.

And this is the reason that mostly I have mine set for CWA to this day. With CWA I do know what the camera is going to do in pretty much any situation, since it is essentially the same as my Pentax ME Super did back in 1980 when I first had a camera with built in metering.

The problem with Evaluative is that the camera will assess a whole load of different sections of the frame, and then use some unknown algorithm to try to make a guess at what it is looking at. As the scene gets more complicated you run a higher chance of the camera taking an unexpected decision. My all time favorite metering mode though is still an external incident lightmeter, preferably with circular analogue readout, which is what I started out with back around 1974 or so.

Alan

Wilt wrote in post #18450749
both Partial and Spot will try to make Caucasian skin to be TOO BRIGHT, because untanned Caucasian skin is typically about +1EV brighter than 18% midtone!

You mean too DARK don't you?

FTb wrote in post #18453331
You mean too DARK don't you?

Yes, you are correct. Over the past week this is the second time my brain has made my hands type the wrong thing!

Wilt wrote in post #18456666
Yes, you are correct. Over the past week this is the second time my brain has made my hands type the wrong thing!

I don't think you can edit a post that old, so I fixed it for you.

PhotosGuy wrote in post #18456685
I don't think you can edit a post that old, so I fixed it for you.

Never had a problem editing even older posts before!

Wilt wrote in post #18456699
Never had a problem editing even older posts before!

Frank is being nice. Doesn't want you to screw it up.