Light Meter

​I am just beginning. I found out today that the light meter when outside works great. I set it at zero and the pics come out good. But in low lighting I am having problems. I set the meter to 0 and the pictures come out dard and blurred. I tried using the Macro setting and the pics came out great. I used the same settings on Manual that was used on Macro 1/60 f8 100 and the light meter was all the way to the left but i took the shot anyway and like with the macro picture the photo looked good again even when the light meter told me it wouldn't. I guess I am confused. The pictures were taken in my living room with just one light overhead off to the side. I guess I can't really rely on the Light Meter anymore. What are your thoughts on the light meter Thanks

It sounds like you don't understand how the Exposure Meter works. First and foremost, it's not an infallible guide to perfect exposure under every condition. It works to help you achieve a proper exposure based on 18% reflectivity, or what we call 18% Grey. If your scene is not "average", or roughly 18% grey, your Exposure Meter will be "fooled" and your exposure incorrect. Read this article from the Nikon database, it will explain in detail: How Does an Exposure Meter Work?.

I would also suggest you read this article, Understanding Histograms to help you get a grip on proper exposure. Histograms are the greatest thing to hit digital photography since digital photography itself.



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No point in using all these terms with most photographers, especially a new one. What happens when you shoot indoors? Are they to underexposed or is there a spot that is overexposed?

Also If you fill out your profile we can better answer any questions that you might have.
You can do that at http://nikonites.com/profile.php?do=editprofile

We need to know what kind of camera you are using. Also if you could upload a sample of the problem we can help you more. Here are the instructions on how to so that

Guidelines to adding a photo to your post.

1. Resize photo to 1000px on the long side.
2. Resolution set to 72ppi (Pixels Per Inch)

These guidelines will be good for viewing on a computer but will not be good for printing. This will help safeguard your copyright.

Thanks, I will update my profile. Thanks Horoscope Fish about introducing me to Histograms. I think? Lol I am going to do more research on this and I know it is going to help. I never could understand what Histograms were until now. Thanks again and maybe I will send an example of the problems. Thanks again, it is nice to get some needed help.

High201 said:

Thanks, I will update my profile. Thanks Horoscope Fish about introducing me to Histograms. I think? Lol I am going to do more research on this and I know it is going to help. I never could understand what Histograms were until now. Thanks again and maybe I will send an example of the problems. Thanks again, it is nice to get some needed help.

Click to expand...

You're welcome.

I can assure you if you read and understand both those articles exposure will no longer be an issue for you.


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