In photography, the metering mode refers to the way in which a camera determines the correct exposure.
Examples of Metering Modes
Cameras generally allow the user to select between spot, center-weighted average, or matrix metering modes.
Spot Metering
With spot metering the camera will only take a tiny spot of the scene into account when calculating the exposure. This will typically be the very center of the scene, but some cameras allow the user to select a different, off-center spot.
Spot metering is useful when the scene consist of objects with a huge difference in lightness. For example, if there is a bright light off to the side that one cannot avoid, then using spot metering will enable one to have the camera ignore this light and give the interesting subject the correct exposure. The area around the bright light will then become over-exposed, but if that part is to be removed afterwards anyway, then that is not a problem.
Spot metering is a method that the zone system depends upon.
Center-Weighted Average Metering
In this metering mode the camera will use the light information coming from the entire scene, but will give the light in the center a higher priority. This basically does what one would expect: the camera will ensure that the entire scene is correctly exposed, while taking extra care of the exposure in the center, where one would expect the most interesting subjects to be.
Matrix Metering
This mode is also called multi metering mode on some cameras. Here the camera measures the light intensity in several points in the scene (more expensive cameras generally measure in more points) and then combine the results to find the settings for the best exposure.
On cameras where one finds this setting, it is supposed to give the best overall pictures.
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