Title: READ/WATCH: Light Meter
Course: Digital Photography

Your light meter is your friend.

Light Meter

Your light meter is your friend. Light is the constant battle with photography - there is never enough of it to go around!

Many cameras have light meters that measure the amount of light your picture will receive and then display this value to you. It takes into account your shutter speed and aperture. Usually, you want your light meter to be in the center unless you are trying to get a special outcome with your picture.

Overexposure is where you get too much light and underexposure is where you get too little light for your subject. You may want to overexpose if you’re taking a picture in very bright conditions, or if your subject is in a shadow, or if your subject is darker then the background. You may want to underexpose if you want more color saturation on an overcast day, or if your subject is lighter than the background, or maybe you want a silhouette.

The light meter is usually measured in exposure values (EV). This should correspond to your cameras exposure compensation, if your camera has that option. For example, if your light meter is reading +1 you could adjust your exposure compensation by -1 and get the same result with out changing the aperture or shutter speed values.

Watch this screencast on manual metering: