I would just like to know what do you guys usually prefer as for metering modes when photographing birds, and why.
I prefer manual exposure with the spot metering, this way I can control both the speed and aperture. I don't like to use aperture or speed priority because:
1) the first may set your speed to a very low value (a configurable minnimum of 1/60 on the D200), risking a blurry image.
2) the speed priority may close down your aperture too much in some cases, something I may not want.
Besides, those automated modes still require that you manually set the appropriate exposure compensation to different light levels... so why not just have total control over the aperture and speed?? Am I missing something here?
How low a speed do you go when using a tripod and a 600mm lens? I usually do tropical rainforest bird photography and getting enough ambient light is a major worry for me. It's just not always possible!
I've always shot in aperture-preferred auto on my Nikons since the days of the EL. I used center-weighted metering until matrix became available, and now use that almost exclusively. I've programmed the front button on my D200 to call in the spot meter, and I use that when it seems appropriate (as with the strongly backlit Cooper's Hawk recently posted in Avian).
1. I found out long ago that the Nikon meter is more accurate than my best guesses ever were.
2. I don't need to carry around another piece of equipment in the form of an external meter.
3. I don't need to reset everything when I move into different lighting conditions.
4. I control BOTH aperture and shutter speed with a single dial on the camera (the aperture dial) since both are displayed in the viewfinder.
5. with a long lens (I shoot a 300/2.8 with a 2x) I'm usually at max aperture or within a couple stops of it.
6. I shoot as low at 1/15th second at 600mm and take my chances on blur. Shooting more than one frame gives me more chances at a sharp image as I have more to choose from. I've posted a whole series recently with shutter speeds ranging from 1/30th to 1/90th with this setup.
I work a little differently than Rich does. I use incident light readings whenever possible. As long as the lighting stays consistant, an incident meter will give you proper exposures that won't be influenced by other objects in the viewfinder. Through the lens meters can give you different readings for the same scene. People don't believe me when I say this but it is true. Meter a scene with the camera held for a horizontal image, then turn the camera vertical and meter the same scene. I'll bet you a dollar against a hole in a donut you get two different readings. Right?
There's only one "correct" exposure for a scene and that is determined by the light falling on the scene and what objects reflect that light. With an incident meter you are measuring the light falling on a scene and not reflected light through the camera's meter. Using an incident meter, you measure the light falling on a scene, set the camera according to the incident meter reading and make the image. You can change compositions to your hearts desire and the exposure stays the same. The only time you have to change the exposure is if the lighting angle changes.
Obviously, lighting conditions are not always consistant. there are days when there are fast moving clouds in the sky and times when birds are constantly moving from sun light to shadow. For those few occasions I will use the camera's built-in meter on Av and use the spot metering meter pattern.
In answer to your question, use the Matrix Metering mode on the D200. Ten years ago, my wife and I were in South Africa and got shots of a Lilac Breasted Roller. The bird's coloration is multiple pastels. I was using a Nikon F5 while she was video taping with the bird on a branch with a bright blue sky behind. I got perfectly exposed images of the bird with great color while the sky was washed out. My wife, on the other hand, got a beautiful blue sky with a dark, almost black bird.
If I had tried to manually meter the bird, I would have gotten nothing. As it was, I only got two shots, one with the bird on the branch and the next with the bird in mid air.
Go with the 3D Matrix Metering when shooting fast moving subjects like birds. As Richard above says, the Nikon metering is more accurate than your best guess.
You also write about speed priority. That has nothing to do with the metering. For birds, always use aperture priority. If you are using big glass long lenses, they should be set wide open, i.e. f/2.8 for a 300mm or 400mm and f/4.0 for a 500mm or 600mm. Those lenses were designed for their best sharpness and contrast for that setting. And, when wide open the shutter speed will be at its minimum.
Posted by Tom Webster on July 12, 2007 at 11:56 PM
T. David Griffith wrote:
And, when wide open the shutter speed will be at its minimum.
David, I think you meant to write, "And, when wide open the shutter speed will be at its maximum."
Hate to nitpick, but it's what we do here, right? Shutter speeds are actually smaller the faster they are. 1/250 is slower than 1/500, and so on. So technically, you are both right.
I think this is a matter of semantics. (I even spelled that word correctly according to my browser!) For that matter, the word "speed" is really being misused. Perhaps the best word would have been to say "quickest" instead of minimum (time) or maximum (velocity).
Discussion
6 repliesI prefer manual exposure with the spot metering, this way I can control both the speed and aperture. I don't like to use aperture or speed priority because:
1) the first may set your speed to a very low value (a configurable minnimum of 1/60 on the D200), risking a blurry image.
2) the speed priority may close down your aperture too much in some cases, something I may not want.
Besides, those automated modes still require that you manually set the appropriate exposure compensation to different light levels... so why not just have total control over the aperture and speed?? Am I missing something here?
How low a speed do you go when using a tripod and a 600mm lens? I usually do tropical rainforest bird photography and getting enough ambient light is a major worry for me. It's just not always possible!
1. I found out long ago that the Nikon meter is more accurate than my best guesses ever were.
2. I don't need to carry around another piece of equipment in the form of an external meter.
3. I don't need to reset everything when I move into different lighting conditions.
4. I control BOTH aperture and shutter speed with a single dial on the camera (the aperture dial) since both are displayed in the viewfinder.
5. with a long lens (I shoot a 300/2.8 with a 2x) I'm usually at max aperture or within a couple stops of it.
6. I shoot as low at 1/15th second at 600mm and take my chances on blur. Shooting more than one frame gives me more chances at a sharp image as I have more to choose from. I've posted a whole series recently with shutter speeds ranging from 1/30th to 1/90th with this setup.
There's only one "correct" exposure for a scene and that is determined by the light falling on the scene and what objects reflect that light. With an incident meter you are measuring the light falling on a scene and not reflected light through the camera's meter. Using an incident meter, you measure the light falling on a scene, set the camera according to the incident meter reading and make the image. You can change compositions to your hearts desire and the exposure stays the same. The only time you have to change the exposure is if the lighting angle changes.
Obviously, lighting conditions are not always consistant. there are days when there are fast moving clouds in the sky and times when birds are constantly moving from sun light to shadow. For those few occasions I will use the camera's built-in meter on Av and use the spot metering meter pattern.
In answer to your question, use the Matrix Metering mode on the D200. Ten years ago, my wife and I were in South Africa and got shots of a Lilac Breasted Roller. The bird's coloration is multiple pastels. I was using a Nikon F5 while she was video taping with the bird on a branch with a bright blue sky behind. I got perfectly exposed images of the bird with great color while the sky was washed out. My wife, on the other hand, got a beautiful blue sky with a dark, almost black bird.
If I had tried to manually meter the bird, I would have gotten nothing. As it was, I only got two shots, one with the bird on the branch and the next with the bird in mid air.
Go with the 3D Matrix Metering when shooting fast moving subjects like birds. As Richard above says, the Nikon metering is more accurate than your best guess.
You also write about speed priority. That has nothing to do with the metering. For birds, always use aperture priority. If you are using big glass long lenses, they should be set wide open, i.e. f/2.8 for a 300mm or 400mm and f/4.0 for a 500mm or 600mm. Those lenses were designed for their best sharpness and contrast for that setting. And, when wide open the shutter speed will be at its minimum.
David, I think you meant to write, "And, when wide open the shutter speed will be at its maximum."
Hate to nitpick, but it's what we do here, right? Shutter speeds are actually smaller the faster they are. 1/250 is slower than 1/500, and so on. So technically, you are both right.
I think this is a matter of semantics. (I even spelled that word correctly according to my browser!) For that matter, the word "speed" is really being misused. Perhaps the best word would have been to say "quickest" instead of minimum (time) or maximum (velocity).