spot metering on 350d

mentos_007 · Apr 22, 2006

I read somewhere that 350d doesn't have spot metering. and then i read at dpreview that it has something like 9% center point metering... is this... the same what spot metering is?

Trevor · Apr 22, 2006

Umm, I have the 350D and could probably help you out, but I never had to figure out what spot metering is.

When I look in the menu I can find metering. There are three icons, empty half and full. I can also point it at lights (did this today) and it will give me a numerical reading on the light amount... I dont know how I did this though. (Back to the manual hehe)

Azuth · Apr 22, 2006

The 350d doesn't have spot metering. Spot metering is tighter still, (about 3.5% in the case of the 30D). 9% is still good, just make sure the area you're metering is covered by that 9% and you'll be fine. You may have to get close or zoom in to meter, then move of zoom out to use the information you gained

Meysha · Apr 22, 2006

The spot metering isn't always the tightest as Azuth mentioned. But like anything, you'll get used to it. And you'll start to look at the readings you get and go ... hang on... that can't be right. And that's when you zoom in and meter.

You shouldn't have any problems mentos!

thebeginning · Apr 23, 2006

azuth is right, it does not have spot metering. perhaps you read somewhere about the center weighted metering system, which might have a 9% 'spot' in the middle, but it does not meter entirely from that.

Big Mike · Apr 24, 2006

If it has the same three metering modes as the 20D...then it will have Full Matrix, Centre weighted Matrix and centre only.

bauerman · Apr 25, 2006

On the 350D what you are referring to is called "partial metering" rather than "spot metering". Spot metering is something that was recently added to the Canon 30D.....and it is a much smaller percentage of the shot that is used for the exposure calculations.

You have three options - partial, evaluative and center weighted. I really think that Canon SLR's do quite well with simple evaluative metering - although I will use partial every now and then for a backlit subject.

Jared