EOS_JD
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If you want a dark subject and a brightish background, what you'd probably have to do is meter off of the background, then recompose the shot to fit the subject in the way you wanted it in there and take the shot.
If you meter the background, you will not get a bright background as the camera will try to make it a middle grey. Certainly your subject will be darker.
Well, your last question requires a definition of proper. In regards to the metering, the camera will set 'proper' exposure by assuming its looking at an 18% grey card. Strictly speaking, its not possible to get that type of proper exsposure for both a darker subject and a lighter background. If the background is twice as bright as the subject, it will be so, no matter what you meter off of. If you meter off of the background, the subject will be twice as dark but the background will be 'properly' exposed. If you meter off the subject, it will be 'properly' exposed, but the background will be twice as bright.
Of course it is possible to get a correct exposure but not naturally.
If you meter a bright background you are correct that a subject in the foreground will be underexposed. However use of flash will expose your subject correctly this way so you have a balanced subject and background.
Now, that being said, bryan peterson talks about a 'creatively correct' exposure, where you need to choose what type of shot you want, and meter off of the correct thing accordingly. If you want the subject sillohouetted, then you would meter off the background in this case, but if you wanted to see the subject clearly, you might need to meter off of it directly.
There is a lot of play between how you do this metering exactly, and that is where one of the arts of photography lie. You need to understand what the camera is doing exactly, what you want, and how to get the camera to do what you want. The sections of his book where it talks about 7 different 'proper' exposures, but only one of them being 'creatively correct' for what you want, are talking about this.
by the way, i really hope i am using the same language (proper, and creatively correct) the way he is. I think i am, and I hope its clear from my description, but just as a disclaimer, he may be using slightly different termonology.
See my previous post for your last question