I have been shooting mostly Delta 400 with my M6 TTL, and the results have been exposed adequately well for making respectable prints. However, my darkroom backlog has grown to the point where I am now starting to shoot some chrome to help alleviate the backlog, and to enjoy Leica glass in a new way. On the last couple of rolls, my exposures (using M6 meter) have been pretty close, but there are a number of over and under exposed frames. I would like to get more spot-on.

My question is a general one, please share your techniques for achieving accurate exposure with the M6 meter when shooting slide film (Sensia II 100 in my case)?

Here is a scenario, if that is useful. Late afternoon at the park with green grass, trees, partly cloudy skies and people dressed in light and colorful clothing. Some open sun shooting, some open shade, some back-lit, with various background brightness levels (trees, sky, etc.).

-- Dan Brown (brpatent@swbell.net), June 19, 2001

Answers

Dan

I have no strict guidelines but remember to expose for the "medium gray" highlights not for shadows (unless you want to lose the highlights altogether). When in doubt bracket. Remember to never (unless for effect) give less exposure than your correct exposure in full sun (in your case this is in between f8 and f11 @1/250). Spot meters are better for slides, but you can make anything work - experience will be your ultimate guide.

-- Robin Smith (smith_robin@hotmail.com), June 19, 2001.

Green grass and leaves are very close to "medium grey." Take a reading off an area of grass or leaves that are in the same light as your subject. A test roll with a bit of minor bracketing should tell you what compensation you need to use to get the exposures where you want them.

-- Mike Dixon (mike@mikedixonphotography.com), June 19, 2001.

I generally point the meter at a range (given it's a big spot) of tones that represent an eye-balled average of the brightness of the main subject in the picture, which may mean overexposing something or underexposing something else sometimes. I find the M meter to be pretty reliable, although I get the occasional turkey.

What you describe is the sort of thing I find _very_ difficult to get right, because in those conditions, something has to give. So you have to decide which part of the scene you want to be right and meter accordingly. Dappled light - Oh my Gawd!

-- rob (rob@robertappleby.com), June 19, 2001.

If I am reading your question right, your ability to keep all of those various lighting conditions properly recorded on slide film at the same time is quite impossible. You must choose what is important, and know that you will have to sacrifice some parts of the scene. An old maxim for slide film is to expose for the highlights, and let the shadows go dark. The possible contrast range for slide film will not allow you to keep all tones (sunny 16 to heavy overcast f/4). The shadows will go black if you expose for the highlights, and if you expose for the shadows, the highlights will be horribly washed out.

Only a lot of experience will let you know what the effect will be. Many times, I simply put my camera away, knowing it is the wrong time for the shot. Heavy overcast gives you more latitude since many of the tones are very close... the problem being that the bald sky will look bad. In heavy overcast, I grab my short tele and go tight, eliminating the sky. This lighting makes for boring landscapes, but is great for portraits (less problems with eye socket and nose shadows and no squinting). I would not attempt a flattering portrait on a sunny day at high noon, without modifying the light with reflectors or flash. Again, know the limitations and shoot when it is optimum. In a once in a lifetime situation, in very mixed contrast lighting, shoot and bracket... you might get lucky.

-- Al Smith (smith58@msn.com), June 19, 2001.

And besides green grass and leaves, the blue sky about 90 degrees away from the sun, and low to the horizon, seems to give a good zone V (medium gray) reference. But you said partly cloudy. You could carry a small 18% gray card as a reference. Normally I just meter a fairly dark area, then a fairly light one, and average them in my head. I'm not above carrying a small incident light meter so I can pop a reading if needed.

-- Bob Fleischman (RFXMAIL@prodigy.net), June 19, 2001.

The aforementioned naturally occuring items for a neutral gray meter reading are all good to use; green grass, red brick, or a gray card. In a pinch, you can also use your palm as a make-shift gray card. Interestingly, most palms regardless of skin color, tend to be a zone VI value, or one stop over neutral gray. So, with your palm in the same light as your subject, meter your palm, open up one stop from the indicated exposure, and fire away. Also, keep in mind that with most slide films a maximum of four stops separate deep black from bright white, hence the difficulty with properly exposing Rob's dappled light.

Cheers,

-- Jack Flesher (jbflesher@msn.com), June 19, 2001.

Another thing to add to the great suggestions above, is to remind that even though the M6 metering spot always measures the same percentage of the frame regardless of lens, when shooting a wide- angle lens, switching to a longer lens to take a reading allows the photographer to read a comparably smaller portion of the entire scene. This can be quite helpful in contrasty light.

-- Jay (infinitydt@aol.com), June 19, 2001.

As long as your film can handle the contrast range, you only need to make three readings:

1) open sun - If you mean sunny then f/16 and 1/film ISO will work just fine. Otherwise meter zone V.

2) open shade - Meter zone V (this setting will also work for backlit situations).

3) Finally a correction facter for when sun goes behind a cloud.

That is it! Now stop looking at the meter and shoot.

Built in meters can have you making too many adjustments and your slides will show it when you project them in a series.

Cheers,

-- John Collier (jbcollier@powersurfr.com), June 19, 2001.

Wow- many thanks to everyone with their advice-- I just took the plunge and haven't been able to shoot it much, and am worried how to make the switch to a full screen meter (K1000) to a big spot. A request for clarification tho' from John:

1) open sun - If you mean sunny then f/16 and 1/film ISO will work just fine. Otherwise meter zone V.

2) open shade - Meter zone V (this setting will also work for backlit situations).

3) Finally a correction facter for when sun goes behind a cloud.

What does it mean to meter Zone V? If it's sunny, I would do sunny-16. Does metering Zone V mean you bring a grey card?

-- T Wu (tsesung@yahoo.com), June 20, 2001.

Surely the point about Zone V and so on is that you put them where you want them to be (which is pretty much what I meant by saying you should select a representative patch of brightnesses)? They're not objective features of the scene, or have I completely misunderstood the zone system? There isn't much scope for it in colour slide/neg anyway!

-- rob (rob@robertappleby.com), June 20, 2001.

Sorry about the confusion. I used the zone V nonmenclature to shorten my typing. I meter what I want good clear detail in as a zone V (depending on film). I never carry a grey card as the more options you have, the more likely you are to get confused. Take the time to learn the meter in your M6.

My main point was meant to be that metering is easy if you think of how simple the lighting situation really is rather than metering every shot.

Cheers,

-- John Collier (jbcollier@powersurfr.com), June 20, 2001.

Backlit shots are always tricky. I usually meter the medium tone of the shadowed object in question, but stop down maybe a half stop to prevent the highlights washing out completely.

Midtones (Zone V) are indeed grass and most leaves (beware conifers though), caucasian flesh (+1 Zone VI), asphalt/sidewalk (usually perfect!), bricks etc. etc.

There are always some you just have to bracket because there is no correct exposure - only what you prefer when you see the results.

-- Robin Smith (smith_robin@hotmail.com), June 20, 2001.