How to Meter Light with a Leica Rangefinder Camera
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- Опубликовано: 18 окт 2019
- In this video I showing you how to meter light with a Leica rangefinder camera. I am using my Leica M-D and my M6J to demonstrate. Both of these cameras use center-weighted metering mode.
All photos in this video were taken with either my Leica M6 using Ilford HP5+ or on my Leica M-D.
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Excellent, informative, clear & practical review in an otherwise neglected topic. Wonderful that you nailed it.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Thus, I will stick 95% of the time to center-weighted metering and avoid using the mostly algorithmic multi-field method.
It’s interesting to see the technical side for metering. I have learned it just by doing. Thank you very much!
I've been using a Leica M6 for 28 years. Great video. Knew most of it - but I learned something new.
Thanks for watching and glad to hear you learned something new.
Thank you so much. Really informative. I have just had my Leica rangefinder delivered and am on a steep learning curve with this type of camera. This was just the video I needed.
Thanks Marky! Glad to hear it was helpful for you. Enjoy your new Leica rangefinder.
Same here! I bought the M10 Monochrom and I am ALWAYS on the lookout for tips!
For almost 20 years I followed relatively blindly the light meter in my cameras and was always a gamble on how good or bad It was. For some reason I thought that was the best/only way to do it. Recently though as I am shopping for my first leica M camera, the question of needing a meter has become very prominent and I started to learn more about how/why meters can be wrong and what alternative ways to get better exposures. Definitely a skill I need to practice! I still decided on a leica M6 because still having a light meter can be beneficial for getting a general idea without having to carry a separate light meter.
Thanks for the informative video
Thanks for watching and glad to hear the video helped you. You can’t go wrong with a M6
when I use to teach beginners, I would tell the students that the camera's meter's job is to turn what's in your frame to middle gray. You as the photographer has to determine whether what's in your frame is middle gray or not and adjust accordingly.
Thanks for making all of these videos! I just watched the Rangefinder specific ones and they're great.
Thanks a lot Chris. Glad you liked them.
Learned so much from you. Excellent and clear explaining of the M system, coupled with some basic photography techniques. I enjoy my M10-R so much with 28mm f/2.8 and 50mm f/2 and your channel contributed to my pleasant experience. I am reluctant in buying the SL2-S due to the satisfaction of making photographs with the M-System (and I always have that backup LiveView for the times I really need it), especially since I also own the very good Sigma fp camera. I am contemplating getting the 90mm f/2 but read how hard it is to focus that lens through the viewfinder. There’s something to the way the M works that I do find very delightful.
Thank you for producing very well-made and informative videos.
Thanks a lot Stephane. Happy to hear you like my channel and that the videos helped you. So good to hear how you enjoy your M10-R. No need to rush with an SL if you are not limited by the M system. The 90 will be hard to focus when at close range. It’s a challenge.
And thumbs up for this one. I love center-weighted metering, even on my DSLR, but you absolutely need to know the metering area. Your example is crystal clear.
Thank you!
My issue is the window box should be either digital or darker, as in certain shades of sunlight or daylight can really make it feel invisible as you cannot see if your focused or not. maybe make it darker or something. i'm not a purist, but the lighting conditions really mess with your head. i'm used to dslr and af.
I can understand your point. There are differences in visibility depending on the model but generally none is perfect.
@@TheMPhotography mines the m9, replaced it from the m2 as the viewfinder was just black with lines of light. may of dropped it from my hands to much. clumsiness .
I'm super familiar with my M's metering but I STILL watched this with pleasure. Really good job.
Thanks a lot Mike. Appreciate it and glad you liked it.
Great and detailed description! Very helpful! Thanks for your constant high quality content!
Thank you for your kind words Pat. 🙏
Hello Marcus. Jose from Puerto Rico. I enjoyed this video very much. You basically gave an exposure metering class here and the way you explained it was top notch. I hope you will continue making videos like this, especially on the nuances of exposure metering. For example, where you can give specific examples when you shoot subjects that a pure black or white, or when shooting white subjects on black backgrounds and vice-versa. I believe it would be helpful for many folks. Thanks again.
Thank you Jose 🙏 appreciate your feedback. I like the idea of a video with examples (metering on white, black, etc.). Taking a note of this idea for a future video.
Thanks, probably the best light metering for M9 video I've seen
Thank you Philip. Happy to hear
Thank you! Very helpful for a first time Leica owner.
Thanks for watching. Glad it helped you.
Many thanks for this interesting and informative talk. By the way, I find that your manner of presenting your material is excellent - cultivated, clear and without any Selbst-Profilierung. You may laugh, but, one day, if you decided to just read the telephone book, I would watch that talk and enjoy it. If you were to read the Zurich phonebook, I might even hear the names of a few friends. Also nice. I love my Leica M cameras, all bought used. Not so keen on the sensor deterioration problem in the M9. But that's a whole other topic. Thanks again for the interesting light metering information.
Many thanks for your kind words Alexander. Happy to hear you liked the video and the style of explanation. Trying my best.
Nicely done! Thank you for a very clear & concise explanation of metering with a Leica.😊
Thanks for watching. Happy to hear that you liked it.
I can't really say I "liked" this video, but I can certainly say I appreciated it. Now I understand much better how and why the camera is coming up with the readings it displays, and when I look at the scene through the viewfinder, what parts of what I see have the most influence. I have a M10, which is probably somewhat different, but the principle remains the same.
I also liked your explanation (again) that the camera is trying to make things look like a neutral gray. This means if I shoot snow, it will come out too dark unless I compensate, and if I shoot a scene with a lot of black in it, the image is likely to come out too light. I sort of "knew" this already, but your real world examples helped me understand better that in these scenarios, I need to adjust what the meter says.
You have a very good way of teaching us to understand what you already know, and we maybe think we know. In my case, I thought I understood this, but it soon became obvious that there was a lot of what you covered, that even if I "knew" about it, I didn't recognize how to deal with it.
For a future video, you could find several scenes, and snap a photo of them having adjusted your camera, and then tell the viewers that you are going to shoot that same scene using the meter reading from the camera. The image probably won't be very good. You could then point out the problems in the image, and describe how you adjusted your camera to compensate, showing again your final (adjusted) image. I think that would really hit home. The first image would represent what people probably see while standing there, and the second image would show how bad the captured image looks if they just pick up their camera and press the shutter release. Then you re-adjust the camera to compensate for these problems, and show the improved image because of the changes you made. I think that would get your point across better.
(What I just described is what I was thinking while listening to you - which made no sense to me at all without your explanation of how the metering works.)
Thank you for a very effective course allowing me to understand how the metering works.
Thanks for watching and your feedback on the video. Glad it was helpful. I might do such a video in the future when things get a bit more normal again.
As a new Leica MP user this was super helpful!
I really enjoyed this and learned a lot....thank you ! wonderfully done!
Thank you!
Excellent. You again underscore the need to NOT let the camera “nannies” control the photo.
Thanks Charles. Well said. Love the expression camera "nannies" 😊
Hi Marcus, great video and the topic is fantastically explained!
Thanks for that my friend.
Hoping you posting a lot more of this kind of video’s.
Best regards
Thank you Ruud. 🙏 Happy to hear that you liked it. Trying my best to keep such videos coming.
An excellent video of a very subjective technique Marcus, and sometimes you just don't have time to consider all of these options. I was out with my M6 and M9 in Scotland today, and think I managed to get some really good exposures in quite flat lighting conditions. I think that shooting with the M9 and M240 are helping me with exposures on the M6. Thank you for your helpful advice. Best regards, Robin.
Thank you Robin 🙏🏻 Pairing a digital Leica with an analog one is a nice combination.
Appreciate your explanation so much!
Thank you for this informative video! I think this is the simplest way I can explain how to expose for the tunnel photo (or situations similar to it) - if the ratio between the shadows/highlights in the frame is disproportional to the ratio in the grey circle, one needs to expose accordingly. When you exposed inside the tunnel, only a small fraction of the photo's frame is taken up by (intense) highlights but the highlights take up most of the area inside the grey circle. A solution would be to use aperture priority mode and dial down the exposure compensation dial or, like you did in the video, check the shutter speed while exposing in aperture priority mode and decrease the shutter speed manually.
...the truth is that *everything* starts with an in-depth appreciation of the characteristics your film (or sensor). Without this knowledge, you have no baseline upon which to anchor your 18% grey - thus, any resulting exposures (spot on or otherwise) are not really down to you.
Excellent teaching video. Thank you.
Good video, thank you for sharing your experience.
... you must decide what you want for your shot, know your hardware and then adjust accordingly...! Then compensate for small errors in post processing!
Anyway it's always a pleasure to use and work and watch the images from a Leica...!
This video really helped me. Thank you for making it!
Thanks Robin.
Brilliant explanation !! Passionate andTechnical !
Thanks a lot 🙏🙏🙏
Thank you for taking the time to do this.
Thanks for watching. Glad to hear you liked it
Great video. Very well expiained. Thank you so much.
Thank you for your kind words 🙏
Thank you for a great video like always.
Thank you for your kind words. 🙏
while you do a great job explaining everything very nicely and easy to follow, I found myself almost quitting just when you actually started talking about the light meter after 6 min.... and the I still didn't see an actual example of the light meter thru the camera to understand the parameters in practice more so then just theory which you do very well so I still don't know the limits of the meter in a leica M6 when looking thru the lens which is what I really was hoping to see. grazie mille !!!
I am sorry to hear the video was not what you were hoping for. Thanks for watching and your feedback though. What do you mean with the limits of the light meter when looking through the lens? You cannot look through the lens with an M6. The M6 is a range finder. Could you be a bit more specific? Maybe I can help and point you in the right direction.
Great informative video! Definitely interested in Leica M rangefinder photography in the future.
Thanks for watching.
Thank you for this video, great explanation
Thanks 🙏🏻
Great video, very informative.
Nice M6J btw 😉
Thanks for watching and your kind words. Thanks also with regards to the M6J 😉
Great video. Thank you again.
RS. Canada
Thank!
Tis helps much to understand my Leica M6👍🏻👍🏻😋
Glad to hear. Thank you.
I learned a lot! Now I have to practice!
Glad to hear. Thanks for your feedback.
Excellent !!
appreciate you taking the time to make this video it was very informative! i shoot a leica m6 and this will definitely come in handy when I am thinking about metering.
Well done - thank you!
Thank you Andre!
Great explanation. For those using Leica film cameras, there isn't any ability to post process the image and is all the more important to understand the fundamentals to get as close to the desired outcome on the first shot. Bracketing can compensate but it burns through more film.
Thank you 🙏🏻
you can scan the negatives and post process that way
For the past 43 years, I've been using an incident meter to determine exposure. Reflective meters will always be less accurate unless what you're metering is 18% grey. Not only that, if you're concentrating on looking for a suitable area to meter off of, you're potentially missing out on a good picture.
Many thanks for sharing
Thank you for the video, very informative. I will point out though that it looks like the sunlight is a lot less direct, probably due to a cloud, when looking at photo number 4 compared to photo number 2, making it easier to get an even exposure, but your point still stands nonetheless.
Thanks again.
Thanks for watching and your feedback. You are right. I merely wanted to make the point as you mentioned.
@@TheMPhotography thanks for the reply, sorry if that came across as nitpicking. My method for metering this scene would have been to meter the concrete in the shade outside the tunnel. Then you get a reading from a roughly grey object in the mid tone of the scene.
Thanks again for the video though, it’s always good to see other people’s techniques to learn from.
Good presentation, perhaps you could also talk about metering with film and show the importance of shadow preservation and the latitude of film.
Many thank. I might do so. Especially with Ektachrome I learned it the hard way. Thanks for the tip
Very interesting!
Thank you
Excellent video.
Thank you!
Great tutorial.
Thank you Henry!
Mega gute Beschreibung zum Thema Leica Belichtung
Danke Ingo!
Or, if you’re in a hurry: Simply point your camera at the highlights to meter for them (think sunset, silhouettes, etc.), point it at the darker areas to meter for them. Take a shot or two in between for good measure. :). Great video, love your thorough but clear, illustrated approach.
Thanks John
I have always used a separate hand-held light meter rather than rely on the built-in camera meters. I have several cameras of different makes and film sizes. I notice that NOT ALL camera built-in light meters are equal and they may not produce the same readings under the same circumstances. I suspect a photographer may get more consistent readings using only one meter ( the hand-held meter ). Do others agree or not agree ? Thank you. RS. Canada
Thank you for your comment. I guess the built in light meters are tuned to the specific camera make and model. They are sufficient and provide the comfort of not having to carry an extra device. I guess if one is absolutely familiar with their hand held meter and know it in and out the readings should be very consistent.
Hi I have an M3 and a MP my rule is meter for the shadows and close the aperture of open depending on what I want the photo to look like. but as I only shoot film I also almost over expose by 1/2 to a full stop unless I am in full sunlight ( Summer light).
Yes. Film can handle overexposure quite well.
Hello,
Thanks for you videos! Can you please make a video about how to take a double exposure with m6?
Thanks for watching. As far as I know the M6 can’t do double exposures.
Only today I was surprised by the 2-stop underexposure of my M9. Only later I realized that I have to measure the light from the main subject, not the sunny background.
Thank you 🙏🏻
My hardest part is focusing. I had to add that eyepiece adapter before I could really get sharp images. How do you preset things if you do it?
I have a video on focusing on the channel as well, in case you haven’t seen it. Maybe that video helps you with focusing. An eye piece adapter helps for sure. What do you mean by preset?
@@TheMPhotography f you always have a preset aperture and focus for quick shots
Yes I do. But only for the 35mm and the 28mm lens. Typically f/11 and zone focus range where I set the infinity to the f/11 marker.
Is this kind of metering also the same as on the M10R?
Yes exactly. It is the same way on the M10 camera series. Only in Live View mode you can change the metering method.
Do you ever use a light meter? There are some really nice ones that are quite small and match Leica well. It seems they might expand the exposure field and make it easier for some situations?
I have two light meters but I rarely take them with me when I shoot with Leica M cameras. I use them more often when I shoot with Medium format analog cameras.
@@TheMPhotography Oh, ok. Just checking. I only just got my first M a few days ago and haven't started shooting yet. So just picking the brain of established shooters. Thanks for the video ✌️
Great work here. Could you have maybe shot it Sunny f16 for open shade and been ok?
With sunny 16 one gets reasonable results but the dynamic range of the film will be a stretch if you want to get out details. Sunny 16 is an approximation if you don’t have a way of metering light and never perfect. For me it is the last resort, never the preferred method.
So to summarise: meter off the shadows then meter off the subject then find middle ground?
Yes. The secret is to either find the middle ground if you want the best overall light measurement for the whole scene, or you think what part of the photo you want to emphasize and focus on measuring the best light for that particular part of the photo.
I beg your pardon, but I just started shooting with rangefinder, and I came across metering problem almost immediately. A lot of photographer all around the globe have praised the rangefinder camera, and have taken splendid puctures with it. It is indeed famous system for street and report photography, both field where speed is crucial. Now that I found out this really tedious problem, I wonder how such system has been used succesfully in those fields.
I guess once you understand how it works it is one of the most reliable systems. Just need to understand how it works and learn to trust in it.
@@TheMPhotography of course, should be very reliable but still you are showing that in order to take a photo, you first step into the interhof, measure the light, lock the reading, and then step back to take the picture. Not really fast light reading I would say. With most of the reflex the reading is accurate, even from cameras from '70s. I find this very odd
Congrats for this video!
What about if I'm in full manual mode (I control ISO, shutter speed and aperture)? I guess it doesn't matter which light metering mode you choose (spot, evaluative etc...). Am I right?
I've done some tests, and the metering mode makes no difference when I'm in full manual.
Thank you. It does not matter if you are in full manual or semi manual mode. The respective mode always will measure in the same way according to the mode. The modes by themselves are vastly different. The analog Leica M cameras do not have different light meter modes. They only have center weighted mode.
@@TheMPhotography Thanks.
But If I use a Leica M10 or a LEICA Q3 in full manual mode.. what happens ? I made some tests with the Q3 and when I'm in full manual mode (ISO, aperture and shutter speed... and manual focus too), when I change the light meter (Spot to centre weighted or whaterver mode...), ntohing happens on the OVF (for M10) or EVF (for Q3). I think it's normal, am I right ? Cause I' m on full manual mode.
@schecterman7193 the light meter always measures the light according to the configured shitter speed, aperture and ISO. Wether in manual or automatic mode. It will always indicate if under the configured settings the image will be correctly exposed or under/over exposed.
@@TheMPhotography Thanks for your reply. Yes, I know that. That's what I say if I choose spot, evaluative or whatever metering mode when I use full manual mode, nothing happen on my evf... I mean it's logic, isn't it ? Cause I manage all the settings (iso, aperture, shutter speed).
correct
Nikon had such a better light meter. Including on the f2, amazing machine the f2 is.
The Nikon SLRs are indeed amazing cameras. I just know the digital ones since 2005 but from what I can tell they are very good.
Too bad they didn't stick with the logic of the M5, which had a frameline to show the exact metering area (for 50mm lenses, at least.)
Nice. I didn't know that. Never had an M5. Thanks for sharing.
that beard is fucking amazing
Strange that Leica can make quite advanced sensors, processors and white balance meters but not advanced light meters??
On digital M systems with displays there are more options than on the M-D or the analog Leicas. In the end it is about personal preferences and the Leica M system is not for everyone. That is for sure. The Leica SL might be more of the fast auto focus and sophisticated light meters type with all the bells and whistles of modern cameras.
On the other hand you can take fantastic photos with the Leica M and its limited light meter, as can be seen by the incredible shots taken with the M over the last decades by famous photographers. Sometimes I guess it is not about eye detect auto-focus, 500 focus points or a top notch light meter where a computer takes over.
sounds like a beat the alchemist could write
Nice and valuable lesson but a bit too wordy to keep track of, a side by side of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th shots would've been excellent too, and would eliminate excessive explanation.
Thanks for watching and your feedback. Highly appreciated. Still learning.
Taking a few shots over and underexposured is another way to do it
Digital absolutely no problem. On an analog Leica one wants to avoid wasting frames and then it is worth understanding the light meter as well as possible.
I frankly think there is a big problem with M10 metering system thru RF. With just a slight amount of window light coming in, the whole photo can be underexposed by 2 stops or more! Can never trust M10 RF Metering.
Oh no. I am not aware of this issue and haven’t experienced such a behavior within my M-D. Are you using a lens hood? Could help preventing weird light from the side coming in.