Looking to get into photography

Spot Metering

I cant understand why Canon chooses to disable their cameras, the entry level ones, by taking out spot metering. I cannot live without it. On all my cameras, except the very old manual everything one, spot metering is there, and I use it alot. Its a big part of photography. Once you get used to the picture modes and what they do and outgrow them you have to have it IMHO. Its a natural progression.

The new canon 1000 I see has been disables again like this. Its so cheap of them. Other manufacturers have the feature on their most basic models.( Well Nikon and Sony do, not sure about the other) Sony do well and dedicate a button to this even on the entry level camera right where you need it.

Canon hook you into DSLR and then force you to buy up as soon as you are frustrated by this.

Rant over:)
 
It doesn't mean it shouldn't have it but spot metering would be the last of my reasons for upgrading.
 
bwana said:
It doesn't mean it shouldn't have it but spot metering would be the last of my reasons for upgrading.
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I guess knowing how to judge the light and compensate accordingly if you don't have spot-metering is priceless. It was the furthest thing from my mind when I was shopping for a camera, but now that I have it, and have gotten used to using it, I'd definitely feel it if I lost it.
 
koffiejunkie said:
I guess knowing how to judge the light and compensate accordingly if you don't have spot-metering is priceless. It was the furthest thing from my mind when I was shopping for a camera, but now that I have it, and have gotten used to using it, I'd definitely feel it if I lost it.
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Knowing how to read the histogram helps too. :)
 
Yes there are ways to compensate for a lack of spot metering. But to me it seems like you are doing just that, compensating. A DSLR is a cumbersome thing to lug around, it takes many very expensive lenses, compared to a point and shoot that is.

My feeling is that if a person decided that they would happily accept those compromises and pay extra over a p&s then surely they will grow into wanting and needing spot metering even if they don't on day one.
 
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Wynsam said:
My feeling is that if a person decided that they would happily accept those compromises and pay extra over a p&s then surely they will grow into wanting and needing spot metering even if they don't on day one.
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Actually, you grow out of needing it. Read my earlier post. There was a time when there was no spot metering. Photographers still managed to take good shots.
 
koffiejunkie said:
Actually, you grow out of needing it. Read my earlier post. There was a time when there was no spot metering. Photographers still managed to take good shots.
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Sure it, maybe I am not there yet. Still it seems an important enough feature that most other makers include it.

Here is an idea, maybe I need to learn how to do without it? Enough experience with and I will soon learn exactly how it compensates for most given situations. A bit like the picture modes. Useful as a starting point.

A light meter(remember them) to take a spot reading was considered a must have for many a photographer in days gone by and still is in some circles.
 
Yeah, I forgot about external light meters. Maybe because I never had one. That said, where I grew up one of my dad's photographer buddies had a camera fail on a shoot, and his extra body on that day was an old manual camera (not sure which), and he discovered that the battery was dead, and he didn't have an external light meter with him, so he had to rely on his instincts. Still nailed it.

Agreed on Canon though. They really should include these things, if only to match the competition. And that excuse for an Auto-ISO implementation is just not good enough. FFS, they even have it on their semi-pro bodies (40D, for example).
 
Such a big fuss about this? (taken from the 40D manual)

picture.php
 
koffiejunkie said:
I was referring to Auto-ISO. Auto-ISO is my only real complaint about the 40D. Spot metering on the 40D works great.
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We were discussing spot metering earlier. My reference to the 40D was only because they offered such a simple graphic WRT light metering showing the comparatively small difference between Spot and Partial.

As for Auto ISO . . . its another thing I really dont need.
 
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bwana said:
Such a big fuss about this? (taken from the 40D manual)

picture.php
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Why go to the effort of taking it out? Spot metering that is.

Is there a way of getting partial metering on a button as opposed to a menu item with a 1000D or 350D, I dont know?
 
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