Which metering mode should I use when shooting HDR brackets?
Asked 2/8/2012
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When shooting a multi-exposure HDR bracket, does the camera’s metering mode matter much? Should I use evaluative/matrix, partial, center-weighted, or spot metering for the base exposure? I’m wondering whether the best choice depends on the scene, or if metering mode is less important because multiple exposures will cover the range anyway.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
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The metering mode is largely irrelevant when preparing a multi-exposure HDR as no single image will be correctly exposed, so you're only trying to get the centre image in the ballpark so that you don't waste exposures at either end. Unless you're really skilled at judging the dynamic range of a scene (remember the brain compresses dynamic range to fool you), you'll likely have to tweak the number of exposures or the gap between each exposure in to make sure you have the full range captured so you can dial in the correct exposure compensation at this point.
I find whenever I'm shooting a situation where I have the opportunity to review and adjust exposure you want a metering mode that is not sensitive to slight changes in composition, settings like spot metering are bad as if you move the spot slightly after setting exposure compensation the measured exposure could shift, undoing your correction.
Originally by user1375. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1375
14y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
For HDR bracketing, metering mode usually matters less than making sure your bracket covers the full dynamic range of the scene.
A common approach is to use evaluative/matrix metering for the middle exposure because it gives a reasonable starting point and is less sensitive to small composition changes than spot metering. Since no single HDR frame is meant to be “correctly” exposed, the goal is just to get the center shot in the ballpark and ensure your bracket extends far enough in both directions.
Spot metering can still be useful if you meter the brightest and darkest important areas yourself. That helps you judge the scene’s dynamic range, decide whether HDR is even needed, and set a bracket that protects highlights and includes shadow detail.
In practice, the key is:
- make sure the darkest frame preserves highlights without clipping
- make sure the brightest frame captures needed shadow detail
- adjust the number of frames or exposure spacing if needed
So: evaluative is a solid default, but coverage of the scene’s full range is more important than the specific metering mode.
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