AEB/Exposure compensation with camera.

[Mr Felix]

Ok, a village is missing its idiot.

I am going through a bit of confusion reading the manual and "Idiot's guide to" book.

I also now realise there *IS* a difference with something on the camera.

I have played with Bracketed metering and exposure compensation.

But sometimes when I am trying to do one thing, I get the other happening by "mistake".


Reading the "Idiot's guide" I was reading about EXPOSURE COMPENSATION and suddenly they are mentioning BRACKETED METERING, and to do one, you use the left/right arrow, and the other you use the wheel.

Anyway, I don't want to babel on with that part of it.

Here is where I am confused.

Camera 550D EOS.

Av Tv M mode.



For now Av mode.

I press the AV+/- button (Just above the Q button.

The "Cursor" jumps down to the meter bar - just below the F-Stop number.
I turn the wheel and this moves left/right and is the (what I believe to be) the EXPOSURE COMPENSATION value.

Ok. Back to Status Quo.
Now I press the Q button.
The meter bar is highlited and at the bottom is "Exposure comp./AEB setting."

If I don't press the SET button, turning the wheel moves the bar left/right in a similar way that it did when I only pressed the AV+/- button.

Is there a difference between this way and what happens when I simply press (and hold) the AV+/- button and turn the wheel?

Granted I press the Q button and don't have to hold it as with the AV+/- button to adjust the EXPOSURE COMPENSATION value.


Now, I press the SET button from this "mode":

The screen then changes to the bar graph and I get the message about the Exposure compensation or AEB options.

It shows me CLEARLY that the arrow buttons do one thing and the wheel changing the other.

I think I get this part.

But the two ways it SEEMS to show me how to do exposure compensation, but one way the display is "normal" but the other way the display is reversed/highlited.

Is it just in one mode where I don't have to hold the AV+/- button I have to HOLD the button, but by pressing the Q button and NOT needing to hold it down the inverted display is used to show me the active part?

[Arg]

Question 1: no.
Question 2: yes.
I think Q2 is same as Q1 but asked in a different way?

In M mode the AV+- button changes the aperture.

[Milbs1]

I dont have the 550D, but have the 450D and the following maybe useful

1. using the AV+/- button is indeed exposure compensation when you are in AV mode. ie use the dial to move the bar to the right to expose more (brighter pic)

2. Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB) - when I am on this menu option (I dont have a Q button) and press set, I then use the directional pad to set how many stops I want to bracket (the 450D is 3 shots, and when you increase you see 3 markers on the bar...one central and then one either side). I have to press set agin to confirm the settings, and then when my camera is set to 2sec delay and I press the shutter it will fire off 3 shots in a row (1. correctly exposed 2. under 3. over)

Actually, having re-read your q I am not sure I have helped!
Try using both methods straight after each other and see if they give you the same settings on the photo maybe?

[Mr Felix]

Hi and thanks to both for the reply.

I have been busy busy busy and so haven't replied sooner.

The annoying thing for me is that the two functions are so closely accessed that if I do the wrong thing, the camera goes into the wrong mode.
As I do what I want to do - or THINK I do what I want to do... Yeah, confusing - after I see what has happened, it is confusing for me to get out of there.

Now, I stay away from both.

But thanks much for the effort you put into reading my poorly worded explination of what happens.

[davidd]

Hi

I think the best way to apply exposure compensation is to use Manual Exposure. First set your aperture to get the depth of field you want (say f11 for good depth of field), then you just adjust your shutter speed until you have the required no of bars to the left or right of the centre of your meter. This means you can shoot, check your histogram, and then adjust a few clicks either way and shoot again till you are happy with the result.
I guess from another post of yours that you are trying this at night? I set my exposure meter to spot metering so I can meter on the exact area I am concerned about. Of course you also need a good tripod at night, as well as a remote shutter release.

Hope this helps.