Link Metering AE to AF point with K20D

[drako4]

Hi There,

Just reading a number of post re: metering and the question was asked whether or not to link metering AE to AF point.. I have seen this in my menu but not sure when you would do this. Would appreciate very much if someone could explain how this works. I was told to mainly use the Multi segment metering mode.

Cheers,
Carrie

[ricktas]

Metering exposure for particular points in your scene does just that. Say you are taking a photo of a person dressed in black against a bright sunny day. Multi-point metering takes readings from various parts of the frame to determine the exposure, so from the sky, the black of the clothing, the ground, and then your camera combines all this data to come up with an exposure that it 'thinks' is going to give the best result.

IF you then swap to single point metering, your camera looks at that single point to determine exposure, so say you picked just a bright point in the sky, then there would be a good chance your black clothed person would be under-exposed, conversely, if you picked some of their black clothing, then the sky would be over-exposed. What exposure metering setting you use, really depends of what your photo is of, and what you want to achieve, creatively, with the photos.

[drako4]

Thank you ricktas. I guess I am looking at changing this for every situation:( Would I have the setting turned on in my menu and leave it or is linking this to the AF point only used if I am using Multi-segment metering?

Carrie

[ricktas]

Not sure with the Pentax, on Nikon is just a dial on the back of the camera to choose from different metering options, so just turn the dial to the one we want. Maybe someone with a Pentax can enlighten you further in that regard.

[drako4]

Sorry ricktas.. I should have been a little bit clearer. There is a dial on the back of the camera that allows me to select the mode, ie. multi, single etc.. However, on top of that there is a setting in the camera menu that asks if you want to link the metering AE to the AF point. I am just not sure if I need to have this setting on or off? Is it only to be used with multi? The manual is very vaque.

Thanks again,
Carrie

[doppelganger]

The following link may be

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In short: also from link........... Really, it's six of one, half dozen of the other. If you link them, then the camera will do what you want in some situations, and you'll need to override the default exposure in other situations. If you don't link them, it will still be the case that the camera does what you want in some cases but not others - except the situations will more or less have reversed themselves.

For example, with the link on, you'll get better exposures when your focus target is more or less average in value (lightness/darkness) against a mostly darker or or lighter background, but worse exposures when the background is average and subject is darker or lighter. With the link off, it's the other way around.


I personally don't worry about it, it requires me to think to much:D

Steve

[robz]

Just reading through the manual on my new K5... at last!
I have not tried this link but I suspect the answer is in how you want the focus and exposure meter to work together.
Here goes... In multisegment metering the camera will use its xnumber of points to judge an overall exposure. In Auto AF setting, it will choose the object it believes should be in focus.
In a situation where (eg) a bright object fills the left third of the view and the right 2/3 is very dark, then the darks may appear grey and whites over exposed.
If the centre of your view finder is in the dark area (to compose the image properly), then a centre weighted exposure won't help much or will expose the dark area to look grey and overexpose the bright area.
If you link the ae and af point, then as the camera focuses on the bright left third of the screen then this will better expose the bright area and keep the darker area from becoming grey so easily. I guess the multisegment metering can do its job more accurately than forcing the exposure calculations into a specific area by using the ae select option.
Try sitting in a lit room and aim at a doorway into an unlit room. place the edge of the door in the left or right 1/3 and the centre point through the doorway. Then try the different options and you will soon see what the lock does compared to other settings.
Its a bit hard to explain so I hope I haven't confused you too much. I think I might use it more often too.
Hi There,

Just reading a number of post re: metering and the question was asked whether or not to link metering AE to AF point.. I have seen this in my menu but not sure when you would do this. Would appreciate very much if someone could explain how this works. I was told to mainly use the Multi segment metering mode.

Cheers,
Carrie

[drako4]

Thank you to everyone for your time in trying to explain this very confusing subject. I am still struggling with my photos being a bit 'fuzzy' and not really crisp. Not sure if it is a combination of the wrong settings or not:( I understand that the meter mode needs to be changed basically for every shot you might be considering. Guess I just haven't figured it out yet!

Cheers,
Carrie