Selecting the Manual mode allows a reading of your light meter.
Reading your digital camera's light meter is a straight-forward task. Most digital cameras have a similar exposure level indicator that consists of a series of dots and bars. In the manual shooting mode, the light meter clearly indicates under or overexposure, and immediately responds to the changes made with aperture and shutter speed.
Instructions
1. Turn on the camera. Press the button that shows your camera's image information, often labeled "Info." A series of settings will appear on the LCD screen.
2. Set the appropriate ISO number for your situation by holding down the ISO button and using the dial to scroll through choices. The darker the lighting, the higher the number should be.
3. Set the metering mode for your situation, if desired. Hold down the button with a symbol of a circle within a rectangle and scroll through choices. Most cameras have a center-weighted mode that meters primarily from that area of the image. Scenes that have a wide contrast in lighting may benefit from ESP metering, which averages the light in the entire scene rather than just the center.
4. Find the exposure level indicator. It will likely appear as a line of dots, with a minus sign in the beginning, a plus at the end, and a bold dot in the center.
5. Set the camera to Manual (M) mode. In Program (P), Shutter Priority (S) or Aperture Priority (A) mode, you will be able to observe the exposure level indicator, but not be able to read light from it. Setting the mode to Manual and lightly tapping the shutter release button reveals small bars just below the exposure level indicator dots.
6. Observe whether the small bars appear to the left or the right of the bold center dot. If bars approach the plus side of the indicator, too much light is entering the camera. If the bars approach the minus side, too little light is available.
7. Turn the dial to allow in more or less light as your meter indicates. The goal is to have no bars appear either to the left or right of the bold center dot. You can choose either the shutter speed or aperture to change the amount of light entering the camera, although your camera will default to one of these methods. For example, your camera may default to highlighting the aperture as the method of changing exposure, but you may want to change the shutter speed instead. Locate a button that has a plus and minus sign, or one that says "AV." Pressing this button highlights the shutter speed instead, allowing you to make changes through this method.
8. Press the shutter release button to make your image once no bars appear on either side of the bold center dot. If your image still appears too bright, change either the shutter speed or aperture to make bars appear towards the minus sign. If the image is too dark, make a change that lets the bars appear towards the plus sign.
Tags: bars appear, shutter speed, bold center, exposure level, exposure level indicator