Question about M10 metering coverage/pattern

[Surfheart]

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I was curious if the coverage of the meter in the viewfinder of the M10 was the same as the coverage of the film M specifically the MP.

The manual for the MP has an excellent section showing the meter coverage for each focal length/viewfinder magnification combination and through shooting experience with the MP I have found this to be accurate.

Is the M10 the same?

thanks!

[LouK]

I did

On 12/7/2019 at 12:01 AM, Surfheart said:

I was curious if the coverage of the meter in the viewfinder of the M10 was the same as the coverage of the film M specifically the MP.

The manual for the MP has an excellent section showing the meter coverage for each focal length/viewfinder magnification combination and through shooting experience with the MP I have found this to be accurate.

Is the M10 the same?

thanks!

I do not see a similar section in the M10 manual. It would be useful. I find the M10 in the standard center weighted metering mode often under exposes situations where about a third of the image is in bright light and 2/3rds is in shade. I use the spot metering function on the M10 quite often particularly for people in the shade.

[albertknappmd]

spot is key for critical shots but multi-field is usually fine. Obviously watch your histogram.. I use multi with EV +0.5 for most shots except portraits where spot is the way to got.

Albert

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[mujk]

When using only the OVF there is one metering mode available. This works in the same way as the metering in film Ms, i.e. measures the light reflected off a pattern on the closed shutter. On film Ms this is a white circle and works really like spot metering with a very large spot (diameter 2/3 of image height, according to the manual). On digital Ms the pattern consists of one white, horizontal shutter blade, with one gray blade above and one below. The resulting metering pattern is more like center-weighed metering, having a roughly oval shape.

[adan]

On 12/7/2019 at 1:01 AM, Surfheart said:

I was curious if the coverage of the meter in the viewfinder of the M10 was the same as the coverage of the film M specifically the MP.

The thing is that the M10 (like the M240) has two separate metering systems - classic "strongly-center-weighted" off-the-shutter-curtain metering similar to the film MP, and a variable-coverage system available only by using the image sensor as the "meter."

For this reason, Leica no longer includes a diagram in the manual - the pattern depends on user choices.

 As mujk says, the metering target on the shutter blades in the digital Ms (not just the M10) is different from the "white circle" on the MP (and other film M) cloth shutters.

This M9 review gives a run-down on the "classic" metering pattern in digital Ms - the M9 and M10 areas are virtually identical:

https://www.overgaard.dk/leica-M9-digital-rangefinder-camera-page-17-light-metering-and quality-of-light.html

The sensor-based metering has three possible patterns, selectable through the camera menus. Spot, Center-weighted and "Multi-Field," which "studies" the brightnesses across the whole image, and tries to estimate what the main subject is. Evaluative or Matrix AI-metering, in other words. The spot mode is a much smaller spot than classic MP-style metering, the centerweighted and multi-field areas are larger than the MP area.

The sensor-based system can be used with the optical finder, not just with Live View or an EVF. However, it entails a slight shutter lag, since the shutter has to be open for metering, and then close, and then open again for the actual exposure. In any case, there is no metering-area indication in the optical window finder.

 

Edited December 9, 2019 by adan

[Surfheart]

On 12/10/2019 at 2:46 AM, mujk said:

When using only the OVF there is one metering mode available. This works in the same way as the metering in film Ms, i.e. measures the light reflected off a pattern on the closed shutter. On film Ms this is a white circle and works really like spot metering with a very large spot (diameter 2/3 of image height, according to the manual). On digital Ms the pattern consists of one white, horizontal shutter blade, with one gray blade above and one below. The resulting metering pattern is more like center-weighed metering, having a roughly oval shape.

Thanks very much.   I found that I could meter more accurately with the MP using as you said the meter coverage as a large spot.  I was hoping the M10 would be the same but it's not.

[jaapv]

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The same as the M9:

 

 

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[Surfheart]

Very useful thanks Jaapv.  Quite a bit bigger than the MP  it looks like.  Coverage would also change with focal length too I assume?

[adan]

The coverage of the picture area doesn't change with focal length - i.e. you will get the same central ~15-20% of whatever the lens seeing, whether using a 21, a 135 or any other focal length.

The area in the fixed-magnfication-finder does change, just as with your MP and its diagram - with a 21, the metering will be most of the regular "28mm" built-in finder height, and with a 135 it will about the RF-patch area.

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