Sony NEX-6 review – Metering

All Sony Alpha and NEX cameras use a 1,200-zone evaluative metering system, which, as we have noted before, is both predictable and reliable. Unfortunately, the spot-metering mode is fixed to the centre of the frame. I would like to see a flexible spot-metering mode that covers more of the frame, because fixed spot is less useful for off-centre subjects. For such subjects, the user needs to recompose the scene after the reading is taken through spot metering or auto-exposure lock. Otherwise, exposure compensation can be accessed directly via the control wheel on the camera’s rear.

Image: Using spot metering for the sunlit white wall of the house ensures highlight detail is maintained. The image can then be brightened post-capture and the highlight levels reduced to keep the information. Multi-pattern metering would otherwise lose this highlight detail