P3D Re: To Meter or Not to Meter

[aifxtony@xxxxxxxxxxxxx (Tony Alderson)]

An anecdote from the No Mistake Too Foolish Dept.:

A few months ago, on the way back from Arizona, I stopped at the George S.
Patton Museum at Chiraco Summit, on I-10 in California. I had my spot meter
with me as I ran around photographing the various tanks on display. I had
some dissonance as I set my exposure, but thoughtlessly trusted my meter.
To my dismay, when I got the roll back, all the shots were at least 2 stops
overexposed, altho' the first part of the roll was fine. (I might mention I
was finishing off a roll of faster ASA than my usual Kodachrome) Finally
thinking to check my equipment, I discovered the battery in my meter was
bad.

A few days ago, I stopped again, and retook the same pix with my VM
Personal, this time using only the exposure guide on the camera. All of the
shots turned out fine. (Except for some of those light leaks just mentioned
in P3D! Never saw those before! Maybe 'cause my straps can't be trusted and
I didn't have the camera in its case?)

Usually, when hiking or camping, I don't lug around a meter; I rely on my
experience and the exposure chart Kodak helpfully prints inside each box of
film. I bracket in uncertain conditions. I would rather dedicate the weight
to extra film than a meter.  If I had compared my meter against that card,
I might have checked the battery and saved my slides.

Proving once again that there is no foolproofing a human can't defeat.

Tony Alderson
aifxtony@xxxxxxxxxxxxx



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