EXPOSURE GUIDE : RAW Level Meter or MONITOR Image ??

[George D.]

As I continue to learn the Red-One, I have noticed that the RAW Level Meter can be misleading as far as exposure is concerned. If there is a lot of black or white in the scene, it will read over or underexposed while the exposure on the monitor is perfect and exactly what I want.

In the "old days" of film I used a Spectra Incident Meter and NEVER, EVER used the in-camera reflective meter (even if it had one). The best and most accurate exposures were always obtained via the Incident Meter. But, of course, the Red-One is different. So, I just want to make sure I expose the sensor correctly.

So, should I go with the RAW Meter regardless of how it looks on the monitor, or ignore the meter and expose via the "look" of it on the monitor, as long as it does not show up in the RAW Clip Meter? Or, a combination of both?

For those of you who have much more experience with this camera than I do, I would appreciate your feedback and thoughts on this. Especially if you've had lots of experience shooting in the field under contrasty conditions.

Thanks for your time.

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[Julio Quintana]

I use the exposure setting (Ev) because it is based off the raw image. Red means lost highlight detail and purple means lost shadow detail. Then you can ballpark your midtones off the monitor. As a final step for increased accuracy, you can use False Color (Vv) which displays green for middle grey and pink for Caucasian skin tones.

[Martin Stevens]

Don't give up using your Light Meter.

I still use mine.

Just be very aware that the highlight latitude with digital is not like film.

[George D.]

Don't give up using your Light Meter.

I still use mine.

Just be very aware that the highlight latitude with digital is not like film.

When I first got the camera, I did the same thing. But, it quickly became apparent that the ISO of the camera did NOT match the ISO of the meter, which has always seemed strange to me.

Yes, Red-One digital is very similar to shooting with positive film. Overexposing is lethal.

Thanks.

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[David Rasberry]

You have to profile the camera to the meter. Shoot a Kodak 18% gray card or a grayscale chart. Find the exposure that gives you a 118,118,118 8-bit middle gray value for daylight, measure the light level with the incident meter and set the meter tables to match your camera exposure setting. Do the same for tungsten. Meter readings should match up after that. I would use the linear camera RGB default setting in Redcine for this as you are profiling the sensor to find its native zone 5 middle gray ISO.

[Francesco Bonomo]

Don't give up using your Light Meter.

+1, to the Nth.

[Robert Knoll]

Solid guys.