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In order to calculate the right exposure to use, digital cameras use a process called metering to measure the lighting conditions for your subject or for the entire scene.
Evaluative Metering / Multi-Zone Metering / Matrix Metering
Evaluative or Multi-Zone metering is the preset metering mode on many digital cameras and uses light meter readings from a variety of points around the frame. The camera evaluates the light intensity from these points as well as other image information like backlighting, the point of focus, and distance to the subject and then uses a proprietary formula to calculate what it thinks the ideal exposure is. Typically, Evaluative Metering mode usually produces very good results when large portions of the scene aren’t overly bright or dark.
Spot Metering
The Spot Metering mode only measures the light from one small spot in the frame — generally the center focus point. This is a great mode to use when photographing high contrast scenes with areas of bright highlights and dark shadows. Spot metering mode tells the camera to discount the light and dark areas in the rest of the scene and only take a reading from this small spot, so that the camera bases the exposure off of your subject. One downside to using Spot Metering Mode is that for extremely backlit subjects, the entire background can be overexposed since this mode only considers the center focus point.
Partial Metering
Found on Canon DSLR cameras, Partial Metering is similar to Spot Metering, but meters approximately 10% of the frame around the center, so it’s better suited for slightly larger subjects. This mode should be used when the background is bright or dark and would otherwise cause an improper metering of the scene. Like Spot Metering Mode, Partial Metering Mode can come in handy if you’re shooting a backlit subject and want to prevent a silhouette that you might get when using Evaluative Metering or even Center Weighted Metering.
Center Weighted Metering / Center Weighted Average Metering
Center Weighted Metering mode measures the light from your entire scene but gives the most consideration to the center of your shot. This mode is great to use for portrait photography, when your subject takes up most of the center of the shot, but you still want the camera to be aware of the background.
