The Partial meter of the EOS-3 uses five metering zones at the center to cover about 8.5 per cent of the image area. You can also use AE Lock to retain the Partial meter reading while recomposing the shot. However, some may find it to be somewhat of a hassle operating the AE Lock button located at the back of the camera. If this is the case, just use the Custom Function CF 4-1 to alternate the AF start (shutter button) with the AE Lock button. When this C. Fn is utilized, the AE Lock comes into effect anytime the shutter button is pressed halfway and AF start will now be handled with your thumb on the back button. It takes time to get used to this procedure but once you have become familiar with it, the operation then would become second nature. In high contrast situations, the Partial meter can be used to give different exposure values when such needs arise, as in these photos below have shown. For the first shot, I had the Partial meter to get readings of both the building (left side) and the Suria KLCC's logo, hence the lighter appearance of the overall exposure. For the second shot, the Partial meter's reading was taken from only the building and the sky above it, resulting in a slightly darker rendition of the overall image. This is not an underexposed shot but merely what you would have obtained if the Evaluative metering has been used instead. Meter reading from building and logo Meter reading from building and sky     Meter reading from church's white wall Meter reading from church's brown roof In the two photos of the church, the first was shot with the Partial meter reading taken from its white walls, resulting in a slightly bluish cast, which is actually an underexposure. To rectify that, the next shot was photographed with the meter reading taken off the brown rooftop of the church building, resulting in a correctly exposed photo. We have a few more high contrast photos below: The Evaluative metering would have no problem in tackling the scenes shown here but with the Partial meter, extra care has to be taken to ensure that the exposures will not be wrong. What I did was to meter in-between the highlight (tower) and the shaded (colonial building) areas, recompose and shoot. For the next shot, the Partial meter reading was taken off the clock itself, recompose and shoot. Meter reading taken from in-between the buildings Meter reading taken off the clock itself     Meter reading taken from the yellow overhead bridge Meter reading from face and white uniform For the parked cars amidst the commercial complex, the meter reading was aimed at the overhead pedestrian bridge before clicking the shutter. As for the candid shot of the man, his skin color is a problem whenever a Partial or Spot meter is used. The answer lies in getting a reading of both his face and part of his white uniform for the camera to compute the best setting with the Partial meter. << Back to Main . 1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 .