Editing Camera (section)

==== Light meter ====
{{Main|Light meter}}

[[File: Sekonic L-358 Flash Master.jpg|thumb|A handheld digital light meter showing an exposure of 1/200th at an aperture of f/11, at ISO 100. The light sensor is on top, under the white diffusing hemisphere.]]
In most modern cameras, the amount of light entering the camera is measured using a built-in light meter or exposure meter.{{Efn|Some photographers use handheld [[exposure meter]]s independent of the camera and use the readings to manually set the exposure settings on the camera.<ref name="Britannica-Camera" />|name=|}} Taken through the lens (called ''{{Abbr|TTL|through the lens}} metering''), these readings are taken using a panel of light-sensitive [[semiconductor]]s.<ref name="How-Stuff-Works" /> They are used to calculate optimal exposure settings. These settings are typically determined automatically as the reading is used by the camera's [[microprocessor]]. The reading from the light meter is incorporated with aperture settings, exposure times, and film or sensor sensitivity to calculate the optimal exposure.{{Efn|Film canisters typically contain a DX code that can be read by modern cameras so that the camera's computer knows the sensitivity of the film, the ISO.<ref name="Warren-Camera" />]|name=|}}

[[Light meter]]s typically average the light in a scene to 18% middle gray. More advanced cameras are more nuanced in their metering—weighing the center of the frame more heavily (center-weighted metering), considering the differences in light across the image (matrix metering), or allowing the photographer to take a light reading at a specific point within the image (spot metering).<ref name="Warren-35mm" /><ref name="Philip's" /><ref name="Britannica-Camera">{{Cite encyclopedia|title=camera|encyclopedia=Britannica Academic|url=https://academic-eb-com.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/levels/collegiate/article/camera/18803|access-date=12 December 2019|url-access=subscription|archive-date=10 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231110042914/https://www.pin1.harvard.edu/cas/login?service=https%3A%2F%2Fkey-idp.iam.harvard.edu%2Fidp%2FAuthn%2FExternal%3Fconversation%3De1s1%26entityId%3Dezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu%2Flts%2Fezproxyprod%2Fsp|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Columbia" />