Metering
As on the D3100, the D3200’s TTL metering makes use of a 420-pixel RGB sensor to provide information from the scene for the metering modes. The metering sensor holds its own among the immediate competition, but cannot match the sophisticated RGB sensors of the more expensive Nikon cameras. For example, the new Nikon D800 has a 91,000-pixel RGB metering sensor.
The metering options are simple: 3D matrix (evaluative), centreweighted or spot. Matrix metering is perfectly adequate for most situations. As exposure compensation is easily altered via the direct control next to the shutter-release button, should the conditions be too bright or too dark, I kept to evaluative metering for most of this test. For landscapes that include a foreground covering a good 50% of the frame, skies can be a little bright and washed out – and lacking in detail – as the camera meters for the darker foreground, although this behaviour is common.
