1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION
Accepted Solutions
This is the way exposure simulation works for all the EOS R-series cameras. When a flash signals to the camera that it is charged - ready to fire - the camera switches off the exposure simulation temporarily, until the flash exposure has taken place or the flash is switched off.
The logic behind this is that many people use a flash in dark / dimly lit conditions. In such case if the camera is set to simulate the exposure, it's highly likely that the scene will appear rally dark on the LCD/EVF and also in that case the clever subject detection AF struggles to focus. The solution engineered in the cameras is to switch off the simulation of the ambient light, making the scene look brighter than it is, and also allowing the AF to operate. So what you see is not a simulation of the flash exposure, but a boosted brighter view of the scene ignoring the current camera settings.
Flash + low light example
Simulation being switched off helps in this kind of picture taken in dark conditions, but you can't actually see how the low level of ambient light will be captured before the shot is taken, it actually looks brighter than this in the viewfinder / evf. I often switch off the flash and take a photo just to see how the ambient will record in this situation.
Fill-in flash in daylight
The flaw in the solution is when you want to use fill-in flash to illuminate a subject that might be backlit by sun, so their face is in shadow. Simulation is still switched off, but still have no sense of how the scene looks before your fill-in flash fires. Furthermore if the subject is brightly back lit the face may be in so much shadow that eye detection won't actually find the eye.
Studio flash issues with non-dedicated radio transmitters
If you do studio work with flash, using a simple trigger that does not tell the camera the flash is ready, then you have to switch off the simulation yourself in order to see the subject. Simulating the manual camera settings of 1/200th f/8 and ISO 100 in low light is like leaving the lens cap on.
This is the way exposure simulation works for all the EOS R-series cameras. When a flash signals to the camera that it is charged - ready to fire - the camera switches off the exposure simulation temporarily, until the flash exposure has taken place or the flash is switched off.
The logic behind this is that many people use a flash in dark / dimly lit conditions. In such case if the camera is set to simulate the exposure, it's highly likely that the scene will appear rally dark on the LCD/EVF and also in that case the clever subject detection AF struggles to focus. The solution engineered in the cameras is to switch off the simulation of the ambient light, making the scene look brighter than it is, and also allowing the AF to operate. So what you see is not a simulation of the flash exposure, but a boosted brighter view of the scene ignoring the current camera settings.
Flash + low light example
Simulation being switched off helps in this kind of picture taken in dark conditions, but you can't actually see how the low level of ambient light will be captured before the shot is taken, it actually looks brighter than this in the viewfinder / evf. I often switch off the flash and take a photo just to see how the ambient will record in this situation.
Fill-in flash in daylight
The flaw in the solution is when you want to use fill-in flash to illuminate a subject that might be backlit by sun, so their face is in shadow. Simulation is still switched off, but still have no sense of how the scene looks before your fill-in flash fires. Furthermore if the subject is brightly back lit the face may be in so much shadow that eye detection won't actually find the eye.
Studio flash issues with non-dedicated radio transmitters
If you do studio work with flash, using a simple trigger that does not tell the camera the flash is ready, then you have to switch off the simulation yourself in order to see the subject. Simulating the manual camera settings of 1/200th f/8 and ISO 100 in low light is like leaving the lens cap on.
