TCA is usually easier to correct in post-processing than LoCA. Adobe Lightroom lets you remove (or reduce) both with a few clicks.

Longitudinal chromatic aberrationexamples

By default, your camera WANTS you to be at a center or zero on the meter. Zero on the meter equates to 18% gray (some may argue 12% gray depending upon camera), which is a happy mid-tone. This makes sense if you are measuring only mid-tones. My problem with this is that often what is most important to me in a scene is not that simple. Skin, for instance, gives completely different “correct exposure” readings on the meter depending on ethnicity. Your meter may also be fooled by the lighting you are using depending on which mode you have set.  This is why it is important to learn the different modes and what results you can expect in each situation.

Sometimes, CA automatic correction does not remove all the Chromatic Aberration. In these cases you can go to the Lens Corrections ->Manual panel.

Thanks, Amy! I love how you break down the best uses for each. I am pretty much on spot 110% of the time, the extra 10% being the 10% I should probably be using another metering mode! lol

I’m having a little trouble with my D500 and metering and learned much from your review. I do have a question that’s bothering me though; what takes priority, metering set from my menu or metering set by selecting the meter button on the top left of my camera and changed by moving the rear dial?

Question….what would you recommend for sports/action shots? For example, when I’m in the gymnasium shooting my son playing basketball? Or outdoors when my son is playing baseball?

Lateral vslongitudinal chromatic aberration

You can find both an automatic and a manual correction for CA. It’s under the Lens Corrections panel of the Develop Module.

I have always used spot metering, because, like you said, I get the most control. But now I’m wondering if matrix would be the better choice. In the gym, the lighting is usually stable. But outdoors, in the full sun, with my focus changing?

Because you are measuring only a very small portion of the frame, spot metering can be frustrating at first, and may not be useful in all situations. I tend to spot meter more than the other available modes simply because I feel like I have the most control in this mode. I like to meter off of skin to ensure that I am not over or under exposing by too much on what I consider to be the most important part of a portrait. This doesn’t work, however, in a situation where a bride is wearing a bright white dress! Obviously in that situation skin is not exactly the priority (in camera).

You can see in this series that the highlights of the lights caused the meter to read the entire scene as brighter than it actually was, specifically in the highlight-weighted metering example.

Apochromatic lenses, for example, correct chromatic aberration. But a certain amount of both LoCA and TCA is unavoidable.

Sphericalaberration

If Chromatic Aberrations show up in your photos, don’t panic! From reading this article, you now know several tips and tricks to get rid of CA.

The lens industry puts great effort into minimising CA in their lenses. They do this with low dispersion optical glass and optical elements.

Every color behaves in its own particular way when passing through a material. A prism “disperses” them, and they form a familiar rainbow.

Take a look at the image below. The blurred purple color in the image taken at f/1.4 is in front of the window edge. It’s not only alongside it. This makes it difficult to correct in post-processing.

Longitudinal chromatic aberrationreddit

Most of today’s modern cameras have at least three different metering modes to choose from; matrix (evaluative), center-weighted, and spot. Some cameras are also equipped with a fourth metering type called highlight-weighted metering mode. Both of my Nikon bodies have this newer mode and so I’ve included it here.

Transverse Chromatic Aberration appears as sharp color fringing. It’s alongside high contrast edges of a dark or bright area.

Transverse Chromatic Aberration, TCA, is also known as lateral. It happens when the colors are on the focal plane, but not all in the same point.

Those sliders control the width, in pixels, of the color fringe and its color hue. They are available for both purple and green color fringing.

In this next example we were decorating for the holidays and have many small BRIGHT sources of light against an otherwise relatively dim background.

LoCA is easy to identify. It changes colors when you focus in front of or behind the object. And it disappears at a narrow aperture.

Transversechromatic aberration

I know that this mode is going to be useful in high-contrast situations that change quickly and dramatically, such as when you are photographing a concert performance, bright city lights at night, or just a kid in a bed with a flashlight.

Chromatic Aberration usually appears in the form of purple/red/blue/cyan/green fringes. They can be seen alongside high contrast edges. In laymen terms, CA means finding colors where they shouldn’t be.

The image below shows some chromatic aberration. It’s along all the contrasting edges, regardless of their position in the frame.

Excellent examples and simple info to follow. People dont realize how simple the modes are and that every situation requires a different metering approach. Cheers!

Right-click on the image below to download the chart I use to test my lens against CA. Print it or display it full screen on your monitor set to its max brightness.

Center-weighted metering mode is a bit like matrix metering in that the camera considers a wide area of the frame, however, in this mode the camera gives greater consideration to the scene in the center of the frame, assuming that the person/place/thing in the middle of the photograph is the subject and should be properly exposed even if the outside edges would then be too light or too dark (depending on what you are shooting!). This mode is great for portraits with subjects that take up most of the frame, or when you have a good mix of tones in the center.

Longitudinal chromatic aberrationformula

You can minimise CA on your camera. And you can correct it in post processing. Your photos will turn out the way you want them to.

In this article, you will learn how to deal with CA. First, by minimising it in-camera. Then, by correcting it in post-processing with Adobe Lightroom.

Lateralchromatic aberration

Metering, just like every other aspect of photography, is a matter of personal taste. While one specific metering mode might suit one artist, it may not favor another. I suggest you challenge yourself to explore the different options in all the lighting situations you encounter to determine which works best for you and your shooting style!

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Matrix metering mode, or evaluative metering as it is sometimes referred to, considers the largest portion of the scene when metering the light. The way I have always thought about this type of metering is an average. The camera’s sensor considers all available light in any given scene and comes up with the best suggested exposure. This can be a very simple and straightforward way to meter a scene when you are in nice even light and are not working with a scene that includes too many drastic shadows or highlights. It is, for all intents and purposes, the “auto” of the metering world.

We have a great tutorial on removing Chromatic Aberration in Photoshop. Check it out next. Or read about how to understand shutter speed, focal length, or the f-stop scale next!

I have worked to maximise the amount of CA in the image. But the complete removal of CA in Lightroom post processing was still two clicks away (see image below).

You can see that this is a tricky situation, the meter wants to average both the highlights and the shadows in matrix, center-weighted, and highlight-weighted metering modes, causing Her Majesty to be underexposed (but saving the highlights). When I spot metered I was able to bring her exposure up but I did sacrifice the highlights in the sky and on a portion of the ledge.

Her Majesty, The Queen, was looking out a bright window, which provided for the ever-challenging backlit photograph situation.  Here you can see the four different metering modes in use, and the SOOC images.

Last, but certainly not least, we have spot metering. This is exactly what it sounds like. Your camera is looking at a specific spot within the frame and ignoring all else! In Nikon cameras the “spot” you are measuring will be the active focus point. In Canon cameras that spot is going to be the center focus point.

Longitudinal chromatic aberrationcauses

While viewing the image at 100% sample different points along the edges showing CA. Like this, you’ll get the best global result.

Very good article. One doubt. … does this metering modes in anyway affect the photographs if you are shooting in complete manual mode where you decide your shutter speed, aperture & ISO. I know it will work as a guide whether you are under or over exposing based on the metering mode u selected in Manual mode . Other than that does metering mode affect your photo in anyway in manual mode?

Thanks Amy. This was very helpful to me. Still trying to understand metering modes and this article brings me closer to my goal.

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Amy Kolodziej lives outside of Charlotte, NC with her husband Will and two small children, William (5) and Lillian (3). Predominantly a wedding and senior photographer, Amy relies on her Nikon bodies and lenses to tell the stories of her beloved clients as well as her own precious family. Amy's favorite memories growing up were those wrapped in laughter and love; she now concentrates on capturing those memories in all of her images. Things that make her smile include Maryland sports teams, her caffeine addition and Amazon shopping sprees.

There’s also a manual way to correct CA. This consists of manipulating the amount and color hue sliders. You can find these in the defringe section of the Manual panel.

Highlight-weighted metering is the newest metering mode to us Nikon shooters. In this mode the camera again gathers its information from the same area as matrix, but this time the greatest weight is given to the highlights that are present in the frame. This mode takes into account bright portions of your scene and tries to “save” them from overexposure. With Nikon cameras this is especially exciting as the bulk of our dynamic range is stored in the shadows allowing us to easily bring back shadow detail…but anyone who has shot with a Nikon knows that once you’ve blown a highlight there is very little you can recover.

I know that with the ability to “chimp”, or stop and look at the back of your dSLR after each image, we can take our meters for granted. As a wedding photographer (and as a mother to two young children that don’t allow “do-overs”), however, I simply do not have the time to second guess myself after each frame.

The refractive index causes dispersion. This is the index of the material that light is passing through. Refraction is stronger for light of short wavelengths (blue). It’s less intense for light of long wavelengths (red). Different kinds of glasses cause refraction or dispersion of various intensities.

Now, I have a special guest who agreed to help me demonstrate the different metering modes in different lighting situations!

Nothing could be easier. Tick the box Remove Chromatic Aberration in the Lens Corrections -> Profile panel. Now let Lightroom do its magic.

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