I finally watched a manual metering video all the way through instead of skimming it for the one useful part, and something in it actually stuck.
I’d been bracketing almost every shot because I didn’t trust the built-in meter. Three or four frames per shot, easy. On a 36-exposure roll that adds up fast, and between film and processing I’m already looking for ways to cut cost.
The video walked through reading light off your own hand instead of trusting the meter outright, then adjusting one stop at a time from there. Nothing revolutionary, just explained in a way that finally made it click.
Shot a full roll last week with one exposure per frame, no bracketing. 4 came out wrong, and I could tell exactly why each time. Used to take me two or three rolls to land that many usable frames.
Cheaper hobby now, or at least less wasteful. Also the first thing from a learning video I’ve actually kept doing past the first week.