Artistically Using the Spot or Partial Metering Mode

You can use the metering mode of your camera to achieve certain looks in your pictures. For example, in the above picture, I used partial metering mode. In this mode, the camera exposes your main subject correctly by measuring the light in a small central area of the frame (usually about 6–10% of the viewfinder). Because in this case the subject is brighter than the surrounding space, the background becomes overexposed, resulting in a black background. You can get even more dramatic results if you use spot metering. 

 

The key point for achieving a dramatic effect is to have a subject that is strongly illuminated or brighter than the surrounding areas.

Here is another example.