Most all cameras these days have a built in light meter. Do you need one outside the camera to compose a great image? Well, it depends.

On a digital SLR (at least the Canon cameras I own) you have 4 metering options with relation to utilizing the light meter in the camera:

Evaluative metering (full auto)

Partial Metering (meters light in circle you see in the viewfinder)

Spot Metering (meters light on a certain spot in the viewfinder) - not all cameras have this and the options are dependent on the camera

Center Weighted Average Metering (the metering is taken at the center, then averaged throughout the entire scene).

Each should be used for the appropriate situation. In some higher end cameras, you can associate the focusing point with the light metering point ...

Many photographers that are shooting for the micros often are concerned with relation to situations where there is low light and a high ISO is required. I've heard artists ask if they should just skip the image altogether and are frustrated with relation to low light situations. Here are the options that I've used to help me get around the situation:

1) Use a tripod and a lower shutter speed at 100 ISO.

2) Shoot at a high ISO and bracket up (over-expose) by about 2 stops, then bring the exposure down when processing the image. You will get less noise this way.

3) Shoot at high ISO, then process in Neat Image. You'll be surprised sometimes what you can save. If that doesn't work, reduce the size of the image to hide the noise (a big option at the micros).

4) Process for noise using ...

After logging in, I found DT licensed four images on my behalf for a commission of $7.50 - without selling an enhanced or extended license. I was pleasantly surprised. I've had a tough time accepting microstock as a business model and a tough time trying to project my revenue to a point where I can see myself creating a profit from microstock but logging in this morning, I felt a little nostalgic. It was maybe a year and a half ago when I would have had to license 15 images for the same commission.

Sometimes we need a little reminder that patience pays off in the long run.