What gives, does EC not affect TTL flash in manual?
Exactly my experience... however I've found that it's generally pretty accurate. It's just those few situations where it refuses to cooperate!
What does one do in this situation?
If you're using the inbuilt flash... cover part of it up or similar. If using an off-camera flash, point it partly away for example... pretty crude but hey, what's the review screen for (-:
