On candid shots, I meter same as non-candid. With more time, I prefer to spot meter. On the streets, I use a tiny Gossen, mostly reflective than incident.
For below, assume all manual, no AE, no AF.
IMHO, if it only takes 5 seconds for example, and caught unprepared, one may or many not have to say goodbye to the shot, assuming everything is manual - metering, setting speed and aperture, focusing.
IMHO, the key is being prepared.
- In this shot from a Rolleiflex, for example, which I was waiting to happen, I already knew the exposure settings and the distance, and all I needed was to manually focus just a bit when the moment came.
- For moving shots, in good light, setting the exposure beforehand, and using zone focusing will capture the shot. In this example, I used a Hassy with 180mm, not really ideal for zone focusing because of the very narrow dof scale (80mm and below are easier), but I did it anyway. Zone focusing will be tougher in the night or dim light, but it can be easier with a very wide angle lens. One can also use hyperfocal distance focusing, or infinity focusing, but these 2 are not my preference, acceptable sharpness is not acceptable to me.
- really no 5 seconds to meter ? No choice, just focus and shoot, and check exposure after the shot. A bit off ? I would compensate during development.
- really no preparation, and no meter even ? On this pic with a Rolleiflex, I just set the exposure to what I thought was right, without metering, quickly focused, and shot. Some burning and dodging helps a bit. Of course, one needs some practice for metering without a meter.
- screwed up focusing, exposure, even scratched the negative ? everything that can happen happened. I wanted to throw the negative away, but decided to work on the Hassy pic instead and make it faux vintage, leaving the scratches. I like it, and people at Flickr like it as well, so I guess it was still saved in the end.
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Can you recall what aperture was set for this shot plus lens use?