A quick follow-up:
I set the lens to Manual, the camera focusing mode selector to "M", the ISO to 400, and the exposure metering system to 3D color matrix. I then manually set the aperture ring to F4 and I get a shutter speed reading (in this case) of 640, but the LCD and viewfinder reads F2. Turning the aperture ring to F11 I now get a shutter speed of 100 with the F-stop listed as being F5.6. The F stop reading in the viewfinder is always 2 stops behind the aperture ring setting. Setting the exposure compensation changes the shutter speed so at F11 the speed becomes 20 with +2 exposure compensation. Changes in the subjects brightness results in a corresponding change in shutter speeds as does cycling through spot, center, and matrix metering modes. The in-focus indicator works as well. Although the viewfinder indicates the f-stop is 2 stops from the aperture ring, stopping down the camera indicates that the aperture ring setting is correct. So what do you think: Ignoring what the camera says the F-stop is and setting the exposure compensation +2?
Thomas