Hand held light meter

My Sekonic L-328 Finally bit the dust, any recommendations on one that wont break the bank? Im not doing studio work so no need in all the bells and whistles.

Thanks

If you like Sekonic I think the 308 is inexpensive. Or you can go for the 478 which is not too expensive.

My Minolta Autometer iiiF is still working fine after, what? Must be nigh on twenty years since I bought it used.

 

I've also got a cheap Shepherd ambient+flash meter that does everything needed. Why would you ever want to average half a dozen readings? Only if you don't actually know what part of the subject should be exposed right!

Edited July 25, 2019 by rodeo_joe|1

It's not inexpensive or small, but the Gossen Luna Pro SBC is the best handheld meter I've EVER owned. Uses 9-volt batteries too.

 

Otherwise, find a replacement for the Sekonic? I always had good results from them. Prices asked on eBay seem to vary extremely widely though.

The Minolta IVF is accurate and handles nicely. A few years ago, many were available used from private sellers for under $100 US, but recently I haven't seen as many offered.

If you purchase a used meter, be sure batteries are still available before you make the purchase. Older meters that use mercury batteries (which are no longer available) are quite inexpensive just for that reason.

bgelfand+1. I should have mentioned that the IVF uses a single AA battery.

If you purchase a used meter, be sure batteries are still available before you make the purchase. Older meters that use mercury batteries (which are no longer available) are quite inexpensive just for that reason.

 

I wouldn't use a meter that needs mercury battery as for me those are not accurate even with mercury battery.

I wouldn't use a meter that needs mercury battery as for me those are not accurate even with mercury battery.

 

I'm just curious why you say that.

I used mercury batteries from ca. 1971 to 2004 and never had any problems with exposure. Are you speaking about mercury batteries that are "new" now from some third-world source?

I'm just curious why you say that.

I used mercury batteries from ca. 1971 to 2004 and never had any problems with exposure. Are you speaking about mercury batteries that are "new" now from some third-world source?

Ditto. My cameras also ran on mercury batteries, and they produced great images with their mercury cell meters. I also used them in a couple of light meters, a Gossen Super Pilot, and later a Gossen Luna Pro, for my 4x5 and medium format cameras. Never had an exposure problem with them. One of the things I liked about mercury cells was their relatively flat usage curve, and consistent voltage output.

I'm just curious why you say that.

I used mercury batteries from ca. 1971 to 2004 and never had any problems with exposure. Are you speaking about mercury batteries that are "new" now from some third-world source?

If not having problem with exposure means the meter is good then I don't have any exposure problem not using any meter at all.

what?:confused:

The newer Luna-Pro with the 9V battery, or the Luna Lux, 9V also, should be good.

I used mercury batteries from ca. 1971 to 2004 and never had any problems with exposure.

Mercury batteries have been banned in the US and most other places, due to their alleged toxicity after disposal. Non-toxic (i.e., lithium) replacements are available, but may not be 100% compatible with older meters. My Luna-Six (c 1965) reads about 1 stop low with the new batteries. My Seconik L-508 (c 2000) takes a single AAA battery, which lasts a very long time.

 

Auto exposure is pretty much fool-proof these days, but some situations are best handled with a hand-held meter. The L-508 is a spot meter, incident light meter (with a large dome) and flash meter, all in one. More recently I bought a Lumu meter, which attaches to an iPhone. It measures incident light, flash, and color temperature. The last feature is useful for matching bi-color light panels to ambient lighting, for video and portraits. I can't attest to the absolute accuracy, but it's perfect for matching and balancing, at a fraction of the cost of a color temperature meter. It is about the size of my thumb.

 

Lumu Power 2 Power Light Meter for iPhone

When your using the medium or 4x5 formats do you also use any spot metering?

When your using the medium or 4x5 formats do you also use any spot metering?

 

Yes, I have four spot meters, Pentax Digital Spot (Zone VI), Soligor Digital Spot (Zone VI), Soligor Digital Spot, Minolta Spot Meter F. I also have a Sekonic L508 which can be used as a 5-1 degrees spot meter. My preference is for the Pentax. However, I've tested all four against the same 18% gray card, and there's only around 1/3 EV variation among them.

 

I've been at it long enough to know that I can average the hi/med/low EV's, and adjust to what I want in highlights and shadows. Transparencies are less forgiving, but C41 films do have quite a bit of latitude. However, I always expose to keep the shadow detail. If you lose the shadows, they can't be recovered very easily in editing.

Yes, I have four spot meters, Pentax Digital Spot (Zone VI), Soligor Digital Spot (Zone VI), Soligor Digital Spot, Minolta Spot Meter F. I also have a Sekonic L508 which can be used as a 5-1 degrees spot meter. My preference is for the Pentax. However, I've tested all four against the same 18% gray card, and there's only around 1/3 EV variation among them.

 

I've been at it long enough to know that I can average the hi/med/low EV's, and adjust to what I want in highlights and shadows. Transparencies are less forgiving, but C41 films do have quite a bit of latitude. However, I always expose to keep the shadow detail. If you lose the shadows, they can't be recovered very easily in editing.

I was looking at the Sekonic L508 , figured I need a new meter get one with a spot, im not shooting film now, I used to have Rb67 that was stolen about 10 yrs ago but looking at some prices of MF I might get back into it, as far as 4x5 I have never used one.

Avoid holy relics like the Gossens. The 308 is great for incident and usually available at fair prices thanks to strong sales. If you need/want spot metering, the Sekonic 558/608 are solid choices. The later Minoltas are fine but do require tack-on spot attachments that don't deliver 1 degree coverage. Film and processing aren't cheap, so I'd consider getting the newest you can afford that uses available batteries.

I have a Minolta IIIf also that has never steered me wrong, although I only use it as an incident meter. Some may consider this a heresy, but I use a smartphone app for spot metering duties.

 

The Minolta meters remain relatively affordable. The battery situation at least for mine is somewhere in the middle of "common" and "unobtainable." By that I mean it uses the 6V PX28/4LR44 battery that looks like a short, fat AA cell. This is a battery used in a lot of 70s and 80s cameras(Canon A series, Canon New F-1, the Nikkormat EL/Nikon EL2 and probably a few others). The meter is not voltage sensitive-it will be correct as long as the battery can power on the meter-and consequently you can use your choice of alkaline, silver, or lithium chemistry. I usually use lithiums since the batteries tend to die from age rather than use. Also, it's worth noting that there's no power switch on the meter-it's supposed to "soft" power off when not in use, but is known to drain batteries. When I'm done using mine, I wedge something convenient-usually either a piece of film box or a piece of the paper band from a roll of 120 film-under one of the battery terminals. I've had the same battery in mine for ~3 years doing this.

When your using the medium or 4x5 formats do you also use any spot metering?

With manual cameras, I use spot metering mainly for landscapes, but also for concerts and plays, where faces are brightly lighted against dark backgrounds. Incident light is ideal for formal groups, portraits, copying and closeups (e.g., of flowers), and with studio flash units (for both exposure and balance). The Sekonic L-508 has a flash terminal which can be used to trigger studio units. Newer versions have built-in radio triggers.

 

My Sony Alphas have matrix metering with face and/or highlight priority. That works great for stage productions.

what?:confused:

 

If you say your meter is accurate because you don't have problem with exposure that doesn't mean anything. I don't have problem with exposure using no meter at all. However, accurate meters don't necessarily solve your exposure problem if you do have it. Old meters rely on mercury cell voltage are of old design and are not accurate.

No offense, but that's just nonsense.

Mercury-zinc batteries, with a nearly constant voltage of 1.35 V, have been replaced with silver oxide batteries (1.55 V) with a similar discharge curve. The higher voltage affects the accuracy of measuring devices designed for mercury batteries.

 

Many older meters, including the Gossen Luna-Six, use photo-resistive cadmium sulfide sensors. These meters had far greater sensitivity than self-powered selenium cells, and a wider wavelength sensitivity. the name "Luna-Six" was intended to highlight this sensitivity, giving the ability to measure moonlight exposures (6 lumens). They are also susceptible to fatigue and aging. Simple bridge circuits* used with CdS cells require constant voltage for accuracy.

 

AFIK, modern meters use photodiodes, which are far more sensitive, with faster response (e.g., for electronic flash), than old meters. Their tendency for non-linear response and temperature sensitivity is well-compensated electronically. They require battery power, but apparently sparingly. By the time mercury batteries were banned, photodiodes had come to ascendency.

 

* Bridge circuits used in null-meters (e.g., a Wheatstone Bridge) are nearly voltage-independent. Null meters use an adjustable potentiometer to balance the unknown resistance to a null (zero) point. Practical bridge meters measure the voltage of imbalance, rather than adjusting to a null point. Readings are both voltage-dependent and non-linear.

Null methods, though less used in modern electronics, are extremely accurate. They were the gold standard in electrical metrology until recently.That's the reason I picked up a used Luna-Lux. It's a bit disconcerting to rotate the dial for null, if you're used to a meter with a scale, but the thing works great.

No offense, but that's just nonsense.

More to the point, working meters aren't necessarily accurate meters. Nothing wrong with that caveat when it comes to old models.