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Sekonic L-398 Studio Deluxe


gordonbennett

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I have an old Sekonic L-398 Studio Deluxe that I bought back in the '80s or early-'90s. I wanted to see if it worked. I took my Olympus OM-1n, which has just been cleaned, serviced, and calibrated, and my Nikon FM-2n outside and focused on an object that was in the shade with a little dappled sunlight. With the shutter speeds set to 1/125, the apertures on both cameras were between f/5.6 and f/8. I took a reading with the Sekonic. First, the needle swung all the way to the right without the High slide. With the high slide in, it read halfway between 20 and 40. At a 1/125 second shutter speed, this calls for an aperture ⅔ the way between f/8 and f/11. I covered the Lumidisc and ensured the needle read zero, and I turned the adjustment screw on the back and re-zeroed the meter.

 

Two cameras agree on halfway between f/5.6 and f/8 at 1/125 second. The Sekonic disagrees. I could take out half a dozen other SLRs and compare their readings; but with the freshly-calibrated OM-1n and the Nikon FM-2a agreeing, I must conclude the Sekonic is incorrect -- especially since it seems to read WAY high without the High slide. Can anyone offer a diagnosis? Is this something I can fix myself? Is it fixable at all?

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Because of factors like age, coverage, and normal variation, etc., any two light meter readings will be different.

 

If you have three meters, then you will have 3 different measurements, particularly if all 3 meters are different models....

 

You do best on a bright shiny day, in comparing one meter to the sunny-16 recommendation. Then you might figure out if you are in the ball park.

 

I am not joking, by the way.

 

On the 'bright' side, the loss of most of the narrow latitude slide films has made the sunny-16 rule more than adequate for C/N film shooting these days.

Edited by JDMvW
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FWIW, I have four Minolta IV-F Auto Meters. All of them agree. I like the Sekonic because it's so 'old school', and that I can read any shutter/aperture combination once I take a reading. (The Minoltas are easier for cine, which is why I have them.) Unless the Sekonic can be fixed, I guess I'll just have to use one of the Minoltas.
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As I'm sure you realize, the Sekonic is primarily an incident meter and your two cameras have reflected meters. You didn't say what you pointed the camera/meters at, but unless it was a gray card you won't necessarily get the same reading. Does the Sekonic agree with one your Minoltas in incident mode? If so, then this may have been simple "subject failure." With all of the above said, however, if your Sekonic is 30+ years old it wouldn't surprise me if the meter cell is on the way out. B&H still sells a Sekonic 398 A which looks like a clone of your Studio Deluxe, but it is $219!
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The L-398 'Studio de-luxe' has a wide acceptance angle in reflective mode, whereas your camera TTL metering angles are limited by whatever lens you have attached.

 

I suspect that if you approach the subject closer, or simply shade the L-398 with your hand, you'll get a reading closer to the TTL one.

 

As AJG suggests, the meter works better in incident mode, which in any case is a more reliable metering method.

 

Having said that, my L-398 needed to be fitted with a 1 stop ND filter to make its readings agree with anything else. However, since it was bought used, I have no idea of its history. It might have had a cell replacement or been otherwise tampered with by a previous owner.

 

Whatever. Better to be too sensitive than to under-read. You can easily attenuate the sensitivity by fitting a suitable circle of ND gel over the cell, or simply masking it with a circular aperture of black paper. The cell housing comes apart with just two small screws.

 

FWIW, I've seen some dreadful botches done to Weston meters. Instead of simply accepting that the cell is dying, some owners attempt to increase their sensitivity by drilling extra holes in the high-range mask!

Needless to say, this does nothing to address the non-linearity that a dead cell causes.

Edited by rodeo_joe|1
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The L-398 'Studio de-luxe' has a wide acceptance angle in reflective mode, whereas your camera TTL metering angles are limited by whatever lens you have attached.

 

I suspect that if you approach the subject closer, or simply shade the L-398 with your hand, you'll get a reading closer to the TTL one.

 

As AJG suggests, the meter works better in incident mode, which in any case is a more reliable metering method.

 

Having said that, my L-398 needed to be fitted with a 1 stop ND filter to make its readings agree with anything else. However, since it was bought used, I have no idea of its history. It might have had a cell replacement or been otherwise tampered with by a previous owner.

 

Whatever. Better to be too sensitive than to under-read. You can easily attenuate the sensitivity by fitting a suitable circle of ND gel over the cell, or simply masking it with a circular aperture of black paper. The cell housing comes apart with just two small screws.

 

FWIW, I've seen some dreadful botches done to Weston meters. Instead of simply accepting that the cell is dying, some owners attempt to increase their sensitivity by drilling extra holes in the high-range mask!

Needless to say, this does nothing to address the non-linearity that a dead cell causes.

If your Sekonic were mine I would simply set the ASA/ISO to double the number that matched the film and forego losing any sensitivity of the selenium cell.

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I have a collection of working folder & FSU 35mm cameras & each kit gets a light meter "appropriate" to its vintage, so various Weston 853, Master II or III and Gossen Pilots are always coming in thru the mail. Almost ALL are not factor reading. . Hell, I am no longer "OEM" at 76, but the meters can be calibrated against a re-celled Weston Master V and a quick 5 frame test thru a 35mm camera can get the "Oldie" back in use. RJ & AJ's info will get you back in the lab. Aloha, Bill
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Always found my late-90s Sekonic 398 to be a deadly accurate. Apart from being a bit heavy and borderline useless in low light, it's a good incident meter. You'll go bonkers trying to reconcile incident(Sekonic)readings with reflected readings metered SLRS give. Just make sure you completely light block the 398's sensor before zeroing it. Try using it for incident readings sometime and ignore the camera's read-out.

 

Check your cameras' accuracy with a spot meter sometime.

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If your Sekonic were mine I would simply set the ASA/ISO to double the number that matched the film and forego losing any sensitivity of the selenium cell.

A sensible suggestion, and one that would effectively improve the pitiful low-light response of the meter.

 

To be honest, that never crossed my mind. However, it would have required a reminder sticker somewhere on the meter, and would have rankled with my 'do it right, or not at all' tendencies.

 

Ah. It's done now, and the L398 is more a decorative than a practical item I'm afraid. If I want an accurate meter I reach for my more bulky and less attractive Minolta Autometer IIIF.

 

And what's the objective definition of an 'accurate' exposure reading anyway?

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Everyone who ever used a 398 knows its low-light limitations, though it works well in less-than-extreme situations. YMMV, as usual, but there's still the fact it's been in production in one form or another since the Norwood Director.

 

"Accurate" in this instance means simply function that results in exposures that work for me. No point puzzling over definitions. Its incident readings compare favorably with a Sekonic 308 and 558.

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  • 4 months later...

I just noticed this thread. I got an L-428 a few weeks ago.

 

It has a lumisphere and lumidisk for incident readings, and another adapter

with a hole for reflected readings. You match up the reading on the meter

(between 1 and 22) with a symbol on the dial for incident or reflected

(two different symbols).

 

Anyway, you have to use the appropriate adapter and dial reading.

 

For some reason, the manual says 1.5V mercury cells (4 of them) and then lists

a few types of silver oxide cells. I put alkaline in mine, and the battery check goes

to the right place.

 

Does yours have the lumisphere, lumidisk, and a third one with no white plastic on it?

-- glen

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