jennifer_c Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 I am looking for recommendations for a light meter (basic) to use in my in-home studio. I waste so much time finding the right light, shutter & apeture setting that I am getting frustrated. I have two ABs (800WS) and a D100. I am just looking for one that I can set the ISO and it will give me shutter and apeture for less than $100. Any thoughts and opinions on this would be great!! (I have NEVER used a meter, so dumb it down for me please!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce_rubenstein___nyc Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 To a certain extent there is no such thing as a "beginner" flash/light meter. Usually experienced folks use these meters, so they are made for them. In addition, low priced, analog ones are likely going to be more complicated to use. Look for a used Minolta IIIF or IV, Sekonic 308B II. These are good, basic digital ambient/flash incident meters. You set the ISO, pick a shutter speed and they will give you the aperture. Learning to use the meters well will take longer than learning how to opperate them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce_rubenstein___nyc Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 In fact, look here: http://www.photo.net/gc/view-one?classified_ad_id=564433 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timberwolf1 Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Just go for a Minolta iiiF flashmeter. They can be had on the auctions for $90 used. You won't be disappointed. It has digital read out, so it is easier to read than a moving pointer. Do not purchase a Minolta Auto Meter-no. But go for the original IIIF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shane_gilbert1 Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Jennifer, there are 3 manufactures that are regarded as among the best is the business: Sekonic, Minolta and Gossen. Not to say these are the only ones to have, just that they are highly regarded. For use with your studio lights I would recommend the Sekonic L308B-II. New it can be had for $180, used you can pick it up for around $100. Someone correct me if I�m wrong, but the last time I checked it was the least expensive meter with a PC connector. You will need the connector to hook up to your power pack to fire the lights. It meters within 1/10 stops. I use this meter myself and find it to be very accurate. When I use it with my D-100, I usually overexpose by 2-3 tenths. I attribute this with how Nikon wired their chips moreover the workings of the Sekonic meter. My understanding is because digital capture is more prone to blow out the highlights; Nikon set their chips to underexpose slightly. Anyway, this has been my experience with both of my D-100s. Your camera may work differently. Whatever meter you decide on the learning curve is not to steep. I know this next statement will storm a fire of controversy. But I believe you should aim the dome of the light meter not into the main light, but into the lens of the camera. I find I gain better repeatability this way. Let the arguments begin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_levine Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Minolta IV,these run $200 new but are worth their weight in gold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_kearney Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 I use the Sekonic 358. I've been happy with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_kearney Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Check with KEH about the used models. Still might be a little overbudget but worth it when playing with light ratios with my monolights, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brooks short Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Jennifer, I've always been partial to Minolta Flash meters. I have a Minolta III that I've been using for over 15 years. It's always accurate and has never let me down. Probably shouldn't say that, watch it quit the next time I use it. I also sometimes use a Minolta Digital spot meter that reads flash or ambient. In the studio I shoot with a ProBack Plus digital back and sometimes a 14N. And I never use a meter with these backs. The reason .....I shoot fire-wired to a computer. The image pops up on a 20 inch flat screen Apple monitor and all is revealed. I can check the actual exposure visually or with a histogram, and see the lighting visually much more effectively than I used to be able to see using polaroids. If I'm on location, I use a Powerbook laptop. By all means buy a flash meter. For studio shooting, look into a shooting/capture software from your camera manufacturer (I thought I remember you having a Nikon D100 ?) Then firewire to your computer and you can see the exposure, lighting, facial expression, focus, everything. And your subjects can look at the shots right after they are captured. It's a great thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathan_brewer1 Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Jennifer, the 308II will allow you to hook up your PC cord to the meter, and fire your flash from the meter, a plus if you're setting up and there's nobody else around. They are always sales on these meters, and like everybody else has said they dependable, watch out buying used, meters won't take any kind of a beating. Shane....................when measuring individual lights I always point my meter at the light, after individual each light is set, I turn them all on and measure that pointing my meter at the lens. If you set a light to illuminate a subject at a 45 deg angle from the lens axis, and that is the only light being used in the set-up, then you can point a Minolta IIIF or Sekonic 308II(meters with the translucent white dome/hemispere) at the lens,...................If you're using more than one light, a key and a fill for example, then as mentioned you want to turn them all on at some point and measure with the dome pointing directly at the lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimstrutz Posted February 7, 2004 Share Posted February 7, 2004 Since you are using this with flash, make sure you buy a flash meter, not just a regular (ambient) light meter. I also like the Minolta IIIf, but the Minolta III (non "f") does not meter flash, so make sure it has the "f" on the end of it. Most of the meters suggested above meter both ambient and flash, but there are lower cost "flash only" models. Wein had been making the 500B and 1000B for centuries I think. They are mostly relaible, generally accurate and fairly low cost, but as mentioned above, their moving needle display is not as convenient as a digital display. There are some older Novatron meters that use LEDs, and Vivitar & others have marketed some similar LED meters. They are all very easy to use, but have limited accuracy and/or reliability. If you get a used meter (and really even if you get a new one) make sure you calibrate it by using it with a flash meter you know you can trust and/or shooting a roll of slide film with it. Some, like the Minolta IIIf, can be adjusted by turning the little pot in the battery compartment. With others you can just make a note how you should "rate" your film when using this meter. I have bought & sold several used meters on Ebay. It's generally a good place to buy, but not always. So if you really can't risk the cash there are safer places to buy used on the net. B&H Photo & KEH are good places to start. BTW, an ambient meter will tell you the aperture and shutter to use, but a flash meter only really needs to tell you the aperture. Some of them include a measurement of ambient light into the flash exposure, and for those you generally tell it the shutter speed you are going to use before the metering. The Minolta IIIf only gives you an option of two possible shutter speeds, and mine only works with one, but I've never found that to be limiting. I just set the shutter to let in as much ambient light as I want. I have a Minolta Falsh Meter II I'd sell cheap, if you're interested. It's old, reliable, accurate, and it's easy to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_hovland Posted February 7, 2004 Share Posted February 7, 2004 You don't seem to have a cheap camera or cheap lights, so why would you want a cheap meter? My feeling is that your meter is one of your most important pieces of equipment, because it makes a huge difference in the quality of your pictures. I would recommend going up to the $500 range where you will find a flash/ambient meter that has spot capability built in. Those meters can also tell you the ratio between flash and ambient light. Good equipment will last you 20 years, so it is cheaper to buy up rather than down. If you get a cheaper meter now it will of course provide you with a backup meter when you get the right stuff. All that said, I'm pretty happy with my L308, but I would like to have a spot flash meter so I could evaluate the total contrast of my scene- lighting contrast as well as subject contrast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimstrutz Posted February 7, 2004 Share Posted February 7, 2004 Actually, I think a cheap flash meter is a good option for a DSLR. Since you can check the exposure in the LCD right after you fire it, all you really need to do is get close to the right exposure with a meter, and also be able to determine ratios (relative brightness) from each light. Any cheap flash meter will do this. Better meters will often be more durable and offer more options, but are often not easier to use. Unless you are going to be doing this a lot, why not reserve your cash for other things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary_griffin Posted February 8, 2004 Share Posted February 8, 2004 I don't have anything to add, but I do have one further question about the Minolta IIIf. Does it have a sync fitting so that you can fire your flash units with it? Thanks, Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimstrutz Posted February 8, 2004 Share Posted February 8, 2004 No PC connection on the Minolta IIIf. It operates in wireless mode only. I prefer this, and forget that others don't. The IVf has one though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_hovland Posted February 8, 2004 Share Posted February 8, 2004 The L308 has a PC connection but I don't use it because I trigger slaves units from the on-camera flash. I'm not sure whether there is a difference between corded and cordless in regard to integration of flash and ambient light. In flash mode it only goes down to 1 second and I sometimes use longer exposures, so there's a bit of a mystery factor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary_griffin Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 Jim, Just thought that I would post an update about the IIIf. I just purchased a used unit and it does have a pc connection on it. In the manual it does explain how to use the unit either with sync cord or not. Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimstrutz Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 If yours has a PC connector on it, it probably isn't a Minolta Autometer IIIf. The Minolta Flash Meter III has one and the Minolta Autometer IVf has one but my IIIf certainly doesn't. I don't think they made different versions of it. I know there was the Autometer III that didn't meter flash at all, but the IIIf did in cordless only mode, and the Flash Meter III did cord or cordless. So are you sure yours is a Minolta Autometer IIIf? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_paulo1 Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 the L308 is great i brought it last year as my first meter. its small and took all of 5 minutes too learn how to use and i know that people still carry on using them at the start of a pro career. and if you can get it for $100 its a great deal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary_griffin Posted February 15, 2004 Share Posted February 15, 2004 Jim, I stand corrected I have the Colormeter IIIf. Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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