Any Light Meter Recommendations?

[shawn]

I have the VCII and it is a nice meter. If I were buying that style today TTArtisans has basically the same meter for about 1/4 the cost. The Keks KM02 also looks like a nice meter.

I use a Gossen Luna-Pro Digital F which is a fairly small light meter that runs on a double AA. It can do things like directly measuring a filter to automatically apply compensation to metering, that can be very handy. For spot metering I have a Pentax Spotmeter V but mostly use that with my Kraken panoramics. I also just purchased a Gossen SBC Super Pilot but haven't received it yet. That was mostly as I like seeing all the shutter/aperture combinations directly and I was looking for something a little smaller than the Luna-Pro. I've read the SBC version of the Pilot isn't effected by battery voltage but time will tell.

 

[Steve Bellayr]

Feflx Lab has released a new small light meter that fits in the shoe on top of the camera. I have not tried it or read the reviews yet but it seems interesting. It is just for information not recommendation.

 

[snegron7]

Thank you everyone for all the the info you provided! I ended up purchasing a Sekonic L-308X-U. It arrived a few minutes ago, so I'm still trying to figure it out.

My reasons for picking this particular light meter were because of the (advertised) low light capability and the power supply (one AA battery). Also, it has an on/off button.

I'm going to compare it to a camera I know has a good meter (R6) before loading any film in one of my cameras.

Thanks again!

 

[wlewisiii]

Good choice! Good light & great pictures!

 

[Darthfeeble]

It's pretty simple really, just follow the directions and after a few uses it will be second nature. I like that it shows the exposure settings in both Shutter/Aperture or EV as I have a Hasselblad and a few non metered 35mm cameras. I gave up on the lanyard and just keep it in my pocket.

 

[snegron7]

I ended up buying this tiny meter as well. It will probably end up living on my S2.

 

[Coldkennels]

I ended up buying this tiny meter as well. It will probably end up living on my S2.

Is that the VCII or the TTArtisans version? I can't remember what the visible differences are.

 

[snegron7]

Is that the VCII or the TTArtisans version? I can't remember what the visible differences are.

The TTArtisan version.

 

[Coldkennels]

The TTArtisan version.

How are you finding it? The price point is obviously appealing, but early reviews when it first came out suggested it was really easy to accidentally change the ISO without realising. Have they fixed that yet?

 

[ranger9]

I have both the TTArtisan and Reflx Labs meters (and eventually will do a YouTube video about them.) They're both solidly made and, while it's impossible to test a meter for actual "accuracy" unless you own a lab-grade calibrated light source, I did try them under low and high light conditions and both were within 1/3 stop of my Minolta Flash Meter IV.

I did notice with the TTArtisan meter that the green "correct exposure" LED stays on over a range of nearly 1 stop, so you have to saw it back and forth to get it in the center of its range if you're picky. Re someone else's comment above, the ISO dial on mine is very thickly damped and seems unlikely to get turned by accident, although of course anything is possible.

The Achilles' heel of both of them is visibility. The Reflx Labs meter has an LCD readout that's easily readable in bright sunlight, but unreadable in very low light (there's no backlight). The TTArtisan meter's LEDs are easy to see in dim light, but get completely washed out in bright sunlight; meanwhile, in very dim light, the print on the calculator dials is small enough to be hard to read, unless your eyes are better than mine. They're both usable under most "average" light conditions, though.

I predict we'll be seeing a lot more of these basic-featured, inexpensive-but-accurate meters in the near future, thanks to advances in the chip-making industry. It used to be that the selenium, CdS, or silicon light sensors used in meters weren't very well standardized, so good meters needed individual component selection and calibration to produce accurate results over a wide range. Now, chipmakers can make light sensors that roll off the production line producing almost completely identical readings, with no individual calibration required.

Meanwhile, a powerful microprocessor, such as the STM32L0 used in the TTArtisan meter (ST is Europe's second-largest chipmaker; I couldn't find out what chip the Reflx Labs meter uses because I didn't have the right size Torx driver to disassemble it) does all the heavy lifting of voltage regulation, sensor reading, measurement logic, and display output at a very low cost -- a single STM32L0 retails for $2.66 on Alibaba, and I'm sure manufacturers get better prices in quantity. Other than the light sensor and the STM32L0, the TTArtisans' nicely fabricated circuit board contains a startlingly sparse handful of components: a few surface-mount resistors and capacitors, the two potentiometers connected to the dials, and the readout switch. The Reflx Labs meter is bound to be simpler yet, since it uses up/down switches instead of "pots."

Either of these seems like a good solution for "meterizing" an older camera or subbing for a dead built-in meter, and there are other choices I haven't explored, probably all with similar innards...

 

[snegron7]

How are you finding it? The price point is obviously appealing, but early reviews when it first came out suggested it was really easy to accidentally change the ISO without realising. Have they fixed that yet?

So far it's been working well. I checjed it against my Sekonic L398, and it provides the same measurements.

As for the ISO dial being easily switched, it's not bad. The dial sits recessed and is not easily moved. My only gripe (no fault of the meter) is that the numbers are tiny. They are very difficult to see at least for me.

A neat little feature is that you can move the hotshoe mount to either the left or right to accommodate your camera.

 

[wayben]

Great thread. I've got a Gossen Pilot and Weston Studio Master III, but have been thinking about something better in low light. This thread gives me some ideas.
Wayne

 

[wlewisiii]

I've been considering getting a L-308 to supplement my L-208 especially in lower light and indoors.

 

[hap]

Great thread. I've got a Gossen Pilot and Weston Studio Master III, but have been thinking about something better in low light. This thread gives me some ideas.
Wayne

If you want to go "vintage" consider gossen Luna pro S.

 

[The Spastic Image]

If you want to go "vintage" consider gossen Luna pro S.

I use a Gossen Luna Pro-F. Replaced a Luna-Pro which took a bounce the wrong way. I also have a Gossen Pilot as a secondary meter.

 

[Retro-Grouch]

I use a Gossen Luna Pro-F. Replaced a Luna-Pro which took a bounce the wrong way. I also have a Gossen Pilot as a secondary meter.

The Luna Pro-F is the most rugged, intuitive, and accurate meter I've ever used. I've been battering mine around for 20 years, and I'm only on my second battery (a simple, single AA. Nice!).

 

[Godfrey]

I use and can recommend the Sekonic L-208 Twinmate. It's a pocketable handheld meter that can take incident or reflected light readings. I like that it has an analog readout so you can see equivalent aperture/shutter speed combinations at a glance, plus EV if you're into that. It takes a modern 3.0V CR2032 battery, so you don't need to worry about voltage adapters. The measuring range for both ambient and incident at ISO100 is EV3 - EV17, adequate for most indoor and outdoor scenes. Somewhat clunky, but it can also be shoe mounted. $129 USD brand new, but can be found for <$100 used.

Here's mine, with a Gordy's wrist strap:


2020.05.09 Roll #244-04724-positive.jpg by dourbalistar, on Flickr

Yeah, I have one of those somewhere in the equipment cabinet. Haven't been able to find it for some time .. I'll have to take the cabinet apart one of these days. Sigh.

G

 

[Deleted member 65559]

We have so many choices today....classic old meters, digital, selenium, tiny shoe-mount meters, cell phone apps. From LF i got very find of my Pentax spot meter. Over the decades i've owned and used Lunasix, Luna-pro et al.....but these days (apart from my spot meter) I won't carry a meter bigger than a Rollei 35.
I have a Digisix and often carry it and the Pentax. Last trip to Europe i carried only the Digisix. I hate all the quirks about it: the lack of an off button, the excess stuff (thermometer, alarm).....in short i hate virtually everything about it (i even tried to sell it)....except the size and the reliable results it's given me.....& in the end that's what counts the most to me.

 

[MrFujicaman]

The Gossen Multi-Beam is nice and it only needs 2 AA batteries. The Luna-Pro SBC and the Luna-Lux both run off 1 9 volt battery.Trying to find a odd size battery in the middle of no where is a major PITA!

 

[raydm6]

I have many meters - mostly vintage (in camera and out), but once I saw the Gossen Luna-Pro SBC featured prominently in Ansel Adams' "The Negative", I had to get one.

Has reflected and incident mode (sliding dome) and a spot meter attachment module (which I don't have) and other modules that plug into the top of the meter. Runs on a standard 9V square battery.

Very easy to operate (null metering) - press the RED button and 'null' the RED needle to 0 and read off the scale(s) below. Battery check built-in (green button/green BATT scale readout). Made in Germany. Robust build. Still have it.

I especially enjoyed using it in the 1980's when I had my Hasselblad kit as it was easy to transfer the meter EV reading to the CF lens EV ring.