Handheld light meter

[jl-lb.ms]

Hello, all - I'm using an M8, a D-lux4 and other cameras, primarily digital. Wondering, does one really NEED a handheld light meter? I was thinking of picking one up, well, just because. Any recommendations for specific meters?

thanks,

John

 

[MCTuomey]

what do your own exposures tell you, john? and also, how do you work with your cameras? do you rely on the in-board meter? manual? auto-exposure?

i wouldn't buy a hand meter unless i knew what i wanted to accomplish with it. my 2 cents.

 

[Livesteamer]

It sounds like you already have reflected light meters in your cameras so if you want a hand held meter perhaps you should buy an incident meter. Several years ago I bought a Sekonic L398a incident meter and have found it very useful. Good Luck. Joe

 

[Richard Marks]

Hello, all - I'm using an M8, a D-lux4 and other cameras, primarily digital. Wondering, does one really NEED a handheld light meter? I was thinking of picking one up, well, just because. Any recommendations for specific meters?

thanks,

John

The whole Leica ethos is generally to keep things very simple and the M8's metering is more than adequate for most situations. The only reason i would want a hand held meter would be for landscapes. Here a spot meter can be nice if you have the camera set up on a tripod and do not want to move it to take meter readings of certain aspects of the scene. I have an old failthful pentax spot meter but have also used a Sekonic spotmeter which is a bit quicker as it gives the shutter and aperture rather than just an EV. If you have spare cash a spot meter is a very nice thing to have and it can liberate a lot of old cameras without meters for you. There are plenty of used Sekonic spot meters on the'bay. But realy the metering in the cameras you have should be fine, and be guided for exposure by the digital image captured and adjust accordingly (the celebrated habit of chimping) generally gets the job done!

Richard

 

[brainwood]

I'm not sure you NEED a handheld meter if you are using the camera's meter. As with all digital cameras you have the ability to check your exposure seconds after taking the shot, iether by looking at the thumbnail on the screen or the Histogram. Its then easy to dial in some EV compensation if its needed and it wont take long to get to know your cameras meter and be able to predict the EV compensation needed for any given situation.

With my Canon DSLR I just use the onboard meter which is very good. The handheld meter only comes out with my Leica III Film camera and even then I sometimes 'guess' using the sunny 16 rule.

If you are having exposure problems using your cameras meter then maybe think of an additional meter but I think a spot meter may be a better supliment. By taking shadow/highlight readings you can tailor the exposure to preserve the highlights/shadows.

I think the bottom line must be if it ain't broke don't fix fix it.

Good luck

Chris

 

[Juan Valdenebro]

I use a handheld Sekonic, incident and spot, giving speed and aperture. I consider it VERY important, and have it with me always, even if I am using 5 or 6 metered bodies (a real case last month...) I also use it some time ago with my digital camera, as I hate checking the screen...


I recommend this brand and type because it's now like new, after using it for 13 years.


I think (no massive attack, please!) using reflected light meters (those in cameras) is the main reason people have for not feeling slide film is easy... With an incident meter you get ALL of your frames PERFECT, and more important: you LEARN about light. When you see a negative you don't know what you did, and for negative printing you don't need perfect exposure, so people in general (may be different here) go the easy way: just click, and let's hope the camera decides for me...


It's important to have spot metering too, because sometimes you won't be under the same light you are shooting (for incident), or you just can't reach that place, and a camera isn't always prepared to meter a very small amount of the frame... I shoot black and white with incident metering too.


In general, an essential tool.


Cheers,


Juan

 

[uhligfd]

Paraphrasing your worries:

If I have and use the rangefinder in my camera to focus do I still need to have a yard/inch measure to set the distance to my subject properly?

Well, if you find many out of focus pics as your problem, maybe a yard measuring tape would be in order.

So, how are your histograms? Do you know how to read them and how to adjust exposure in those 10% of instances when you need/want to adjust. What is your answer?

A case for "If it is not broke, don't fix it. ", maybe?

 

[Gumby]

I think (no massive attack, please!) using reflected light meters (those in cameras) is the main reason people have for not feeling slide film is easy...

Quite true. Reflected light metering can be fooled (by inlcuding too much sky, or too much ground) if one isn't careful about aiming it and the indicated exposure may exceed the dynamic range of slide film.

 

[brainwood]

Reflected light metering can be fooled (by inlcuding too much sky, or too much ground) if one isn't careful about aiming it and the indicated exposure may exceed the dynamic range of slide film.

The OP was about the use of mainly digital cameras and as such this problem is easily corrected by using the EV compensation on the camera. Once you've done it a few times it becomes second nature.

 

[Gumby]

That is true. But it does not negate the Juan's observation about the ease-of-use of an incident light measurement.

 

[brainwood]

I cannot disagree with that.

 

[Juan Valdenebro]

Although unusual, lately I've been carrying my digital with my rangefinders, and I set it to manual and use the reading I did for setting my RFs, and use the digital without checking the screen, just to see shots afterwards, like film. This way I keep the mood I enjoy best...

Cheers,

Juan

 

[Richard Marks]

One thing which I would have very much liked on the M8 would have been spot metering. It might be a bit more difficult to do with the rangefinder metering but personally I would have found it useful.

Richard

 

[Bugleone]

Interesting topic,...

I'm not yet an M8 user and I basically use this, and other, sites to learn about the camera. If I do go to the M8 as my sole digital system I will certainly continue to use my spot meters, especially since M8 apparently has only basic metering with no spot capability. That said, my current DSLR (Pentax) spot metering mode is poor compared to my dedicated spot meter.

I use the spot meter for several types of subject notably landscapes where it is useful to read the brightness range of the scene,..which has led me to a question which is important to me as a prospective M8 user;

....What is the brightness range in 'stops' or EV's of the M8 sensor please?