Canon LTM Mounting external light meter on Canon 7

[tortellini_man]

hi - i am looking into options for mounting an external light meter on my Canon 7 because the built in meter is broken

it seems like there was a manufacturer made coldshoe mount to clip onto it, but these are typically a few hundred dollars (much more than i paid for the camera)

i feel like it would be a bit wasteful to just get another similar Canon LTM camera with a coldshoe mount, but i am not sure if anyone who is more mechanically inclined knows of any options that are a little cheaper than the manufacturer coldshoe adapter

 

[wlewisiii]

I just use a handheld Sekonic 308 with my Canon 7. Easier than anything else and it's there for all my other meterless cameras.

 

[Coldkennels]

...duct tape?

On a more serious note, I've seen people glue accessory shoes to the top of a Canon 7 or use adhesive velcro patches to affix a light meter and still have it be removable to use elsewhere.

 

[shawn]

tripod mount cold shoe

adhesive mount cold shoe

 

[tortellini_man]

i tried the adhesive mount cold shoe, and it doesn't fit snugly enough to actually hold the light meter firmly in place without it sliding out, so maybe i will try glue or velcro method

 

[Sanug]

Maybe you better use a handheld meter.

 

[shawn]

i tried the adhesive mount cold shoe, and it doesn't fit snugly enough to actually hold the light meter firmly in place without it sliding out, so maybe i will try glue or velcro method

The mount is loose or the meter is loose in the cold shoe? If the meter is loose try putting some masking tape on the bottom of the meters foot.

 

[Coldkennels]

The mount is loose or the meter is loose in the cold shoe? If the meter is loose try putting some masking tape on the bottom of the meters foot.

If this is the issue, I'd opt for solution B: reshape the accessory shoe.

Assuming the meter fits correctly in other accessory shoes, you'd do much better bending down the "arms" of the accessory shoe slightly to have a tighter fit on the meter. Putting masking tape on the meter's foot will only make it more difficult to use on other cameras.

 

[jwnash1]

I used a canon flash coupler for the demi for a couple of years until I traded in my 7. There are several on ebay right now running from $20-$50. The draw back is that it places your meter over the rewind so you have to remove the coupler when you rewind the film.

 

[tortellini_man]

the light meter fits fine into shoes on other cameras I have, but the adhesive mount shoe from amazon grips the meter too loosely

i didnt have much success bending the arms without feeling like they would snap, but i can try that

the Canon demi part looks very interesting though, might try that just for aesthetic appeal

 

[shawn]

the light meter fits fine into shoes on other cameras I have, but the adhesive mount shoe from amazon grips the meter too loosely

i didnt have much success bending the arms without feeling like they would snap, but i can try that

the Canon demi part looks very interesting though, might try that just for aesthetic appeal

Along with trying to bend it you could also just add the tape into the shoe itself.

 

[shawn]

One other option if you want a locking shoe there is this one. I mounted it with 3m VHB tape.





It is physically fairly large and tall which I wanted in this case. That actual shoe itself is also deeper than most so the meter might move around inside it. I put a spacer in the shoe in front of the viewfinder to prevent that.

 

[tortellini_man]

i ended up getting a small 3d printer for other reasons, so i just 3d printed a couple of parts and it seems to work without blocking anything except the non-functioning built in light meter readout

 

[shawn]

Nice, 3d printers are very very handy for camera stuff.