PLEASE recommend me a use ful LIGHT METER

N

Nutth

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Hi all

I just saw many Light meter on top of cameras (clip-on) in forum Show Off Your FSU i am use FED 3a and in the future will buy FED 2 , Zoki 3 ,4
So i like to have a good use ful , it is been good if it on top of the camera(clip-on) with hot shou ,but if it is a normal carry that is okay .

Right now i like GE PR-1 and LEningrad 2 (red color) what you think ?

THANK
 
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I have two GE PR-1's. Both are dead on correct. I paid $7 plus shipping. There is an essay on that meter on the net. There are many fine and expensive meters. It is what you want to pay and what you intend to use them for.
 
Weston Master III and IV here, both good but they aren't hot-shoe style. I like the IV better since it has larger calculator scales. There's plenty of choice for meters anyway. I suppose the Leningrad is more "authentic" for an FSU but it depends on taste and budget.
 
I have a Digisix. Good meter although for BW it's a bit optimistic, but you can correct that. It comes without an accessory shoe......If you order it you'll be surprised how much a piece of plastic and a screw can cost!
 
Depends really on circumstances: if there is enough light, I use one of my three gossen meters
  • Sixtar (small format)
  • Lunasix 3 (medium format)
  • Lunasix F (large meter)
Lunasix.jpg



however on a dark day or in the evening I use a
  • Sheperd (with led's)
Shepard.JPG


If you want to use a clip on, you can save a lot of money by finding this one, a Metraphot 3:

Zorki%202%20summitar.JPG
 
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People usually recommend the lightmeter they own and know best, even if they haven't used many others. So do I, too. I recommend the VC Meter II for the following reasons:

a) it's small
b) it fits almost any accessory shoe
c) it has a useful metering angle of 22°, which corresponds to 90mm focal length in small format - like centered metering with 50mm lenses.

But finally, every meter is recommendable if it can be used easily, and gives accurate metering values.

Didier
 
A Weston Master V served me faithfully for 25 years until I went TTL. Two years ago (25 years further on again) I was in the same position as you, wanting a meter again. Dug the Weson and found it dead. The explanation came quickly, selenium cells have a limited lifespan, typically around 30 years. Weston meters can be restored with a new cell. But remember this when searching E*ay, selenium meters, if working, might not have much useful life left. Within a few months I saw and got a Leningrad 6 which is a battery-driven CdS meter (there's still a useful life issue as the batteries are no longer available from orthodox sources).
 
My all time fav is the vintage Gossen Lunapro.

From the previous pix, it looks an awful lot like the Lunasix 3 pictured above.

Recently I have enjoyed checking my Brain Light Meter using a Digipro F.
 
I myself use a weston IV meter with the invercone if needed. I find it to be a good meter but a little big sometimes. With buying any selenium meter however, finding one that is accurate is sometimes hard. The good news is that sekonic have released a selenium meter

http://www.sekonic.com/products/products.asp?ID=109

we have an original at the shop i work at and i find it to be a wonderful easy meter to use...and not too big

If all else fails....learn to calculate exposure in your head, its not as hard as it sounds
 
d_ross said:
The Human brain is the cheapest and possibly best meter around :)
Click to expand...


Time to close this myth...Human Brains are not cheap! I've been cruising the classifieds for a while now with less then steller results.
 
EcoLeica said:
I The good news is that sekonic have released a selenium meter

http://www.sekonic.com/products/products.asp?ID=109
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Amorphous silicon cell according to the link - self-powered but not selenium. Being a Sekonic I'm sure it'll be a fine meter.

Interestingly, the main advantage of a selenium meter (other than needing no batteries) is that the response of the cells is a good match to the sensitivity of film. I don't know if that's true for silicon but I'd guess Sekonic would allow for it if necessary.
 
cmogi10 said:
Time to close this myth...Human Brains are not cheap! I've been cruising the classifieds for a while now with less then steller results.
Click to expand...

And it's not that good when it comes to metering, because it tends to equalize the light levels throughout a wide range of illuminations. For example, when the light level starts to decrease at the end of the day, your brain automatically compensates the "exposure" so the image you see seems as bright as when the sun was higher in the sky.

The human eye is very good at performing light level comparisons (like comparing a light level to a known reference) but it is not a very good tool when it comes to measuring absolute illuminations. People adjusting their camera settings without any help from a light meter tend to rely mostly on experience and judgment, even if they won't admit it.

Cheers,

Abbazz
 
Abbazz, thats probably true, but the judgments made using that experience are done so in knowledge, hopefully, of what you want your final picture to look like. something no meter can or will ever know :)
 
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