Which lightmeter for a TLR noob?

[hiorgos]

Hi

I'm back to film, and I'm waiting for a rolleicord to arrive, can't wait! But I don't have lightmeter.. I have experience with film and understand how exposure works, but I have never used one, not sure where to start.

First, I'm surprised on how expensive a lightmeter can be! I'm definitively not going to spend more on it than on the camera.. so I'm searching for these old style hand meters that you can find around for cheap. Are they reliable? Or will I end buying a modern one?

Any other cheap options? my iphone is just a 3g so the lightmeters for it will not work.


Thanks!

[af_]

It might not look very cool, but you could just use the light meter of any other camera if you have one with manual settings for ISO, exposure time, and aperture.
(I'm using a digital Canon590is as a light meter for my RB67 )

[Leigh Youdale]

Well, I'm still using a Weston Euromaster I bought in England in the early 1960's.
You don't say how much you paid for the camera so it's a bit of a guessing game finding a price range for a meter, but I see you're in Osaka and that's just north of here so this might work for you. http://www.mainlinephoto.com.au/prod279.htm

[goffer]

I originally bought a Vivitar 35 with my C330 TLR which worked in well lit situations... after a while I just started to use my Bessa R4A because it is always conveniently around my neck or wrist at all times.

[zachary]

If you want to splurge out, I can recommend a sekonic l-308s.
I use one with alll my unmetered cameras and it works a treat, bunch of extra features, flash sync port and an incident meter.

[hiorgos]

Originally Posted by Leigh Youdale

Well, I'm still using a Weston Euromaster I bought in England in the early 1960's.
You don't say how much you paid for the camera so it's a bit of a guessing game finding a price range for a meter, but I see you're in Osaka and that's just north of here so this might work for you. http://www.mainlinephoto.com.au/prod279.htm

Yap, that's more than what I paid for the camera + shipping!


If using another camera.. would ISO correlate?


Would something like this work in 2011?

[Leigh Youdale]

Originally Posted by hiorgos

Would something like this work in 2011?

[IMG]

I'm not familiar with that particular model, but chances are it will.
ASA is the same as ISO.
If it's a Selenium cell it doesn't need batteries but sometimes those cells can deteriorate and read low - or not at all.
If it's a CDS cell then it will need batteries - check they're still available in the required size.
If you have opportunity, test it reads the same as a camera meter you know is working OK.

[kerne]

I can highly recommend the Gossen Luna Pro F. ("F" model also meters for flash, very useful).

They're plentiful on eBay, inexpensive, high quality and take common 9V batteries (unlike many other older models).

I also use mine in the darkroom with the enlarging attachment.

[imokruok]

+1 for the Gossen Luna Pro. I got one on eBay, and it's my "cheap" meter but works perfectly. There's also a Sverdlovsk 4 meter in my camera box somewhere that is very accurate, but it requires more button cells than the Gossen...and a little bit of tinfoil.

I also have a Polaris "Dual 5" digital meter with spot attachment. It's great, but a little bit bigger and harder to fit in a pocket. They're over $200 now, but KEH sometimes has used ones.

All three meters have at one time been used with great success with a Mamiya C330 or C220.

[laurentb]

I'm using a Gossn Lunasix 2 (think it's a LunaPro on the other side of the Ocean) which is just fine and I can be had for cheap, but the batteries need an adaptor...

A better option is the second meter I'm using (at least if you're not doing night shots) is a Sekonic 208. Very light, uses modern batteries, works fine...

In the end, whatever uou paid for the camera, you'll end up paying much more for film (and processing if you don't develop yourself, or chemicals otherwise) so a good meter might be saving money !!

[jeanba3000]

Gossen Digisix (or Digiflash)

[Bobfrance]

I'm new to TLR and don't own a (working) Lightmeter.

However I do have an iPhone, so I downloaded the Lightmeter App. I checked calibration with a few people's lightmeters and it worked absolutely fine, and less thingg to carry.

[hiorgos]

Thanks a lot for the advice, I'll check these all!

Originally Posted by Bobfrance

I'm new to TLR and don't own a (working) Lightmeter.

However I do have an iPhone, so I downloaded the Lightmeter App. I checked calibration with a few people's lightmeters and it worked absolutely fine, and less thingg to carry.

YAp, that was the first plan, but bad that I only have a 3G, and all the lightmeter apps I have seen are for the 3gs and 4..

[RichL]

Luna-Pro gets my vote as well. A well built and designed meter that you will be able to use no matter how advanced you get.

You simply can't beat a meter that goes from f/0.7 to f/128 with shutter speeds for 1/4000 sec to 8 hours as well as ASA 0.8 to 100K :-)

[djorourke]

I carry a Sekonic L-398 which I picked up used years ago. I scooped it up off a local classified. I love it. No batteries needed and I trust it absolutely.

[hiorgos]

I think I'm going to skip the mercury battery ones..

Originally Posted by kerne

I can highly recommend the Gossen Luna Pro F. ("F" model also meters for flash, very useful).

They're plentiful on eBay, inexpensive, high quality and take common 9V batteries (unlike many other older models).

I also use mine in the darkroom with the enlarging attachment.

Do they? I checked the internet and says they use mercury ones..

[RichL]

Originally Posted by hiorgos

I think I'm going to skip the mercury battery ones..




Do they? I checked the internet and says they use mercury ones..

9 volts, check the manual here.
http://www.butkus.org/chinon/flashes...o_f-splash.htm

Also I would advise you to check the battery type before buying because some meters actually changed battery types mid production.

[richardhkirkando]

For something to cross-check your Sunny-16 estimates, I have a cheap Sekonic L-158. It's a selenium meter that doesn't have a ton of EV range, but they're ridiculously cheap, fairly new, and accurate.

[Roger Hicks]

Gossen Profisix SBC -- big, but uses a standard 9v battery, and VERY easy to use. Also accepts an incredible range of accessories including a true spot meter (not just the thing on the Lunasix/Lunapro, which is a lot better than nothing but still quite wide-angled).

From the end of the introduction to metering on my site (with pics of meters), http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subsc...metering.html:

Some of the information given above may seem a bit daunting: all that stuff about biasing and keying, and using different media (negative, slide, digital). But the truth is that as we have said, any meter or metering system can be made to work. All you need is a bit of common sense, a little basic information of the kind given above, and a modicum of experience. Unfortunately, many of the most passionate self-appointed experts on metering lack at least one of these desirable qualities

Cheers,

R.

[hefty]

I've picked up many light meters over the years and my absolute favourite is the Zeiss Ikophot. Easy to read and very intuitive to use, I find they give excellent results (assuming the selenium cell is still alive - I've yet to stumble across a dead one). You can often find them on eBay for £10 or even less.

I have more modern (and expensive) light meters with spot attachments, memory functions, etc; but it's always an Ikophot in my bag.

[nikon_sam]

I have a Luna Pro SBC, Weston Master II, Gossen Pilot and an older Luna Pro & LunaSix...
I had the Weston and Pilot serviced by George at Quality Light Metric so they're good to go for some time now and they don't need batteries...I no longer use the old Luna Pro or LunaSix but do use the SBC do to it using a 9v battery plus I have the Flash and Variable Angle attachments for it...
If you can find a (working or not) Weston then have it serviced it's a great meter and it won't break the bank...The Luna Pro F would be my choice if I had to do it over again...
OR if you have a camera with a built in meter that gives you good results then just transfer that info to the TLR...

[Vics]

+1 for the Sekonic L308s. One of the coolest things about the Rollei is that with its leaf shutter, it will synch to electronic flash at any of its shutter speeds. The L308s will make flash exposure a snap. A good modern meter is a friend forever!

[Trooper]

The most important thing, for me, is to get is an incident meter with the white sphere.

I like the Sekonic L-398 because for a very long time I only used available light. When I ventured into flash I bought the L-558 and love it because it will read incident, reflected, spot, and flash. I now have my father's L-398 from the 1960's, which still works fine today.

[hiorgos]

My rolleicord arrived yesterday, what a beautiful thing! I'm going to do the first roll with another camera, but I think I reallly need a lightmeter, it's annoying to use 2 cameras at once..

I'll go for a L-208, I don't want to start buying old lightmeters that I'm not sure if work properly, and that 208 is not that much expensive compared. Thanks all for the advice!

[hiorgos]

So..

The lightmeter arrived today. It's a sekonic l-208. But, it's light metering always "about"? This technique doesn't look precise at all.. I have been comparing the reading with the one of a digital camera and at the same settings the readings on a plain wall are different!

I guess I have to practice more. Any advice on how to use it?