Light Meter Recommendations

[Jeff Kilgroe]

I can't live without a spot meter when lighting a green screen. Sure, I could do with just an incident meter, but the spot is faster and allows me to see things the incident doesn't.

It's all about what works for you and your needs at the time. I own a few different meters. No one has ever judged me for any of them.

 

[Matt W.]

I can't live without a spot meter when lighting a green screen. Sure, I could do with just an incident meter, but the spot is faster and allows me to see things the incident doesn't.

It's all about what works for you and your needs at the time. I own a few different meters. No one has ever judged me for any of them.

It's just as easy to use false color.

That said, I frequently use my spot meter for this purpose, too.

 

[Kemalettin Sert]

 

[Eric M Hurt]

It seems Matt's computer is not displaying pictures.

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

It's just as easy to use false color.

Yes, provided the camera is sitting there and available. And it's not as accurate. False color/ exposure check are nice, but are not as sensitive as a meter can be. Much easier to catch subtle variations with the meter.

But yes, I frequently use false color for this as well and will use both if both are there.

 

[Kemalettin Sert]

It seems Matt's computer is not displaying pictures.

yeah maybe Matt is better cinematographer than Bruno Delbonnel,Phedon Papamichael and Sean Bobbiti..dont want to dig up for more images back in previous ASC Mags..

 

[Eric M Hurt]

yeah maybe Matt is better cinematographer than Bruno Delbonnel,Phedon Papamichael and Sean Bobbiti..dont want to dig up for more images back in previous ASC Mags..

I can tell you one thing, I feel terribly embarrassed for the DPs in these pictures once they realize they're using a Sekonic... can you imagine the ridicule they'll endure??

 

[Matt W.]

Really, guys? I'll be the first to admit that my work isn't of professional quality. I do this as a side business, not a source of primary income. Perfect candidate for a 758cine here lol... Accuse me of whatever you want, but I never said I could outshoot those guys, never dream of it, nor I'm sure can I shoot as well as the professional owner/ops here. When did I make this about that? I've seen what they've shot; I've seen what I've shot... I might be new to the field, but I'm not blind. Attack my work, fine, I won't defend it and haven't tried to. Just trying to offer advice to someone who might be tempted to waste money on an unnecessarily expensive product.

It's a bit telling that you have to trawl through that many issues to find top DPs using what is billed as the most expensive high end meter... These are people for whom money is no object and yet you rarely see dual meters in use on professional sets. When shooting film it's useful to have a spot meter to see what you have in shadow/highlights, when prelighting it's useful, but now that false colors/zebras/other exposure aids are available on most digital cameras, spot meters are unnecessary (unless, like Elswit, for example, you light primarily with a spot meter and are used to thinking in terms of reflected light). The Sekonic meters are absurdly complex for what they are, offering features (built in filter factors, etc.) that promote laziness over competence. You don't need a cheat sheet if you know your stuff, and I suspect as shooters here grow in seniority they'll drop their dual meters and gravitate toward Spectras. For beginners such as myself, the 758cine is nice.. has some cheat sheets built in, good for shooting stills, too... good for a jack of all trades, master of none. And of course in the right hands it will work as well as any other option, just not as elegantly.

Politics aside, a simple incident meter is all you need and all you'll find in the gear bag of the top pros (for the most part; when shooting film I can see the benefit of a dual meter, and obviously some people use them). But ironically the highest end meter is the one best suited for newbies and jack-of-all trades; you don't need the fancy swiss army knife, you need a finely honed blade if you are shooting at a professional level or trying to market yourself as profesional-level. Both will get the job done, but one will make you look a little silly as you ruffle through a complex interface trying to do something really simple like navigate filter factors most anyone should have memorized already.

Don't waste your money on anything beyond a Spectra. As for the rest, I don't really care what anyone thinks of what I shoot unless I'm applying for work, or what I think about it as I attempt to improve.

 

[Timur Civan]

I'm crazy about my 478, but I also have a Pentax 1°spot meter too. So the 768.never drew me in. I don't mind carrying both on the belt.

 

[Eric M Hurt]

Just trying to offer advice to someone who might be tempted to waste money on an unnecessarily expensive product.

Matt, the problem is not your work, the problem is your advice. You said over and over that no professionals use Sekonics and that somehow someone would be judged for using their product.
Then, when you're proven wrong several times, instead of being gracious and admitting that you might not be dispensing the correct advice to people reading this forum in hopes of gaining some knowledge, you just hold onto your views and continue to leave a trail of confusing "advice" that in no way helps the original poster since you yourself admit that you are not a working professional.
Accepting that one is wrong is part of being gracious and learning, your refusal to do so makes me suspect that there's a more obvious reason that there are DPs that refuse to work with you.

 

[Matt W.]

Matt, the problem is not your work, the problem is your advice. You said over and over that no professionals use Sekonics and that somehow someone would be judged for using their product.
Then, when you're proven wrong several times, instead of being gracious and admitting that you might not be dispensing the correct advice to people reading this forum in hopes of gaining some knowledge, you just hold onto your views and continue to leave a trail of confusing "advice" that in no way helps the original poster since you yourself admit that you are not a working professional.
Accepting that one is wrong is part of being gracious and learning, your refusal to do so makes me suspect that there's a more obvious reason that there are DPs that refuse to work with you.

Haha... fair enough. I'm much nicer in real life.

That said, while I'm certain the 758cine is a great meter (I own one and use it for just about everything), I think as most shooters progress they gravitate either toward an incident meter or a spot meter. I have found myself using the spot meter exclusively when shooting slides and the incident meter almost exclusively when shooting negative film or digital, so I keep the thing around... but if I were shooting digitally at a professional level, I'd probably drop the dual meter and get something elegant. That the Sekonic is neither the best incident meter nor the best spot meter despite its very high price (incident is often miscalibrated a bit by default; the spot meter does not have the narrow rejection of the Pentax) makes it more of a learning tool to me than an ideal meter for pros. And I think its deployment reflects that... high end pros certainly use it, but most gravitate toward dedicated meters that are better suited for a given task.

The 478 might be cool, but it's a bit gimmicky to me. I can totally see carrying one, but would rather go with something simpler. All you need is a basic incident meter or, if you have grown up exposing reflected light, a Pentax digital spotmeter. I do wish I had a color meter sometimes.

So, while maybe you won't get laughed off set for carrying a 758cine (though I have been made fun of, typically innocuously, by the majority of DPs I know for using one), I still wouldn't recommend dropping so much cash unless you know it is right for the project or know so little (relatively new to metering) that you want to have the learning tool of an incident/reflected combo so you can see how your readings correlate with various materials. I suspect the popularity of the meter has to do with newbies (such as myself) buying it and then sticking with it as their default choice simply because they already own it.

But it's familiar. I will probably get mine cleaned and calibrated, but doubt I will switch until my skill improves.

 

[Eric M Hurt]

Right on.
Ultimately it's the difference between stating opinions and facts (or what one thinks are facts).
I doubt anyone would have had an issue with you stating your own opinions about the gear, it's the blatant statements that are outside of reality that
people question... For instance:

incident is often miscalibrated a bit by default

How on earth could you know that the company sends out a miscalibrated meter as a default??? And why on earth would you think they would do that??
Seriously, take a moment and think about what you wrote and how utterly absurd it sounds... the problem is that someone who wants to know about meters is reading
this statement and might say to themselves "Well I don't want something that would come miscalibrated on purpose".

Stick to opinions man.

 

[Matt W.]

Right on.
How on earth could you know that the company sends out a miscalibrated meter as a default??? And why on earth would you think they would do that??
Seriously, take a moment and think about what you wrote and how utterly absurd it sounds... the problem is that someone who wants to know about meters is reading
this statement and might say to themselves "Well I don't want something that would come miscalibrated on purpose".

Stick to opinions man.

Well, it's my opinion that their meters are often miscalibrated.

The first cam op I lent my meter to (he went to AFI, and I'm noticing there seems to be a hatred of Sekonic meters there) refused to use it since it wasn't calibrated and he could tell something was "off." He claimed most Sekonic meters were about a third of a stop off one way or the other.

I have since heard this from many other DPs, all of whom insisted that the 758 is worthless unless sent out to a specific guy in LA to be calibrated.

Long story short, I checked mine against their meters and... it underexposes by 1/3 stop and not even fully consistently. Fine for my needs, but I plan to get it calibrated when I start going after more paid work.

So... my opinion is the Sekonics are often miscalibrated. Mine was, as were the vast majority of those purchased by other shooters I know were, too.

Still a nice piece of gear when working properly. I have no plans to replace, just calibrate.