Light meter

[Gregory Sheffer]

I need a light meter to just take indecent readings. I used to have some Sekonic stuff, but it is so expensive. Any cheap options for a simple incident light meter to use with my RED?

 

[David W. Jones]

There are many used meters for sale on eBay.

 

[Gregory Sheffer]

I know there a lot on ebay. I would like suggestions on what model/type. I just need a simple, cheap incident meter.

Thanks

 

[Alexander Ibrahim]

Indecent readings ... what sets are you on!!

OK Seriously, Sekonics has a low end model that may suit you, the L308DC.

The main thing I look for is the ability to read in candles and LUX as well as the shutter speed in degrees with fps settings.

http://www.sekonic.com/Products/L-308DC/Features.aspx

 

[Mark Toia]

Why do you think you need a light meter for? Just curious.
I lived with a light meter(s) and colour temp meters around my neck for 15 years. Used them daily. But for the life of me I can't see why you would want one with a red or any digital camera for that matter. Unless your shooting without any monitors at all to gauge exposure.
I dont even use the histograms aids red give you. It's as simple as what you see is what you get + some.

Save your many and buy something else useful. )))

 

[Sergei Franklin]

I find it sometimes faster to light with a meter than from the monitor. I do a lot of steadicam and often need to light a bigger space. Much easier to walk around with a meter then the steadicam and monitor when lighing a long moving shot.
I use a Spectra IV-A from spectracine.com

Sergei
www.sergeifranklin.com

 

[David Mullen ASC]

Yes, meters are useful for lighting a space when doing, for example, a long Steadicam move where you want the actor to go into a series of spots that are all at the same stop. I mean, I'll have the Steadicam operator park his rig so that I can see the lighting on the monitor, but I'm not going to have him strap on the Steadicam and walk back and forth through a long space while I'm lighting -- I only ask that from him when I'm done to see how it is all working. So meters can be useful in that situation. Meters are also useful for scouting a location or pre-lighting a location before the camera is there.

I carry my incident and spot meter with me every day but I only pull them out maybe once every third week on a shoot, it's that rare. But I still wouldn't show up to work without them. If we are starting outside, I may pull out my meter to see how much ND I am going to need before the cameras and monitors have been set-up, if I don't want to wait (on the other hand, it's not hard to guess the amount of ND needed and then just swap the filter if I guessed wrong...)

Occasionally you have to light two sets at the same time and then jump to the second one right away, so you may want the meter to help light the second set while the first one is being shot by the cameras.

 

[Mark Toia]

Meters are also useful for scouting a location or pre-lighting a location before the camera is there.

Agree...

 

[Justin Chin]

I use my light meter in a multi-cam tv studio (as well as on others as David Mullen states) because I can get a good read on what the entire set is doing before I chip the cameras. Sometimes the monitoring is so screwed up you just have to make sure your bases are covered first. After that you can work your scopes and on-board meters.

 

[Björn Benckert]

A regular SLR is covering most needs or? I mean if you do not want to carry around a big camera package or such. Snapping ref pix as you go is another good function of such camera.

Just as the first 35mm still cameras that was invented by Leica was used as light meters for the motion cameras back in the days. The 36 still frames snapshot camera was invented to shot test reels for the DOP to overview what exposures he had. That was off course before the light meter with a direct readout was invented...

Today we do the same with a SLR camera as Hitchcock did with his 35mm stills, or maybe he had polaroid's and the Leica's was earlier..

 

[David Mullen ASC]

Yes, sometimes when I'm scouting a night exterior or low-light interior, I'll take a digital still at the shutter speed and ASA I am likely to be using, to see how the available light renders at that exposure.