[Leica] Light meters

[rolfe at ldp.com (Rolfe Tessem)]

On Apr 30, 2004, at 5:54 AM, Mitch Zeissler wrote:

>> Need advice on a good but inexpensive hand held meter. I was looking 
>> at the
>> Sekonic incedental versions. Any suggetions?
>>
>> jim
> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>
> Jim...
>
> Gone through the gamut of them; big, small, expensive, cheap, battery, 
> non-battery, you name it.  The best experience for me (YMMV) has been 
> with the battery powered Sekonics, but no one single meter addresses 
> all my desires.  Closest match for me is the Sekonic L-308BII 
> Flashmate; very good sensitivity (even better than some of it's big 
> brothers); excellent battery life (especially with a AA Lithium cell); 
> ambient, reflected and flash; digital display; small and lightweight; 
> fairly inexpensive ($179 @ B&H).  FWIW, Steve LeHuray used a Gossen 
> Luna-Pro Digital and was very happy with it.
>
> I wish the L-308 was even more sensitive, had a backlight and longer 
> exposure times than 60 seconds, but to get those features means 
> shortcomings in other areas.
>
> I do have a Sekonic L-608 beast, but I rarely use it due to the 
> excessive weight and size it brings to the equation.  Also, the small 
> meters are easy to use without bringing attention to yourself, as 
> Steve used to great effect with his street shooting.  Many years ago, 
> I was stopped by a curious policeman in Vienna, Austria while using an 
> L-508 (precursor to the L-608); he was concerned about the odd device 
> I was pointing at a government building, but relaxed enough for us to 
> have a friendly conversation when he finally spotted the M3 slung 
> behind my back.  His reaction is pretty typical of people not familiar 
> with the big meters.
>
> Regards,
>
> /Mitch

If  you don't need a flashmeter as part of the package, I don't think 
you can beat the selenium-based Sekonic L-398. It has been around for 
years and is built like a tank. It has none of the plastic-like feeling 
that most of the modern meters seem to have.

Rolfe