Broken Lumisphere

drgoose · Oct 13, 2014

My sekonic L-408 recently broke. The dome it's now in the retracted position all the time and will not come out when turning the dial. My question is how do I compensate for that when taking an incident light reading. Is this possible or do I need to buy a different Light Meter?

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benjiboy · Oct 13, 2014

I suggest you send it to the importers and have it repaired,

Poisson Du Jour · Oct 13, 2014

The lumisphere is replaceable on Sekonic meters (twist-click-pull out). Have a look at B&H, for example:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/119341-REG/Sekonic_401_821.html

benjiboy · Oct 14, 2014

Poisson Du Jour said:
The lumisphere is replaceable on Sekonic meters (twist-click-pull out). Have a look at B&H, for example:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/119341-REG/Sekonic_401_821.html

I think you misunderstand the problem the O.P. is saying that the mechanism to retract the lumisphere is stuck in the retracted flat plane position, and when he twists the ring it won't extend to the normal Incidental light position, it isn't the lumisphere that's broken but the mechanism.

Rick A · Oct 14, 2014

I'm with benjiboy on this, contact the importer and have it repaired, or if still under warranty, maybe replaced.

RalphLambrecht · Oct 14, 2014

drgoose said:
My sekonic L-408 recently broke. The dome it's now in the retracted position all the time and will not come out when turning the dial. My question is how do I compensate for that when taking an incident light reading. Is this possible or do I need to buy a different Light Meter?

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Let's ask someone with the same meter to see if the dome position makes any difference in he readingand see if there is aany need to worry about it

benjiboy · Oct 14, 2014

It stands to reason Ralph it must make a significant difference if you restrict the angle of view of the the lumisphere so it can only "see" in a forward flat plane position instead of 90°.

wildbill · Oct 14, 2014

RalphLambrecht said:
Let's ask someone with the same meter to see if the dome position makes any difference in he readingand see if there is aany need to worry about it

Regardless of the meter, the readings will be different if the meter isn't parallel with the light source. When lighting with multiple sources, having a dome that retracts (rather than your free hand to shade the dome from other sources) can be useful. I've seen lots of folks (cinematographers) take their readings that way for everything. If you're the type of photographer that always meters towards the camera and not the lights (reading both key and fill light), a retracted lumisphere is problematic. I'd get it fixed.

benjiboy · Oct 14, 2014

wildbill said:
Regardless of the meter, the readings will be different if the meter isn't parallel with the light source. When lighting with multiple sources, having a dome that retracts (rather than your free hand to shade the dome from other sources) can be useful. I've seen lots of folks (cinematographers) take their readings that way for everything. If you're the type of photographer that always meters towards the camera and not the lights (reading both key and fill light), a retracted lumisphere is problematic. I'd get it fixed.

Exactly.

Broken Lumisphere

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