In praise of old light meters

[AgX]

I never could get used to digital light meters. For me, The analog type are just so much more intuitive and show changes in levels so much better and simpler.

Especially of the nulling / +/-scale type as the Profisix.

 

[Bill Burk]

I can't remember when I last used a light meter. If you use the same film, developer, with constant time/temperature, why would you need one?

Maybe it’s just a lucky charm.

 

[AgX]

I can't remember when I last used a light meter. If you use the same film, developer, with constant time/temperature, why would you need one?

Then how do establish the luminosity of the subject?

 

[Wayne]

Then how do establish the luminosity of the subject?

With the 2 light meters in the front of his head, and the computer behind them?

 

[cliveh]

Then how do establish the luminosity of the subject?

By looking at it.

 

[khh]

I have two beautiful, old light meters. A Gossen Lunasix 3 and a Gossen Sixon. They're both in perfect working condition, agreeing with each other and with my digital camera. The Lunasix looks like it's barely been used (it's from a portrait studio). I keep the Lunasix with my medium format camera and the Sixon in my 35mm bag.

 

[Anon Ymous]

Does anyone know the measuring range of the Gossen Sixtomat electronic CdS meter?

 

[paolod]

I have been using a Gossen Luna Pro. I put two diodes in series with the battery to drop the voltage, so that it works with silver oxide batteries instead of mercury. It seems accurate enough although I'm not doing anything that requires great accuracy.

 

[BobD]

I just got this meter for a few dollars from a seller who didn't know if it worked. It looked mint so I took a chance and it does work fine and seems accurate enough. Original zippered leather case and lanyard were included.

It's a Sekonic L-206 View Meter. You look through the eyepiece and the viewfinder covers about 10% of the scene which is what is measured by the meter.

Press and release the button when you want to take a reading and the needle display holds it. You then take it away from your eye and turn the dial as on many analog meters to get your paired exposure settings.

The meter was made for an extinct 1.3 volt mercury battery that is the same size as the "N Cell" batteries used by some calculators, etc. It looks about like an AAA cut in half. They are not hard to find online and have 1.5 volts. Or, a 1.5 volt button cell easily drops in and you just need to take up the empty space with a conductor. I used a wad of foil to test the meter but I plan to make an adapter with a built-in dropper diode. There is plenty of room for it.

 

[BobD]

I recently bought a Gossen Luna Pro SBC online for around $15 total. The seller said it worked but was "one or two stops off." I could see in his photo that the needle's zero was way off. So, I got it today and the compensation dial was also way off from its normal position. I corrected both these things and the meter is now spot on and matches my digital Sekonic and other analog Gossen meters.

The meter is a bit chunky but I like it and especially like that it uses a modern battery (9v).

 

[markjwyatt]

I recently bought a Gossen Luna Pro SBC online for around $15 total. The seller said it worked but was "one or two stops off." I could see in his photo that the needle's zero was way off. So, I got it today and the compensation dial was also way off from its normal position. I corrected both these things and the meter is now spot on and matches my digital Sekonic and other analog Gossen meters.

The meter is a bit chunky but I like it and especially like that it uses a modern battery (9v).

Personally, I do not consider a Gossen Luna Pro SBC to be an old meter. It is an older modern meter. A Weston Master IV on the other hand...

 

[wiltw]

Does anyone know the measuring range of the Gossen Sixtomat electronic CdS meter?

Original Sixtomat user documentation does not mention light level operating range.

 

[Anon Ymous]

Original Sixtomat user documentation does not mention light level operating range.

Yes, I noticed that... One that I got my hands on seemed to have a low limit of about EV 4 or thereabouts.

 

[benjiboy]

I sold my Western Euromaster and Gossen Profisix (Lunapro) years ago, I now use modern digital meters and find them quicker, more accurate and the two I have run on 1 AA battery you can buy anywhere, so I have no regrets.
I

 

[Kodachromeguy]

I sold my Western Euromaster and Gossen Profisix (Lunapro) years ago, I now use modern digital meters and find them quicker, more accurate and the two I have run on 1 AA battery you can buy anywhere, so I have no regrets.
I

I agree about the advantages of the newer digital meters. The best thing for me is that I can read them without needing my reading glasses. I like meters like the Sekonic 206 shown above, but I would have to put on my reading glasses to see the tiny numbers. Bah, old age.....

 

[AgX]

I agree about the advantages of the newer digital meters.

I am too idiot to use those modern ones. That old nulling or placing scale is perfect for me.

 

[BobD]

I like the digital meters too and have a Sekonic L308 but the appeal of analog meters for me is that they show the whole range of shutter/aperture pairs at a glance. I don't have to think or figure or push buttons to get the combination I want.

 

[wiltw]

Yes, I noticed that... One that I got my hands on seemed to have a low limit of about EV 4 or thereabouts.

Does the dialface have a set of EV numbers? --- between the botttom of the range and the top of the range would seem to be its operating range!

 

[AgX]

Not at all !
A dialface with EV values has a values range stretching far beneath the sensitivity limit of the meter. To establish this limit the film sensitivity must be set at Iso 100 first.

But even better to check at an actual metering for actual minimum response.

 

[AgX]

And this only is the nominal sensitivity. With nulling meters you even got a larger effective sensitivity,

One issue I see is that at Gossen publications the figures for nominal sensitivity range are all over the place for same model, and then again different from what I can set at my samples...

 

[Sirius Glass]

And this only is the nominal sensitivity. With nulling meters you even got a larger effective sensitivity,

One issue I see is that at Gossen publications the figures for nominal sensitivity range are all over the place for same model, and then again different from what I can set at my samples...

So get the meters calibrated.

 

[AgX]

You complete misunderstood. I took various Gossen papers, broshures, manuals and all state sensitivity ranges different to each other for same meter model. My samples are consistent to each other but got a different range from the various ranges stated in the papers.

 

[Sirius Glass]

You complete misunderstood. I took various Gossen papers, broshures, manuals and all state sensitivity ranges different to each other for same meter model. My samples are consistent to each other but got a different range from the various ranges stated in the papers.

Which goes to at least some of the meters being out of calibration. Are you talking about mass out of calibration events? If they are extinction meters that would mean a mass extinction event like the wiping out of the dinosaurs. That could explain the loss of large numbers of film users. Film users could therefore be endangered by extinction meter!

 

[markjwyatt]

Which goes to at least some of the meters being out of calibration. Are you talking about mass out of calibration events? If they are extinction meters that would mean a mass extinction event like the wiping out of the dinosaurs. That could explain the loss of large numbers of film users. Film users could therefore be endangered by extinction meter!

Maybe the earth was hit by a huge polaroid.

 

[AgX]

Which goes to at least some of the meters being out of calibration. Are you talking about mass out of calibration events? If they are extinction meters that would mean a mass extinction event like the wiping out of the dinosaurs. That could explain the loss of large numbers of film users. Film users could therefore be endangered by extinction meter!

As Gossen themselves got their papers wrong, why then should my meters be defect?
More so as my many Gossen meters per model all show same characteristics.