Incident, Reflected, Spot, and Flash light meter?

[AutumnJazz]

I'm basically looking for an extremely versitile flash meter.

The Sekonic L-758C seems to fit the bill perfectly, but I will not drop $700 on a light meter. :|

Help?

Actually...The L-758C is only like $500 on ebay, new. Not that much more than my real budget of $300.

 

[Michel Hardy-Vallée]

The previous model was the L-508, does pretty much everything the 758 does, except maybe for that dynamic range profile thing.

I have an L-488, which does reflected only, but both spot and averaging, including flash. Still cheap at 150$.

 

[epatsellis]

I have a 508, I bought it on Ebay as "erratic, not accurate", I fully planned to send it to QLM, as for $85, they would go through it and recal or repair,

My repair person tested it, found it dead on, and so far, I have no problems with it. One of the better $40 investments I made.

The 508 is the only meter that will fit all your requirements, they're out there used, and usually sell fairly reasonable, though mine was a fluke, I'm sure.

 

[AutumnJazz]

Alright, thank you!

 

[Bob F.]

Small point: the 508 (& I believe the 758) do reflective reading in spot mode only - they don't do general (40deg or so) reflective. Very nice meters (I have an L-508). They measure flash in all modes which is nice if you use flash a lot.

Cheers, Bob.

 

[AutumnJazz]

Bah. I was hoping it had some kind of ambient setting, like the matrix meters oh so many cameras employ.

 

[epatsellis]

Well, it does incident reading, with the dome up for nearly 180 degree or down for substantially less (ideal for measuring lighting ratios)

 

[Frank Szabo]

I admit to being a Luddite - I've got a Gossen Luna-Pro F that I wouldn't trade even for one of the new and fancy digital meters.

 

[epatsellis]

In the studio, I use my Luna Pro for continuous light, a Soligor Spot meter for spot readings, and my Ascor Mk. II for strobe, both analog (and bulky..), the 508 stays in the bag 99% of the time for field use, allowing me to carry one meter to cover all my metering needs. (and allows me to carry another lens or more filmholders, etc)

erie

 

[David Brown]

I bought it on Ebay as "erratic, not accurate",

My repair person tested it, found it dead on, ...

... a fluke, I'm sure.

My guess is the seller didn't know how to meter.

 

[Erik L]

Maybe this would work) I'm still trying to unload this on someone.
(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

 

[craigclu]

I have been pleased with the Sekonic L718. Very accurate and versatile. The spot attachment is only 5 degrees narrow but when I've needed it, it was usable. I see these slip through the auction site from time to time but they are not real common. When they pop up, they seem to go at very good prices as they seem to be an unknown to most people.

 

[asrafferty]

I have been pleased with the Sekonic L718. Very accurate and versatile. The spot attachment is only 5 degrees narrow but when I've needed it, it was usable. I see these slip through the auction site from time to time but they are not real common. When they pop up, they seem to go at very good prices as they seem to be an unknown to most people.

I sold the L718 from my late husband's collection about a month ago, but the L778 is just sitting there still, and I'm not entirely clear why. My sense is that it's not about the fact that they're not being made anymore. Was it "too much" meter? There seem to be allergies to bells and whistles that cling to certain models....

Now that I think of it, there's a case with the name "Gossen" over there, and when I asked a well-respected photographer friend what it was, he said, "Some kind of meter....." and we never got any farther than that!

 

[cowanw]

A gossen starlight would do the job

 

[AutumnJazz]

Ok...What are the differences between the 718, 778, and so on compared to the 508 and 758?

 

[John Koehrer]

Bah. I was hoping it had some kind of ambient setting, like the matrix meters oh so many cameras employ.

All light is ambient except for flash.
You're looking at reflected, incident or spot. Spot is reflected measured in a narrow area. so there's nothing missing except a "wider" angle of acceptance in reflected mode.

 

[Bob F.]

Ok...What are the differences between the 718, 778, and so on compared to the 508 and 758?

<snipped> www.sekonic.com should have some answers: manuals here: http://www.sekonic.com/support/support_21.asp

Cheers, Bob.

 

[John W]

Try the L-758DR

Hi AutumnJazz,

I believe that the Sekonic L-758DR does everything you want, and runs about $450-500, depending on the dealer, new/used status, etc. The L-758C (C for "Cine") is considerably more expensive for features that I don't believe you're looking for.

You can save a bit more by looking on line (e.g. certain auction sites) for a NOS or used L-758D (no "R"). IIRC, that's the same as the L-758DR but without the Pocket Wizard remote facility.

 

[asrafferty]

Ok...What are the differences between the 718, 778, and so on compared to the 508 and 758?

I finally found this to enable me to answer some questions about the L-778 I have to sell... hope it's helpful:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/FrameWork/charts/sekonic_lightmeter_comp.html

 

[gracjan]

Sekonic L-508

I also recommend Sekonic L-508. I have been using it for several years as incident/reflected/studio flash meter and it's great. The only drawback is that it has problems with low light, so if that's important part of your photography, you should look for something else.

 

[Poisson Du Jour]

I am happy with the Sekonic L758D, which cost me AUD$470 with local pick-up on eBay. The normal retail price is I think around $700-$800.
I can't imagine what you'd use the Cine model (DR suffix) for, besides involvement in moviemaking. Both L758D and DR have PocketWizard compatibility which is very useful for studio work. The auto-illumination in low light is a godsend. Handicapped enough without my glasses, the last thing I need is a struggle to see the display in low light.

I agree a light meter is a big investment. I can well appreciate others bucking at the high cost, but these are very high precision devices, really no more traumatic to purchase than another camera body, and they are multi-functional, not just flash meters. But take care with it. My last light meter was a Sekonic L308, stolen in 2005. If dolts want to steal this one, they'll have to take my neck with them, and that's no easy task ... LOL!!!

After the usual squealing and squirming over the $41 cost of a teeny-weeny filter, I have now fitted a 30.5mm Hoya HMC UV(0) filter over my Sekonic's spot meter lens: this saves fiddling with the annoying tethered lens cap in windy weather. A multi-function meter should (must) be a part of every photographer's 'toolbox'.

And my first gripe on delivery: the lanyard supplied with the L758D is so long that when attached the meter was dangling at my ankles (!)
I ditched that and bought a snazzy OPTEC strap > http://optechusa.com/product/detail/?PRODUCT_ID=7&PRODUCT_SUB_ID=&CATEGORY_ID=4 .

 

[benjiboy]

I have a Sekonic L358 and the same problem with the length of the lanyard, I just tied a knot in it.