Questions concerning light meters.

Hey guys,

I was wondering. I recently got a light meter for free on ebay with a purchase and was wondering if it is trustworthy enough.

The light meter is on the low end spectrum of Gossen products: the Gossen Scout 3. It's a selenium type meter that doesn't require a battery.

I've ready some reviews that made mention of this meter's inaccuracy online, saying it overexposes by 2 stops consistently.

My main meter I own is the Gossen Luna Pro F. I decided to test them both out pointing reflective readings at the same subjects.

So far, the meters have lined up fine and accurate with a margin of error of only half a stop.

Would it be good to trust the new light meter? That's basically what I'm asking. I will be going on several adventure shoots this week and don't want to sacrifice any film at the expense of being overexposed. The Luna Pro F is great, but it can be quite bulky to lug around my neck. I love how light the Scout 3 is. I need something fast and simple.

If any here use these meters, I'd be grateful for you to share your experience with them.

I haven't checked lately but I think there are lots of posts on the subject in the Forums.

Check it out against the Luna Pro in various lighting conditions. I'd use incident readings instead of reflective, or a grey card so that there are no variables in what the meters "see". If they match closely enough to satisfy you, there isn't much reason to not trust it.

If you're doing once in a lifetime pics though, you may want to use the meters in parallel for bit. Or else save working with the Scout for a time you aren't doing critical shots. However, if you pay attention to what it's telling you, you can generally figure out whether or not it's giving you a reasonable reading.

I have a selenium Scout, it's been reliable and accurate within its range.

Meters that are two stops off aren't meters, they are decoration.

I have a Scout and sometimes the plastic screen over the meter becomes charged with static. At that point it does not work correctly, and one must wait until the static slowly drains away. I find if it zero's correctly when covered, it is ok to use.

The Scout was an OK meter, If you stay within it's limitations it's fine.
Not a low light device but take it out on the picnic or to the beach & who's to know?

Check it against sunny 16, or against another trusted camera with an internal meter.

A few years ago I got a Russian Leningrad Selenium cell meter in a job lot of equipment. I didn't try it until April when I received a Gossen Luna Pro and out of interested tested them against each other, and a Pentax Spotmeter. I was very surprised how good the Leningrad is, I then lent it to another APUG member.

Use your Scout 3 as a back-up, check it periodically (once every six months to a year) because Selenium cells do eventually begin to fail, the bad reports you've seen on-line are those where no matter how strong the light won't give a maximum reading, which is also a good way to see if the cell is failing.

Ian