Hiya all,
Hi Thomas!
for a long time have I been considering getting a hand-held light-meter...
I use the spot-meter functionqlity of
the OM2s/p or OM4's...
I never take much
flash-pictures...
Hmmm, you use the built-in spot meters, and never do flash. That
eliminates most of the reason to buy an external meter, in my opinion!
I'll save you a lot of money: buy a Kodak gray card and learn to use
it with your built-in spot meter. Then you'll have incident metering
capability -- about the only thing you're missing in an external
meter!
Think of it this way: a good modern external spot meter doesn't cost
much different than an OM2s! Plus you can change the spot size on the
OM2s by changing lenses! Plus you can make "test exposures" with your
"meter" to compare with whatever you're metering for! :-)
I've used many meters over the years, but my favorite is still the
OM-4 with a gray card.
Which features should I make sure I get...
Besides incident metering (which can be approximated with a gray
card), the big things missing from the OM spot meter is flash
metering, which is invaluable for anything besides automatic flash,
and extended range below 1 second. So even though you say you don't
use flash, consider getting flash metering for that day when you need
it.
which
models and brands are good
It's a pretty competitive market, they all have similar core
features. My favorite is Gossen, but mostly for nostalgic reasons,
since it was the first I had some 35 years ago. I'm impressed with
Sekonic's ruggedness -- waterproof and all.
what price-range is ok for such?
You might consider an old Gossen Luna Pro. It's analog, with a
"trapped needle" meter, and the last time I replaced the battery was
1992! Very sensitive -- in fact, I've used it when I needed a
flashlight to read it! Always ready, built like a tank. Best used
(like any light meter, in my opinion) in incident mode, but there is
a spot attachment available. Try to get the spot attachment at the
same time, since they are hard to find separately. There is also a
darkroom attachment available -- I have one I'd part with, since I'm
typing on my "darkroom" right now...
I "lost" my Luna Pro in a drawer somewhere and recently bought an
almost-new Luna Star F2, with spot attachment, for around $260. I
chose it for its flash capability and sensitivity (EV/100 is -7.9!)
But it was close, and the availability of this one used was more
important than features.
So far, I still prefer the Luna Pro. I like meters rather than
digits! (The Luna Star does have an analog-style bar graph, but it's
not the same... :-) And I'm always afraid (perhaps irrationally so)
that the Luna Star's battery will be dead when I need it.
I rarely use a meter with the OM-4, and only then for very long
exposures, or to check that a long exposure will be within the OM-4's
automatic range.
The only reason I have a meter at all is because I'm now doing 4x5,
and wanted something a bit smaller than an OM-4 to use as a meter
(there isn't much room in the 4x5 bag), and also because I'm using
manual flash with the 4x5.
My advice? Forget the meter, and use the money on more Zuiko glass!
Or if you really feel the need, pick up a Luna Pro or similar analog
meter for $50 or so, then use it until you outgrow it -- that way,
you'll know which features you're missing, and thus "wonderbrick"
modern digital meter to spend big bux on.
--
: Jan Steinman <mailto:Jan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
: Bytesmiths <http://www.bytesmiths.com>
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