geo in lb
TPF Noob!
I understand the practical benefits of using an incident light meter. (have a Sekonic L-308 use it and like it. FYI - Sekonic has striking illustrative/comparative shots at http://www.sekonic.com/BenefitsOfIncident.html.)
What I do not get is how any incident meter can theoretically work unless there is some unspoken assumption about how far away the camera is from the subject. By the square law of light intensity fall-off moving a light twice as far away from a subject reduces the light reaching the subject by a factor of 4 (2 stops). Similarly, moving the camera away from the subject has to reduce the amount of reflected light from the subject which reaches the camera. A reflective meter in or at the camera location can know how much light is getting to the camera, an incident meter doesnt know if the camera is inches, feet or yards away! What am I missing?
thanks
---george
What I do not get is how any incident meter can theoretically work unless there is some unspoken assumption about how far away the camera is from the subject. By the square law of light intensity fall-off moving a light twice as far away from a subject reduces the light reaching the subject by a factor of 4 (2 stops). Similarly, moving the camera away from the subject has to reduce the amount of reflected light from the subject which reaches the camera. A reflective meter in or at the camera location can know how much light is getting to the camera, an incident meter doesnt know if the camera is inches, feet or yards away! What am I missing?
thanks
---george