Light meter bells and whistles?

[Misfitlimp]

So im looking to get a decent light meter but theres so many bells and whistles on some and some are plain jane so are the fancy ones that measure all these diffrent things like ambiant , flash etc (like the sekonic L-758C thats close to 7hundo) worth the money or should i just keep it simple?

 

[ambrose portraits]

Hi Misfit,
It probably depends on what you want to do with your lightmeter. I ask that sincerely, because to be honest, I don't know many people anymore that use lightmeters. (The only people I know that use them have been using them for decades and are very familiar with how they work and how to get results with them.) The rest of us rely a lot on LCD previews and histograms. Strobist makes some good arguments for this strategy in his lighting 101 series. (Check out strobist.blogspot.com if you don't know what I'm talking about.)

 

[CSR Studio]

If you are going to be shooting in the studio you will need a light meter. You really do need flash and ambient reading capabilities.

Spot and incident is nice but you don't have to have it. All the custom settings you definitely don't have to have but are nice.

Figure out your budget and that will tell you how many bells and whistles you can afford. Look at something like the Sekonic L-308S Flashmate.
Good luck!

 

[Big Mike]

Some of the extra features are things like taking multiple readings, saving them and giving you an average. Some of them can trigger a Pocket Wizard (which makes metering really easy, if you are already using PWs).

The most recommended Light/Flash meter is probably the Sekonic L-358. I's their mid-range meter. The L-308s is also good; a little cheaper but with fewer features. The L-758 is the higher end model, and yes...very expensive.

 

[Misfitlimp]

Thanks a bunch guys!

 

[Phranquey]

The most recommended Light/Flash meter is probably the Sekonic L-358. I's their mid-range meter. The L-308s is also good; a little cheaper but with fewer features. The L-758 is the higher end model, and yes...very expensive.

The L-308s is what I've got, and it's a great little meter. It doesn't have ALL the bells & whistles, but it reads out in 1/10ths of a stop, and mine is usually bang on with exposure.