Hi Brian. I've had numerous meters over the years, but currently this is the one I carry with me. It's lightweight, easy to use, accurate, and reasonably inexpensive, especially if you find a good used model, which is what I did. Although all my cameras are metered, occasionally I prefer to take a handheld reading, either as primary or back-up. I'm inclined to take incident readings: the old school notion is that you needn't be concerned about the reflectance of the subject, since you're measuring the light falling onto the subject. For the kind of photography I do, this method, and kind of meter, as opposed to, say, a spotmeter, is ideal. Plus, it's so small, you hardly know you have it with you. Thanks for spreading the word.
i've the same lightmeter...really cool for the size/price!I've a question...i've calibrated the reflecting light value to match the value from my Sony a7iii camera on "spot metering" ...so now i've quite exactly the same read out... I've a question...why if i click first time, i've a lower value...but at second time is correct (compared to the Sony values)?!This is vary curious... I've calibrated just forcing to match the value regulating the voltmeter on the circuit board of the light meter ...(i've found a tutorial on yt)
I still have my Sekonic "Auto-Lumi 86" all plastic for more than 40 years! Still intact and it's working. Great brand very reliable. Thanks for the video
I usually use mine as a incident light meter, and it's very precise in that mode. In reflect mode, in very sunny day "at least my sekonic l208" tends to underexposed my shoots 2 stops. And I tested against my digital camera with a gray card. Something I do is to read the light from the palm of my hand and I give one stop more in cloudy days and 3 or 2 stops more in sunny days. I basically set my hand in zone VI. I wish I had so many opinions in 2013 like we have right now. Cheers and keep doing great information videos.
2 stops? That's a hell of a discrepancy. With reflected light you have to interpret the readings and not take them at face value. If comparing with another meter and you are still 2 stops adrift, something tells me all is not well with your Sekonic.
Thank you for the review. I’ve just purchased one. One point is, mine didn’t come with a battery which was a pain!!! Nice pace to your review and a steady calm voice.
Awesome videos Brian! I dont need a meter at all but listening to your videos when i have my coffee in the morning is like listening to a podcast haha. Although i dont need a meter now i want one!
I bought one when I purchased a 1957 Voightlander Vito B. I compared the readings to those on my Leica Q2 in full auto mode, and the meter readings are very close to what my Leica Q2 was showing.
Nice and simple to use! Obviously reliable and long lasting Being plastic means it’s light, being made of metal means nothing when this kind of precision instrument is dropped anyway. If you’re going to store it in the fridge, I’d rather it be plastic Live your video’s
Yes,that is what it is for,my TLR camera does not have a spring thing to hold it in place of the cold shoe,so the o-ring will hold it in place. That was the complaint on the Voightlander VC II, it would slide out at the most worst time :)
Being a landscaper I loved spot measuring so I preferred using a spot meter like L778 . Seems to me the angle 33 degree of reflected light is too wide for my purpose. L778 has only 1 degree. Of course EV adjustment is indispensable depending on the photography conditions. But regardless of the measuring method I like to recall the days when light measuring was so important.
You complain that it's made out of plastic - that's not such a bad thing. At 12 years old your's is holding very well. I have a Sekonic L398 which is made out of metal and weighs in as a small compact camera. On it's own it's not an issue but, my camera bag is heavy so it's weight matters - that's why I don't use it anymore. I welcome the weight of plastic with open arms!
Perhaps the O ring is meant to keep dust and debris out of the slot area so that it remains clean for use in a camera with a shoe? But it does seem odd, unless perhaps there are non-standard sized accessory shoes one can attach and somehow the ring allows for a better fit by providing some friction that may be needed. It is odd that they do not say why. Perhaps it is a test to see how compliant people are to any orders given for apparently no known or sensible reason to see who would make a good robot worker drone for Big Brother? Although that test is already provided for in University these days via the norms of Kowtow while facing left ever so obediently, lest one face the ire of schools of inclusiveness and their violent comrades. Or perhaps the O ring is merely in homage to space shuttle failures and silence among engineers while important limits of design were ignored? I can come up with more possibilities, but they could be more tawdry and so won't go there. Best wishes! (You should call BH and ask if they know why the O ring, or the manufacturer).
I have the Gossen Digisix. Its painful to use to be honest and it's been put back in box. The Sekonic L-208 is pretty easy to configure and the right size for a 35mm or even a compact 35mm camera.
@@stuartconnelly5397 Why don't people like the Digisix? I've got both the L-208 and the Digisix; and side-by-side they give exactly the same reading. That has to be good! The two meters work in different ways; the Digisix is great with a Hasselblad because you just transfer the EV to the lens. (You don't have to touch the dial on the meter.) For other cameras the L-208 is better.
Brian's Photo Show swapped the battery and it still not working. Shame as it was awesome. Needle was flickering all over the place. swapped the battery again recently still knackered. Lost interest in buying another. Maybe it was duff in the first instance.
Hi Brian. I've had numerous meters over the years, but currently this is the one I carry with me. It's lightweight, easy to use, accurate, and reasonably inexpensive, especially if you find a good used model, which is what I did. Although all my cameras are metered, occasionally I prefer to take a handheld reading, either as primary or back-up. I'm inclined to take incident readings: the old school notion is that you needn't be concerned about the reflectance of the subject, since you're measuring the light falling onto the subject. For the kind of photography I do, this method, and kind of meter, as opposed to, say, a spotmeter, is ideal. Plus, it's so small, you hardly know you have it with you. Thanks for spreading the word.
Cool! It's nice to know the incident function works reliably.
i've the same lightmeter...really cool for the size/price!I've a question...i've calibrated the reflecting light value to match the value from my Sony a7iii camera on "spot metering" ...so now i've quite exactly the same read out...
I've a question...why if i click first time, i've a lower value...but at second time is correct (compared to the Sony values)?!This is vary curious...
I've calibrated just forcing to match the value regulating the voltmeter on the circuit board of the light meter ...(i've found a tutorial on yt)
I still have my Sekonic "Auto-Lumi 86" all plastic for more than 40 years! Still intact and it's working. Great brand very reliable. Thanks for the video
Enjoyed the video! Impressive little meter so I ordered one for myself.
I usually use mine as a incident light meter, and it's very precise in that mode. In reflect mode, in very sunny day "at least my sekonic l208" tends to underexposed my shoots 2 stops. And I tested against my digital camera with a gray card. Something I do is to read the light from the palm of my hand and I give one stop more in cloudy days and 3 or 2 stops more in sunny days. I basically set my hand in zone VI. I wish I had so many opinions in 2013 like we have right now. Cheers and keep doing great information videos.
2 stops? That's a hell of a discrepancy. With reflected light you have to interpret the readings and not take them at face value. If comparing with another meter and you are still 2 stops adrift, something tells me all is not well with your Sekonic.
Thank you for the review. I’ve just purchased one. One point is, mine didn’t come with a battery which was a pain!!!
Nice pace to your review and a steady calm voice.
Awesome videos Brian! I dont need a meter at all but listening to your videos when i have my coffee in the morning is like listening to a podcast haha. Although i dont need a meter now i want one!
Glad I found this, very good review with a nice voice to go with it, thank you! Checking out your other content as well
I bought one when I purchased a 1957 Voightlander Vito B. I compared the readings to those on my Leica Q2 in full auto mode, and the meter readings are very close to what my Leica Q2 was showing.
Nice and simple to use!
Obviously reliable and long lasting
Being plastic means it’s light, being made of metal means nothing when this kind of precision instrument is dropped anyway. If you’re going to store it in the fridge, I’d rather it be plastic
Live your video’s
Great video, and quite helpful! Thanks! I have some older film cameras, and I've enjoyed using this light meter when I'm shooting with them.
ASA 400! I love it!!
Thanks for this, really helpful ❤
The o-ring is only to be used if the mount is somewhat loose in your camera hot shoe.
OK that's helpful
Agree with that. Good video by the way.
Right, only badly translated in the manual.
I've heard Hedeco Lime Two is good option
but i'd went for more advanced sekonic since there's an options to meter for flash and whatnot
Nice review Brian and very informative. Perhaps the O ring is intended to help lock the light meter more securely to the hot/cold shoe of your camera?
Agree with that. Good video by the way.
Yes,that is what it is for,my TLR camera does not have a spring thing to hold it in place of the cold shoe,so the o-ring will hold it in place. That was the complaint on the Voightlander VC II, it would slide out at the most worst time :)
Being a landscaper I loved spot measuring so I preferred using a spot meter like L778 . Seems to me the angle 33 degree of reflected light is too wide for my purpose. L778 has only 1 degree. Of course EV adjustment is indispensable depending on the photography conditions. But regardless of the measuring method I like to recall the days when light measuring was so important.
hi, can I measure for the flash/strobist light ?
I have the L308, so it's useful for flash metering too.
nice presentation
Great review....but....you didn't give details of the battery. What size/voltage does it require and are they still available?
3-volt lithium type CR2032, available at Amazon and surely elsewhere
@@BriansPhotoShow : Thanks for the Info.
i just got this one and it's great. thanks for the vid. so what do the black and blue lines mean in the meter hand area?
You complain that it's made out of plastic - that's not such a bad thing. At 12 years old your's is holding very well. I have a Sekonic L398 which is made out of metal and weighs in as a small compact camera. On it's own it's not an issue but, my camera bag is heavy so it's weight matters - that's why I don't use it anymore. I welcome the weight of plastic with open arms!
Perhaps the O ring is meant to keep dust and debris out of the slot area so that it remains clean for use in a camera with a shoe? But it does seem odd, unless perhaps there are non-standard sized accessory shoes one can attach and somehow the ring allows for a better fit by providing some friction that may be needed. It is odd that they do not say why. Perhaps it is a test to see how compliant people are to any orders given for apparently no known or sensible reason to see who would make a good robot worker drone for Big Brother? Although that test is already provided for in University these days via the norms of Kowtow while facing left ever so obediently, lest one face the ire of schools of inclusiveness and their violent comrades. Or perhaps the O ring is merely in homage to space shuttle failures and silence among engineers while important limits of design were ignored? I can come up with more possibilities, but they could be more tawdry and so won't go there. Best wishes! (You should call BH and ask if they know why the O ring, or the manufacturer).
The alternative Gossen meter he mentions is the Digisix, which is a complete piece of crap. Plastic. clumsy to use, not durable, and more expensive.
I have the Gossen Digisix. Its painful to use to be honest and it's been put back in box. The Sekonic L-208 is pretty easy to configure and the right size for a 35mm or even a compact 35mm camera.
@@stuartconnelly5397 Why don't people like the Digisix? I've got both the L-208 and the Digisix; and side-by-side they give exactly the same reading. That has to be good! The two meters work in different ways; the Digisix is great with a Hasselblad because you just transfer the EV to the lens. (You don't have to touch the dial on the meter.) For other cameras the L-208 is better.
Loved mine but died very quickly!
Really? Battery issue?
That's very weird, I have mine for more than 5 years and the battery is full and I use regularly. And I don't put mine in the freezer 😅😂
Brian's Photo Show swapped the battery and it still not working. Shame as it was awesome. Needle was flickering all over the place. swapped the battery again recently still knackered. Lost interest in buying another. Maybe it was duff in the first instance.
Too much fill talk !
You ramble on way too much
how do you use it for flashgun or strobe?
Sorry but I don't have any experience using it that way