REALLY cheap flash meter

I just bought my second light, an AB400, saving up for the third. Also just shelled out some money on an upcoming workshop. Unfortunately, this means I can't afford a decent flash meter right now. I'm watching eBay, but even used ones are going for over $100.

I have seen some analog units, but the Wein, for example, is fixed at 1/250, so I guess I would have to do some calcuations every time.

I found an Interfit meter for $55, but don't know if it's accurate or not.

I kinda flying blind not being able to meter. Anyone have any advice (other than saving up to buy a Sekonic)? Are there any decent cheap ones to get me started?

Thanks!

I had a Wein decades ago and couldn't get it to work.

But I'd assume a fairly modern one would be OK.

Don't worry about the shutter speed stuff; mostly, it does not matter.

BAK

BAK said:

I had a Wein decades ago and couldn't get it to work.

Click to expand...

I had three. In bright light they read too low. In dim light they read too high.

One of Chuck's White Towels is a much better deal.

Learn to use the histogram on the camera. Combine it with the white towel method if you want. In a studio situation there's little real need for a meter, once you have a little experience and have a general idea of the settings for your lights.

--
J.R.

Somewhere south of Amarillo

Maybe I'm missing something....what white towels are talking about? Is it a Chuck's new trick with a white towel or what?

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1025&message=20168236

CG

Warren Sarle said:

BAK said:

I had a Wein decades ago and couldn't get it to work.

Click to expand...

I had three. In bright light they read too low. In dim light they
read too high.

One of Chuck's White Towels is a much better deal.

Click to expand...

Yes digital photography in the studio has nearly made the meter obsolete...because you can do instant testing, much like polaroid with film

Now correct me if I'm wrong, but while the histogram allows me to judge an overall exposure, it does not allow me to figure out the ratios within an image. When I was just working with one light, the histogram was fine. Now that I've got multiple lights, all I can do is set the power by eyeballing it. It's not as easy as setting the lights to the same power, since I have different lights and different modifiers. So it seems to me that a meter is essential now.

brent_code3 said:

Now correct me if I'm wrong, but while the histogram allows me to
judge an overall exposure, it does not allow me to figure out the
ratios within an image. When I was just working with one light, the
histogram was fine. Now that I've got multiple lights, all I can do
is set the power by eyeballing it. It's not as easy as setting the
lights to the same power, since I have different lights and
different modifiers. So it seems to me that a meter is essential
now.

Click to expand...

Is it about numbers or pictures? If you're trying to do it by the numbers you need a meter. For me, what's really important is how the photo looks, and for that there is much more information in the histogram and LCD.

To put it another way, if you use a meter you have to be able to look at numbers on a meter and mentally predict how your photo will come out. With the LCD you work from a visual representation -- to me, a much more direct and intuitive method. And the LCD gives you information you can't get from a meter -- how the highlights fall, shapes and location of shadows, stray spots of light or off-center background light.

In the film days we used to do a dozen meter readings, then shoot Polaroid (at a dollar a pop) to confirm it. With digital even photographers who use meters usually set the final lighting from the LCD and histogram -- and it's free.

--
J.R.

Somewhere south of Amarillo

Using a white towel as a reference you can set ratios. Just measure one light at a time. Set your camera aperture to the desired "meter" reading for the light. (e.g., f/8 for fill, f/11 for key) and then adjust power until the base of the spike from the towel -- the indictor of textured highlight detail - just kisses the right edge of the histogram. Set each light that way and its the same as using an incident meter, only a bit slower. It does have one benefit over metering, you get to see in the test shots what each light is contributing. It can help you see "dead" spot in your fill (shadows created by fill light).

Then turn on both lights and adjust aperture to align the towel spike to nail the exposure. It's really a no-brainer, you just need the reference object (the towel) in the scene.

See http://super.nova.org/DPR/ZoneSystem/WhiteTowelMethod.pdf and See http://super.nova.org/DPR/ZoneSystem/Histogram.pdf for printable tutorials...

CG