How To Use A Light Meter: Overview
Last week we covered why a light meter is still crucial in today’s digital marketplace. This week we give you a video tutorial I created a few years ago that is still relevant today. (In fact, the Sekonic L758 Cine light meter is still my main meter on-set! And as for value, the price to buy this light meter new has been steady for the past 4 years (2011 to 2015), demonstrating its quality and value.
During the first few minutes of this video I quickly recap everything I discussed last week about why a light meter is a necessary tool for any cinematographer. Then I spend the rest of the video covering when to use an incident meter and when a spot meter is more appropriate. Then it’s demonstration time, using the meter in different ways to properly expose a white plate against a black background. Finally, I give you some tips and tricks on how to quickly determine the lighting ratios and range of your scene. Below are some of the tips in the video, along with a few more.
(While this video only covers the Sekonic 758 Cine light meter, many of these techniques can easily be applied to other meters. Even if you are on a budget, start using whatever light meter you can get your hands on and grow from there; I did!)
Sekonic L-758 Cine Tips:
Tip #1: Highlight Priority Mode (Shown in video)
Quickly and easily determine what your aperture based off important highlight in the scene. When you expose at this value, the metered highlight will retain detail. Couldn’t be simpler!
How to do it:
1. Set the Custom Setting #1 value to 1. This will make the ISO 2 button be a filter factor button. (With the meter off, press the MODE button while turning on the meter. “CS” will display in the upper right corner to let you know that you are now in the custom settings mode.) Power off the meter, and then turn it back on.
2. Determine the EV for when you are over-exposing your recording medium. (Measuring the EV from midtone to highlight.) The Sekonic Profile Chart II is a great tool for this.
3. With the meter set to the correct camera profile, press the ISO 2 button and rotate the jog wheel to the correct EV setting based off of step 2.
4. Take a spot reading of what you want to place at the top of the histogram / shoulder. This will be your brightest highlight.
5. Press and hold ISO 2. The result is a midtone reading that keeps your highlight at the top without clipping.
Tip #2: Change Trigger Position In Spot Mode (Shown in video)
Take readings more ergonomically when in the spot mode of the 758 Cine. Has the added benefit of keeping you from mistakenly taking a false reading when in Incident Mode. (If the button stays the same in both modes and the meter is left in Spot Mode, you could potentially take a reading thinking you are using the incident meter, but instead getting a spot meter reading; that reading is going to be very VERY wrong!)
How to do it:
1. Start with the meter off and press the MODE button while turning the meter on. “CS” will display in the upper right corner showing you are now in the Custom Settings Mode.
2. Use the jog wheel to move to Setting #17. (This is the smaller of the two numbers in the center of the screen.)
3. Now press the MODE button until #2 is displayed. (This is the larger of the two numbers in the center of the screen.)
4. Press the POWER button to turn the meter off.
Tip #3: Determining Contrast Ratios (Shown in video)
Quickly and easily determine the contrast ratio of important lights, having the meter doing all the math (No need to remember that T2.8 is 3 EV away from T8, which gives you a ratio of 8:1.)
Here is how you do it:
1. Using the incident mode take a reading of just the key light.
2. Press the AVE/EV button.
3. Now take a reading of any other light / area (The Fill light, for example).
4. The meter will now display the contrast ratio of the two lights.
*Additional suggestion: Make a label for the back of the meter that has the EV to Ratio conversions on it. Now you never have to remember an additional set of numbers. (EV 1 = 2:1 / EV 2 = 4:1 / EV 3 = 8:1 / EV 4 = 16:1)
Create separation and harness the power of shadows!
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Tip #4: Determining the Dynamic Range of a Scene
As dynamic range with digital cameras is continually getting broader, I don’t use this feature as often as I used to. However it is VERY useful for times I’m shooting in a format with limited dynamic range. This is a quick and simple way to determine the range of a scene so you can make any necessary adjustments.
How to do it:
1. In spot meter mode take a reading of the darkest area of the scene.
2. Press the AVE/EV button.
3. Next take a reading of the brightest area of the scene.
4. The meter will now display the total range of the scene.
Tip #5: Finding the Midtone Value of a Scene
If you can’t place a gray card in the key light, you can’t use your incident meter, and there isn’t anything in the scene that you recognize as midtone value, there is still a way to get your readings! This is a quick and easy way to determine your aperture in difficult situations. (I could have also used this tip in the Plate example I gave in the video.)
How to do it:
1. In spot meter mode take a reading of the darkest area of the scene, then press the memory button.
2. Next take a reading of the lightest area of the scene and then press the memory button.
3. Press the AVE/EV button.
4. The meter will now display the midtone value.
*Additional Suggestion: Still use this tip even when you are not stuck in a tough situation. This will train your eye to recognize what midtone is in every day scenes.
There’s more to life than three point lighting. Try these set-ups out:
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Equipment used to make this video:
- Adobe Creative Suite: Current version: Adobe Creative Cloud
- Nikon D7000
- Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2
Zeiss ZF.2 Lenses: 28mm / 35mm / 50mm / 85mm - RED Epic
- RED Pro Primes
- Kessler Crane Pocket Dolly
Letus 1DmkIV - Letus 10″ Accessory Arm
- OConnor Matte Box
- 5.6″ TV Logic Monitor
- Sekonic L-758 Cine Light Meter
- Cool Light 1200 LED
- Ronford F-15 Fluid Head
Until Next Time – Get Out There And Shoot!
Ryan E. Walters, Cinematographer
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is there any update about the best light meter , like some new model that you recommend
We haven’t been staying up on the latest light meters. There aren’t really a lot of changes need with a light meter since its job is pretty straight forward. The Sekonic models we’ve previously recommend are still top notch!
thank you for replying