Originally posted by Flylooper I still haven't pulled the trigger on that Sekonic L-3085 yet. $150 bothers me, tightwad that I am. I wonder if there are comparable meters priced a little less.
I hear this from a lot of people. A light meter just isn't as sexy or exciting of a purchase as a new lens or new camera body. I think I spent $425 on my 758-DR (used), and although I didn't relish the thought of parting with that much money at the time, looking back now I consider it some of the best money I've ever spent on a piece of photo gear.
If you look around photography forums you'll see a lot of threads asking "Do I need a light meter?", and what they are really asking is "Can't I get by without one?". Well the answer is, yes, of course, but that's the wrong question to be asking. I think the right question is "Will a light meter improve my photography?", and the answer to that question really depends on the type of subjects you shoot. If you shoot landscapes, particularly on negative film, and you want to have better tonal control then a spot meter and some training in the Zone System will definitely help. If you shoot portraits, then a flash meter will help you understand lighting ratios in a way that your histogram cannot. If you shoot product shots or food, when colors and exposure have to be dead on or the client will not be happy, you will benefit greatly from the objectivity of an incident meter. But if you're a street shooter, or a photo journalist, or a sport or wildlife shooter, no, exposure isn't your primary concern, it's capturing the moment, and your camera's internal meter will do that well enough on it's own.
Let's face it, film has gotten expensive. Even modern digital cameras with their advanced multi segment metering are still prone to reflective errors, the difference is on digital, the mistakes are free to reshoot, and you know it immediately if your exposure is off. Film cameras that are 20, 30, even 40 years old or more have less sophisticated metering systems, and so you really want to
know you've got it in the can the first time around. A light meter, used properly, can give you that security, so I think of a light meter as a wise investment that can quickly pay for itself rather than some unnecessary expense to be avoided if possible. Of course no tool works correctly when used improperly, and in a lot of the arguments I see against light meters, the author is misusing the tool and then proclaiming "See? It doesn't work." Well yeah, of course.
My advice: learn if and how a light meter will address problems in the way you shoot. Learn the proper technique for using it, and determine if you'll be able to fit that in with your shooting style. Decide how much, if anything, the improvement is worth to you, and what your budget will allow. And finally, research options that are available on both the new and used markets and make your decision.