First Meter advice

[fishbulb]

The original small batterie isn't available anymore, but you can add with a normal batterie; hearing aid batterie here isn't necessary.
Ritchie

Well you can get them other places but a pharmacy is almost guaranteed to have them. I use three Duracell 303/357 1.5V batteries, stacked, in my Pentax Spotmeter V. Conveniently, they are typically sold in a three-pack.

[FredrickSummers]

Thanks everyone! I made a low offer on a Pentax meter I didn't expect to get accepted but did, so that will be coming this week. I really like the look and ruggedness of that one. I will have to figure out how to apply it to color/slide, but I think I have an idea of it. I'm sure it won't be my last, but I will pair this with my iPhone light meter app (use it as an incident meter I guess).

[dpn]

If you got a Pentax Spotmeter V, I'd recommend sending it to Richard Ritter for calibration. Mine was significantly out of calibration when I purchased it, but Richard got it working perfectly, quickly, and inexpensively.

http://www.lg4mat.net/page4.html

[FredrickSummers]

If you got a Pentax Spotmeter V, I'd recommend sending it to Richard Ritter for calibration. Mine was significantly out of calibration when I purchased it, but Richard got it working perfectly, quickly, and inexpensively.

http://www.lg4mat.net/page4.html

Thanks, I may do that. Mind if I ask roughly what that costs?

[fishbulb]

If you got a Pentax Spotmeter V, I'd recommend sending it to Richard Ritter for calibration. Mine was significantly out of calibration when I purchased it, but Richard got it working perfectly, quickly, and inexpensively.

http://www.lg4mat.net/page4.html

You can also check and adjust the baseline calibration of the meter pretty easily.

See page 23 of the owners manual, which is available here: http://www.butkus.org/chinon/flashes...potmeter_v.htm

[Doremus Scudder]

Thanks everyone! I made a low offer on a Pentax meter I didn't expect to get accepted but did, so that will be coming this week. I really like the look and ruggedness of that one. I will have to figure out how to apply it to color/slide, but I think I have an idea of it. I'm sure it won't be my last, but I will pair this with my iPhone light meter app (use it as an incident meter I guess).

Frederick,

For negative materials we expose for the shadows. For positive materials like transparency film, we expose for the highlights.

When I used my spotmeter for transparency films I simply metered the brightest thing I wanted to keep detail in (white dress, white water, clouds, etc.) and then opened up two stops. Bracket a bit at the beginning and you'll find the correct amount to open up for your film/working method.

Best,

Doremus

[dave_whatever]

Get a Pentax digital spot, then your first meter can also be your last/only meter. It'll save you money in the long run.

[FredrickSummers]

Frederick,

For negative materials we expose for the shadows. For positive materials like transparency film, we expose for the highlights.

When I used my spotmeter for transparency films I simply metered the brightest thing I wanted to keep detail in (white dress, white water, clouds, etc.) and then opened up two stops. Bracket a bit at the beginning and you'll find the correct amount to open up for your film/working method.

Best,

Doremus

I knew about exposing for the shadows on negative, but I did not know about exposing for the highlights on slide, thank you very much! For Velvia 50 I know you don't really want the scene more then +2/-2 overall. I'm planning on carrying Ektar and Velvia 50 for my main colors (for landscapes) for that reason. Ektar if there is a lot of contrast, Velvia if it isn't outside the range.

I've not got the meter in yet, but from what I gather when you meter it turns the EV side, so when you say meter for the shadows or meter for the highlights you mostly use the value the meter gives you for say the deepest shadow you want exposed? (ie, I know I want f22 for the focus, so meter for the deepest shadow I want to appear and then use the shutter speed it gives for f22, or should I move the metered shadow to "zone 3" to better keep the rest of the details too?

Thank you for the tips!

Get a Pentax digital spot, then your first meter can also be your last/only meter. It'll save you money in the long run.

That's what I'm hoping! It should arrive tomorrow! I like the size and its apparent ruggedness.

[Doremus Scudder]

I knew about exposing for the shadows on negative, but I did not know about exposing for the highlights on slide, thank you very much! For Velvia 50 I know you don't really want the scene more then +2/-2 overall. I'm planning on carrying Ektar and Velvia 50 for my main colors (for landscapes) for that reason. Ektar if there is a lot of contrast, Velvia if it isn't outside the range.

I've not got the meter in yet, but from what I gather when you meter it turns the EV side, so when you say meter for the shadows or meter for the highlights you mostly use the value the meter gives you for say the deepest shadow you want exposed? (ie, I know I want f22 for the focus, so meter for the deepest shadow I want to appear and then use the shutter speed it gives for f22, or should I move the metered shadow to "zone 3" to better keep the rest of the details too?

The meter turns nothing. It just gives you a reading in the viewfinder. You then turn the rings to line up the EV value the meter gives you with where you want to place it. The easiest way to "place" a value is with a Zone Dial sticker like the ones illustrated here: http://www.largeformatphotography.in...s/ZoneDial.pdf (you may have to log in to see the article). I think you can print the sticker from the article as well.

At any rate, get the Zone sticker or dial for your meter (you don't say if you've got the Pentax V or the newer digital spotmeter).

The manual way to do that is simply find the exposure for the EV the meter gives you opposite the index mark. This is middle grey or Zone V. Subtract exposure to "place" the reading in lower zones, e.g., give two stops less from the middle reading to place the value in Zone III. To place in higher zones you add exposure; give two stops more exposure to place the Zone V reading in Zone VII.

Best,

Doremus

[fishbulb]

^ yep.

I made my own sticker for my Pentax Spotmeter V (analog version), similar to this image below. You can also buy stickers on eBay, I believe for both the analog and digital versions.



So this dial reading in the image would show, for example, I metered a scene (by looking through the spot meter) and found that the brightness of the scene ranged from say, 2 EV to 6 EV.

I rotate the dial on the side of the meter, matching up the EV readings I saw (lowest band of numbers) with the Zones (sticker).

So in the image above:

- what I metered at 2 EV (darkest) is in Zone 3 (shadows)
- what I metered at 4 EV is in Zone 5 (midtones)
- what I metered at 6 EV (brightest) is in Zone 7 (highlights)

Then the top of the dial will consequently give me the possible combinations of aperture and shutter speed, at a given ISO.

In the image, this is ISO 100, f/22, 30 seconds. Or, you could choose something else, like f/16 and 15s.

The concept on other types of spot meters is the same - match up your EV readings with the zone you want to put them in.