need help finding affordable light meter

[historybuff]

I'm going to have to get myself a light meter in order to take anything even remotely resembling a decent picture. MY problem of course being that I won't be making a living out of taking pictures, so I can;t afford to buy a really expensive light meter. I'm thinking it would be bets to avoid a light meter that takes a battery as I may use the camera a lot for a week or two,a dn then not use it for tow months, depending on what my travel plans end up being. so evey time I used the camera I'd be putting new batteries in. I'd like to keep the price down to under $60. I'm not oppossed to something use, so long as it still takes an accurate reading. Is there anything that fits the bill that anyone can suggest? Thanks in advance~

[another view]

What kind of camera are you using it with, and what type of photography are you interested in? Most cameras have built-in light meters but some older film cameras do not (still capable of excellent images, of course). Depending on what type of photography you're doing, the meter built in may be adequate but like I said, it all depends - so please provide a little info.

[freygr]

There are many so-so to very-good light meters on ebay. Just read and if you don't know ask questions. Most film camera from the late 60's to current already have built in light meters. The old CS light meters don't use batteries to begin with but you have to find them used. If you want a spot meter, they all take batteries.

[historybuff]

I'm using an old Russian FED-1 35mm mechanical Camera, so there is no built in light meter. A friend is letting me use his sekonic studio deluxe II, and it works well. One of my fears of using a ebay buy is that almost all of them say "not sure if it is accurate, haven't tested it", which sounds like a nice way of covering themselves when it doesn't test even remotely accurate.

[another view]

OK - that helps. I think you're right about people not testing meters. All they have to do is meter a scene (let's say outdoor daylight) and compare it to what comes up on their digital P&S. Chances are it won't completely agree because even two different of the same model of camera or meter won't agree. But it'll tell you if you're close...

You can also shoot without a light meter if you're using a film that has a lot of exposure latitude (aka margin for error) such as Tri-X black and white, and definitely not slide film. The sunny 16 rule says that at f16, your shutter speed is the inverse of the ISO in bright sun. In other words, 1/400 for Tri-X in bright sun - but you probably don't have that shutter speed; 1/500 is 1/3 stop underexposed and 1/250 is 2/3 stop overexposed. I'd always vote for slight overexposure so would recommend 1/250.

Of course you can use any aperture you want and still go by this rule. With f22 and 1/250, you'd have the same exposure as f11 and 1/1000 for example. On a cloudy day or closer to sunrise/sunset, you'll need more exposure so you might open up a stop or two (or more, depending) - with either the shutter speed or the aperture, or a combination of both. It's a learning curve to guess exactly how much...

[historybuff]

this thing is some ancient technology,but I think thats why I like it... My F-stops range from 3.5 to 18.