Skip to content
Nicebydesign.com may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.
Home » Blog

How to Use a Light Meter for Photography

On the off chance that you have the latest and advanced DSLR camera, you are most likely reasoning it’s as of now got an entirely decent ready light meter. For what reason would you need to put resources into a handheld light meter?

All the new cameras boast complex multi-portion metering systems, progressed light measurement abilities, and the shifting degrees in which they can adjust to various light sources. Doesn’t that make using a light meter out of date?

How to Use a Light Meter for Photography: While you might be enticed to go on a photoshoot without one, a handheld light meter is as yet basic to acquire ideal results in your photography.

Before you begin taking any photos, you need to work out the correct presentation for your photos. Your camera has a built-in light meter, for this reason, so for what reason do numerous picture takers purchase a costly handheld meter?

How to Use a Light Meter for Photography

Do you need light meter for photography?

The appropriate response is simple: a handheld light meter gives an experimental reading of the real light, though a camera meter gives a deceptive reading of the mirrored light.

A handheld meter (likewise called an incident meter) takes an incident reading, implying that it gauges the light that falls straightforwardly onto the subject. Your camera takes a reflective reading, metering the light that bounces beside the point.

It’s somewhat similar to estimating how much water is in a can by emptying it into a measuring holder, as opposed to tossing the water at a wall and quantifying how much sprinkles off.

Simple Steps of How to Use a Light Meter

Here are some steps that will tell how to use a light meter for photography like a professional:

#1. Set Your Camera ISO

Right off the bat, ensure that the ISO on your meter matches the ISO you’ve set on your camera. Additionally watch that the meter is set to daylight or flash, contingent upon the light source that you need to measure.

#2. Take a Reading

Hold your meter before your subject, pointing towards the light that is measuring them (not towards the camera). Presently just press the metering button to read the light measurement. With numerous lights sources, you can measure them independently by pointing the meter towards everyone.

  How to Become a Traveling Photographer

#3. Dial the Exposure on your DSLR

Now set the metered reading on your camera’s exposure settings (you should have your camera in manual mode). If you need to take a meter reading for a particular aperture, to empower you to control the depth of field, essentially enter your desired aperture on the meter and it will calculate the changed shutter speed for you.

How to Use a Handheld Light Meter in Landscape Photography

Handheld Light Meter in Landscape Photography

Here is how to use a handheld light meter in landscape photography like a professional:

Incident Meter Reading on Handheld Meter

An incident meter is all you require to get exceptionally precise exposure settings for landscape photographs. The least complex procedure is to hold the light meter out before the camera, ensuring that a similar light falling across the scene additionally falls on the Lumi-sphere.

At that point press the meter button. Read the outcomes on the meter and set your camera’s shutter and aperture to coordinate. Presently you have your camera set to precisely expose your scene.

The solitary thing you must be cautious about isn’t to have the sunshine straightforwardly on the Lumi-sphere because this can be excessively bright and cause you to underexpose your picture. One approach to maintain a strategic distance from this is, the point at which you see a bright sunspot on the Lumi-sphere, hold the white dome halfway in your shadow.

With a landscape photo, we normally can’t move the light meter to all the spots we’d prefer to gauge. Moving the meter out of direct daylight gives a superior estimation of the measure of light in the shadow zones in the scene, which is the place where it’s generally important to hold detail.

Reflective Spot Meter Reading on Handheld Meter

When using a spot meter in landscape photography, you will need to take a few readings from various zones of the scene. Take readings for the most significant zones like the haziest shadow region, the brightest feature area, and the mid-tone zones. Submit each reading to the meter’s memory by pressing the memory button after each reading.

At that point use the normal button on the meter to give the final exposure value and put those settings into the camera. This procedure permits you to take in a great deal of light power data and rapidly measure it without repetitive manual calculations.

When you become accustomed to searching for regions of contrasting brightness in a scene, you can take these readings rapidly.

How to Use a Hand-held Meter in Portrait Photography

Follow the below-mentioned steps to get to know how to use a handheld light meter in portrait photography:

  How to get blurred backgrounds in photos

Incident Meter Reading on Handheld Meter

In portrait photography, an incident meter is a priceless apparatus. You can use it to rapidly and effectively grab a reading of the light falling on an individual’s face. You should simply hold it before the subject with the Lumi-sphere confronting the camera and press the measure button.

That is it; the meter will reveal to you how much light is falling on the subject. On the off chance that you need the subject lighter than center dim, simply overexpose by one stop.

Reflective Spot Meter Reading on Handheld Meter

In portrait photography, you will take a couple of reading from key regions of the portrait. Meter the features of an individual’s face, their hair, and the features and shadows on their garments.

Submit each reading to the meter’s memory by pressing the memory button after each reading. At that point use the average button on the meter to give a final exposure worth and put those settings into the camera.

How to Use a Hand-held Meter in Still Life Photography

Get to know about how to use a handheld meter in still life photography like a professional:

Incident Meter Reading on Handheld Meter

In still life or product photography, an incident meter is a helpful apparatus. You can use it to rapidly and effectively get a reading of the light falling on a subject. You should simply hold it before the subject with the Lumi-sphere confronting the camera and press the measure button.

It doesn’t make a difference how dark or reflective your subject is, you will get a decent standard exposure. On the off chance that you need the subject lighter or hazier, you can overexpose or underexpose the photograph.

Reflective Spot Meter Reading on Handheld Meter

For still life photography, you will need to take a few readings from various zones of the still life. Take readings for the most significant regions like the darkest shadow zone, the most bright feature zone, and the mid-tone territories.

Submit each reading to the meter’s memory by pressing the memory button after each reading. At that point use the normal button on the meter to give a final exposure value and put those settings into the camera.

In the wake of working with your handheld light meter for these various kinds of shots, you won’t have any desire to return to your camera’s built-in light meter.

You’ll likewise begin seeing the distinctions in exposure and the measure of time that you spend changing the photo after it’s taken. Handheld light meters make an incredible apparatus for all picture takers and should consistently be in your pack.

Share this post on social!
nv-author-image

Jason Baxter

Jason is a professional photographer based in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Loyd has been doing photography for over 14 years and specializes in fine art landscape photography. Loyd's work has appeared on book covers, CD covers, television, internet galleries, and on the walls of private residences.