Photo Light Meter
Guide for Using a Light Meter

Do you need a photo light meter to improve your digital photography? If you're just taking snap shots probably not, but if you want to become a professional photographer one day you should get into the habit of using a light meter.

A light meter measures the amount of light in a scene so you know how to set your camera. Light is an extremely important aspect of digital photography. When you press the shutter release button the camera lens opens up allowing light to enter the camera and hit the sensor. The amount of light the sensor is exposed to is determined by how wide open the lens is, the sensitivity of the sensor, and the speed of the shutter.

There are two types of metering. Reflective metering and incident metering. Reflective metering is the type of metering your camera uses. A reflective photography light meter measures the light that bounces off of a subject. The light bouncing off of the subject enters the camera hits the meter and gives you a reading.

A hand held photo light meter is what is referred to as an incident meter. Incident meters actually measure the light shining on a subject. These meters give you a more accurate reading than the camera's internal reflective meter.

Most incident light meters are basically the same. When you use a hand held photo light meter you need to enter the ISO setting and the shutter speed you have your camera set to for the picture. When you take the meter reading the meter will give you the appropriate aperture or f-stop number for the picture.

When you're metering in a studio setting with flash or strobe lights you can set your meter to work on cord or without a cord. When you use the meter without a cord the meter waits for the flash to go off and then takes the measurement. If you are using a cord the meter and flash will work simultaneously.

When you take a meter reading hold meter up at the main area of your subject that you want to be well lit in the shot. This is usually the face if you're photographing a person. You can aim your meter directly at the camera or you can aim it at the light source. I'd recommend aiming at the light source to get better highlight definition in your photograph.

When you take pictures in the studio you have a variety of lights set up. You should take meter readings for all of these lights. Start out with your main light and then take readings for all other lights.If you're shooting an a white background be sure that the setting for the back light is not lower than it is for the main light. If it is lower you're white background will appear gray in the picture.

Now that you know the basics about how to use a light meter start practicing. The more you use the meter the better you'll get.

If these photo light meter tips helped you check out some more of my digital photography tutorials.