Metering for landscape?

Hello Some advice please if possible. I have shot digital for some time and now I am wanting to explore 35mm film and eventually medium format. I have recently acquired a Pentax k1000 for a part time course. We was advised to use an external light meter, which I have been doing for shooting people. I am now wanting to shoot landscape, however I seem to be getting conflicting advice regarding metering. Would you use the internal meter for landscape? Or the reflective, or incident meter on the light meter (sekonic L308). I’ve read some use both incident and reflective for landscape, so now I’m a bit confused. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks for your time.

Hello

Some advice please if possible.
I have shot digital for some time and now I am wanting to explore 35mm film and eventually medium format. I have recently acquired a Pentax k1000 for a part time course. We was advised to use an external light meter, which I have been doing for shooting people. I am now wanting to shoot landscape, however I seem to be getting conflicting advice regarding metering.

Would you use the internal meter for landscape? Or the reflective, or incident meter on the light meter (sekonic L308). I’ve read some use both incident and reflective for landscape, so now I’m a bit confused. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks for your time.

Luckily enough, there's a decent starter article on this very site ;) https://www.ephotozine.com/article/guide-to-using-a-hand-held-light-meter-4748 As far as incident is considered, you would use that when you're a distance away from the subject and too far for a close reflective reading. Provided you are in the same light as the landscape, an incident reading will give you a good result. It's also not affected by having too much sky in it, which can be a problem with refelected readings of landscape.

Luckily enough, there's a decent starter article on this very site
https://www.ephotozine.com/article/guide-to-using-a-hand-held-light-meter-4748

As far as incident is considered, you would use that when you're a distance away from the subject and too far for a close reflective reading. Provided you are in the same light as the landscape, an incident reading will give you a good result. It's also not affected by having too much sky in it, which can be a problem with refelected readings of landscape.

Thanks for the info snapper:)

Thanks for the info snapper

[quote]As far as incident is considered, you would use that when you're a [b]short[/b] distance away from the subject [/quote] I think you missed the word, [b]short[/b], out ?

Quote:As far as incident is considered, you would use that when you're a short distance away from the subject

I think you missed the word, short, out ?

[quote]Thanks for the info snapper:) [/quote] There's a better explanation in the linked video starting at 37 minutes. [youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Haik1ZGZSmc&t=51s[/youtube]

Quote:Thanks for the info snapper

There's a better explanation in the linked video starting at 37 minutes.

[quote][quote]As far as incident is considered, you would use that when you're a [b]short[/b] distance away from the subject [/quote] I think you missed the word, [b]short[/b], out ?[/quote] Nope.

Quote:
Quote:As far as incident is considered, you would use that when you're a short distance away from the subject

I think you missed the word, short, out ?

Nope.

Thanks everyone. Has anyone used, or download any metering apps? Do they work? Also, someone did advise I take my digital camera out and get the metering from that, then use that reading for the analog camera. I’ve also been looking at spot meters. Any one had experience with them? Sorry for all the questions, but I really want to find the best solution for this. Thanks.

Thanks everyone.
Has anyone used, or download any metering apps? Do they work? Also, someone did advise I take my digital camera out and get the metering from that, then use that reading for the analog camera. I’ve also been looking at spot meters. Any one had experience with them?
Sorry for all the questions, but I really want to find the best solution for this. Thanks.

[quote]Luckily enough, there's a decent starter article on this very site ;) https://www.ephotozine.com/article/guide-to-using-a-hand-held-light-meter-4748 [/quote] First things first. Is the meter reflective or does it have an incident reading option? Relatively few provide an incident meter reading option. Second is it still accurate? If the sun is out and behind you or to the side for a landscape the exposure is close to 1/250 at f8 with 100 ISO negative film - a minor adjustment tp the "sunny 16" guidance. For close-ups caution may be needed as many variable aperture zooms shoot at up to half a stop wider than the infinity aperture. Finally good though the ephotozine guidance is - it contains a mistake. The notes with a Kodak grey card tell users to add half a stop to a reading off the card, or to angle the card so its reflects less than all the light falling on the subject. This gets back to 12% reflectance (not 18%) which is the starting point for most hand held meters though a few use 14%.

Quote:Luckily enough, there's a decent starter article on this very site
https://www.ephotozine.com/article/guide-to-using-a-hand-held-light-meter-4748

First things first. Is the meter reflective or does it have an incident reading option? Relatively few provide an incident meter reading option.
Second is it still accurate?
If the sun is out and behind you or to the side for a landscape the exposure is close to 1/250 at f8 with 100 ISO negative film - a minor adjustment tp the "sunny 16" guidance.
For close-ups caution may be needed as many variable aperture zooms shoot at up to half a stop wider than the infinity aperture.
Finally good though the ephotozine guidance is - it contains a mistake. The notes with a Kodak grey card tell users to add half a stop to a reading off the card, or to angle the card so its reflects less than all the light falling on the subject. This gets back to 12% reflectance (not 18%) which is the starting point for most hand held meters though a few use 14%.

[quote]Second is it still accurate?[/quote] A very good question Len Back in the day I used to get my Minolta meter re-calibrated each year at their stand at Focus on Imaging.

Quote:Second is it still accurate?

A very good question Len

Back in the day I used to get my Minolta meter re-calibrated each year at their stand at Focus on Imaging.

[quote][quote]Second is it still accurate?[/quote] A very good question Len Back in the day I used to get my Minolta meter re-calibrated each year at their stand at Focus on Imaging.[/quote] One way to reasonably check if the OP has a decent DSLR that exposes accurately is to compare the hand held meter reading for a straightforward landscape to the DSLR meter reading.

Quote:
Quote:Second is it still accurate?

A very good question Len

Back in the day I used to get my Minolta meter re-calibrated each year at their stand at Focus on Imaging.


One way to reasonably check if the OP has a decent DSLR that exposes accurately is to compare the hand held meter reading for a straightforward landscape to the DSLR meter reading.

Thanks for all the replies. Really helpful. :) I have a Canon EOS R, for my Other work. So would you take a reflective meter reading with the Canon and use the reading for the analog? Thanks

Thanks for all the replies. Really helpful.
I have a Canon EOS R, for my
Other work. So would you take a reflective meter reading with the Canon and use the reading for the analog? Thanks

Hi. Do you print your film images when you have them developed or do you digitise them first? The reason for overexposing by one stop for film and underexposing by one stop for digital is because when you view a printed image the light comes from outside of the picture whereas in digital the light comes from behind of the picture, from the device displaying it.

Hi. Do you print your film images when you have them developed or do you digitise them first? The reason for overexposing by one stop for film and underexposing by one stop for digital is because when you view a printed image the light comes from outside of the picture whereas in digital the light comes from behind of the picture, from the device displaying it.

Hi Everything will be done in the darkroom for now. I might be scanning my developed negs later at some point. Cheers

Hi

Everything will be done in the darkroom for now. I might be scanning my developed negs later at some point.

Cheers

[quote] Everything will be done in the darkroom for now. I might be scanning my developed negs later at some point. [/quote] Scanning implies eventually printing with an inkjet - rather than wet - which might be part of your course. When printing via a computer most software includes a histogram option (as do most digital camera bodies) which helps you determine whether you got "correct exposure" for however who want a print to look as a finished print.

Quote:

Everything will be done in the darkroom for now. I might be scanning my developed negs later at some point.


Scanning implies eventually printing with an inkjet - rather than wet - which might be part of your course.

When printing via a computer most software includes a histogram option (as do most digital camera bodies) which helps you determine whether you got "correct exposure" for however who want a print to look as a finished print.

An old thread but interesting reading and brings back memories from days of old. I shot thousands of lanscapes in Cumbria during my fell walking days. The days when you took 100,200 and 400ISO film, took a gamble most days what was going in the camera and got caught out. Lovely day in the morning and weather closes in after lunch and half a roll's gone west. 400 in on a gloomy day and suddenly the suns out and another roll gone west unless you can find shadowed areas. Eventually you realise 200 is the way to go and trick the meter with an ISO stop change in either direction when the weather changes. All those times metering the dark spots and holding for the shot then hoping you don't over expose, not quite knowing until the film was developed. The sudden change of bright light and complete shadow on hillsides, general metering leads to under exposing, metering shadow leads to over exposing of the average shot, knowing where to stand, using shades, getting my brother to block the sun from the meter by standing next to me and me and lowering my shooting posiion, we tried it all, it was all crazy stuff. Wasted film roles learning the game, disappointment through the post and glory through the post when your snaps return. Would I ever change anything? Hell no, I loved every minute. It exited me.

An old thread but interesting reading and brings back memories from days of old. I shot thousands of lanscapes in Cumbria during my fell walking days. The days when you took 100,200 and 400ISO film, took a gamble most days what was going in the camera and got caught out. Lovely day in the morning and weather closes in after lunch and half a roll's gone west. 400 in on a gloomy day and suddenly the suns out and another roll gone west unless you can find shadowed areas. Eventually you realise 200 is the way to go and trick the meter with an ISO stop change in either direction when the weather changes.
All those times metering the dark spots and holding for the shot then hoping you don't over expose, not quite knowing until the film was developed. The sudden change of bright light and complete shadow on hillsides, general metering leads to under exposing, metering shadow leads to over exposing of the average shot, knowing where to stand, using shades, getting my brother to block the sun from the meter by standing next to me and me and lowering my shooting posiion, we tried it all, it was all crazy stuff.
Wasted film roles learning the game, disappointment through the post and glory through the post when your snaps return. Would I ever change anything? Hell no, I loved every minute. It exited me.