ankit trivedi Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 hello... i am doing my cinematography course....i am bit confused about light meter reading..the question is which could be the correct(effective) method of light meter reading? to read light towards light source or towards the camera..as differnt people use either one..please tell me which could be useful in general use..and which one to use in what kind of situtaion....like i have seen some cinematographer who takes the final light reading keeping the dom(meter) towards the camera...looking for more expert views on this question... thanks.. ankit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Stephen Williams Posted August 9, 2007 Premium Member Share Posted August 9, 2007 hello... i am doing my cinematography course....i am bit confused about light meter reading..the question is which could be the correct(effective) method of light meter reading? to read light towards light source or towards the camera..as differnt people use either one..please tell me which could be useful in general use..and which one to use in what kind of situtaion....like i have seen some cinematographer who takes the final light reading keeping the dom(meter) towards the camera...looking for more expert views on this question... thanks.. ankit Hi, Please change you display name to your full real name. IMHO it's not what the meter says that's important, it's how you use that information to determine the T stop used. Is the scene Day or Night, do you want to expose for the shadows or highlights. Stephen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Bowerbank Posted August 9, 2007 Share Posted August 9, 2007 (edited) Having the dome turned towards the camera for a reading gives you a general reading for what you're shooting, and basically measures the midrange between your key & fill to give you an average for where you COULD set your f-stop. Turning the dome towards the light is a way to measure a specific light's reading and for figuring out your key-to-fill contrast ratios and to know what specifically your key is at. A flat diffuser rather than a globe is best for this, by the way. Starting out, I was taught to point the dome at the camera using the 2/3 rule of having 2/3's of dome lit by the key and the extra 1/3 with the shadow. It's good for beginners to find out what that means, but I haven't metered anything like that since that first shoot. Edited August 9, 2007 by Jonathan Bowerbank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ankit trivedi Posted August 10, 2007 Author Share Posted August 10, 2007 thank you so much for you reply...i will try and do that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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