Flash Meter

Flashmeter

Photopedia

18 October 2007 15:54

You can’t use the meter built into your camera with studio flash, so you need a flashmeter to measure the exposure. This is a hand-held exposure meter calibrated to measure the light emitted from a flashgun. The most accurate way to use these handheld meters is a technique known as incident light metering.

This measures the light falling on the subject rather than the light reflected from your subject, so it is not affected by the colour or tone of the subject.

To use this technique the meter has a small white dome (known as an invercone) that covers the light-sensitive cell. Put the meter where your subject will be and point the meter directly at the camera. Firing the flash allows the meter to measure the light falling on the subject, and shows you the aperture that you need to set.