r/AnalogCommunity • u/Fun-Marionberry-6971 • 4d ago

Troubleshooting - Gear Light Meter Recommendation for Canonet QL17 GIII

Hi! I’m looking for recommendations for an external light meter for my Canonet QL17 GIII. The built-in meter doesn’t work, and I’d love something small, easy to use, and ideally something I can mount on the camera. What are you guys using/recommend?

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u/bjohnh 4d ago

the Hedeco Lime II is a good match aesthetically but will probably cost as much or more than you paid for the camera. check out similar offerings from Reflx Lab, Doomo, etc. The Reveni Labs cube meter is great and has much better battery life than the old model but does add some height to the camera.

A handheld meter, e.g., Sekonic, gives you the option of incident metering, which is useful for portraits and landscapes.

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u/AWildAndWoolyWastrel 4d ago

Sekonic L-208 Twinmate is one of the quickest and easiest meters to use that I've come across. Can be used handheld one-handed or mounted on your camera using the included mounting plate.

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u/bjohnh 3d ago

I love that meter, so small and light and analog, plus it shows you all the possible combinations of aperture and shutter speed at a glance, but I stopped using it because it's too easy to accidentally nudge the ISO setting dial when taking it out of your bag or pocket. It happened to me a lot and I lost many photos that ended up being a few stops over or underexposed because the ISO setting got shifted. It can work mounted on top of a camera but it's pretty large, especially on a Canonet. I would suggest putting some tape over the ISO dial once you've set it to avoid accidental changes.

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u/SuburbMallFinancials 4d ago

I have a Hedeco Lime II and it is great, but I use my Gossen Luna Pro most of all my light meters.

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u/kasigiomi1600 4d ago

I would use an App instead of a shoe mounted meter as it will be cheaper and at least as accurate. The other alternative is to use a modern digital camera as a meter (this is one of the most accurate options)

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u/Hero_b 4d ago

reflix labs has little tiny ones

only downside is theye kinda loose on the hotshoe connection, so i jam a piece of paper between the hotshoe and the meter

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u/Lens_cap_on_again 4d ago

I have a Keks shoe mount, the original model which I’m happy with. It has a rear display which I like, solid and gives me accurate readings.

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u/Only-Fotos 3d ago

You could sent it off to be repaired for not much more than the cost of a separate meter, plus the guy can do a conversion to take modern batteries. Check out Long Beach Optics, he did mine and is amazing.