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Was the underexposure consistent? I noted a similar problem (X or M, DF, IQ back, LS80) using a hot shoe flash for fill, with a profoto air transmitter synced from the back. Images tended to be dark, but varied from what I expected to dark. Reducing exposure time made it worse so it was some timing issue between the hot shoe pulse and the output pulse.If your talking about the dome in or out, I have always metered with dome in, I have never had an issue before.
Also Bob I did as you ask and it worked fine, just confused me even more ha ha
Also I have the Mamiya 645DF/ 28DM and 80mm LS
Thiery is absolutely right here.Paul,
You don't need to buy a new light-meter, it would be much more precise and easy to use the histogram. It couldn't be more precise.
Thierry
No, i didn't mean dome and stuff.. I mean if you were metering reflected light - what zone you were using , and if you were metering incident - how you aim meter..I don't understand what you all mean by what metering technique I use,
Sorry. It is not faster nor more accurate. I been big fan of "test with histogram" for a while too, after having to deal with old and clunky minolta's and some old soviet meters.. And then i went back to real flash meters from Sekonic and never ever looked back.. Shoot a test frame, check the histogram and adjust from there. This is WAY faster and more accurate than any meter.
Histograms doesn't work b/c it not neutral enough, b/c you always have to remember what kind of scene's main tone is & etc.
Ah. So Collins school, like myself.. Not Lane&Co school.. I vouch for the funky electronics... Have seen this happening with friend's Minolta (ambient dead on, flash is one stop under), but never seen it with Sekonics..Sergi, I point the meter at each light that I am metering.
Typically histogram will display values according to current settings of contrast. Also per-channel histogram goes differently and calculated differently in camera/back from software (exception - i never compared new IQ series, and i never compared Phase One backs).what do you mean with this?
That is up to you, how you set the curve, linear, s-shaped, flatter in the shadows, steeper in the highlights, or vice-versa, etc ..., resp. with more or less contrast (this is simply equal to changing the developing process with film). The same can be obtained with film, in some ways, e.g. by changing the process, thus changing the contrast.Typically histogram will display values according to current settings of contrast. Also per-channel histogram goes differently and calculated differently in camera/back from software (exception - i never compared new IQ series, and i never compared Phase One backs).
Digital sensor do have linear response, unlike film, which is curved. Histogram on most cameras (i am sure there are exceptions, however i never seen it) represents curved response, thus displaying info that is not neutral to settings. Frank Doorhoff suggested at some point contrast -2, which is getting S-curve more flattened, thus approximating what is in RAW a bit better.
I don't see in which way this has influence on the light-meter and how precise it is. Film has never had equal response or sensitivity in the different color "channels" = layers (greens in B&W, reds and blue in tranies or color negs, all that was such a headache).Another interesting problem is channel sensitivity (which is included into the final histogram). E.g - if i shoot Leaf in friend's studio with Alien Bees (older ones) - they do have really really weird thing going in red channel. No matter how i fight it - i always end up with pretty terrible results for skin - it will look ok on back, but once i am processing it with C1 (or any other RAW software, i have few for different occasions) - goodbye skin texture, red channel goes out of control. Same stuff shot on ZD back - don't see it at all. Both backs with Elinchrom lights - never had a single issue.
You misunderstood what I meant when saying the histogram is the best possible light-meter: it is not meant to say that one has then the possibility to "repair" or fix light afterwards when it is within +/- x f stops. It is exactly the contrary, to let you set the light in the subjects, based on your decision (e.g. get that particular shadows part at - x under-exposure, the 1/4 tones at - y, the mid-tones at ..., the 3/4 tones at +..., the highlights at + ..., the first shadows with details at - ..., the last high-lights with details at + ...). You are absolutely free, but obviously this by changing the light in your subject, not by tweaking the file afterwards with the software (though this is still possible to a certain amount, more so with MF digital files, and better so when the exposure is perfect).Granted - i have never ever taken electronic parts apart. And i don't have latest backs, which might have some cool new features.
But i would much rather trust my flash meter and not waste shutter counts / batteries with camera, making scene ready before subject arrives on the set, than having to deal with whole thing on the fly. Plus, having light exactly where i want it and not "oh its within one stop, i will later fix it" - is much better. Not to mention that whole "i will later fix it" never truly yields good results as good.
See my explanations above, Sergei. It is exactly that, the point: zone system metering. A white cat on a white background, or a black panther in a tunnel entry, or in the snow, no matter what, the zone system allows you to set the light exactly to be able to distinguish details where you want them to be. And for this the histogram is the best tool.Or if you meant what i meant by main tone? Its just a whole zone thing. Shooting black cat on the snow, shooting white cat on black paper, shooting gray cat on gray paper... That kind of stuff. Having to remember to compensate and do whole zone placing b/c of reflected metering for histogram is not much of a picnic either (not like there is much choice for landscape of course, but at least for portraits there is)
Just me. I learned to not trust histograms much, walking softly and carry around big stick once again..
I always find these conversations funny. Member X says I do this and it works for me, and a whole bunch of members come on and say you should not do that because we do it a different way and our way is better. Which begs the question, better for whom? And then when you look at Sergei's work, it is kind of hard to criticize his method.
Paul,I tried a friends light meter and it's dead on, not sure what happened with mine but I guess electronics just fail.
Thanks for all the advise and thanks for not bashing my ignorance for tech terms, I am self taught and learned trial and error