DATACOLOR LIGHTCOLOR METER GEAR
Keeping track of lighting parameters has never been so easy with this handy, compact colour meter from Datacolor DATACOLOR LIGHTCOLOR METER [ TRIED & TESTED ]
WORDS ADAM DUCKWORTH
I f you've got any experience shooting film, you’ll understand the importance of a light meter for measuring incident light and contrast before every shot. It ensures that developed film is exposed correctly, with the right shadow details and no blown highlights. Since the switch to digital and its what-you-see-is-what-you-get instant monitoring, these pro-grade meters have largely disappeared. Even more rare is a meter that measures colour temperature. Matching the colours of light sources is often left to trust. We believe what lighting manufacturers claim their fixtures put out – that if we dial in 5600K on the light it will be perfect daylight. But if your lights don’t match in terms of colour, no amount of post work can get them exactly the same. Once you’ve tried a colour meter, you’ll quickly realise most manufacturers’ claims are inaccurate, and that when you turn the power up or down, colour often changes too. This is where Datacolor’s new LightColor Meter comes in; it’s a small device that measures the brightness of light, so you can set your exposure – also its colour temperature – bang on. It works for all light sources, from LEDs to tungsten, HMI, fluorescent and daylight. If there’s natural daylight flooding onto your set, chances are it won’t be at 5600K, and
even if it is, it’ll change during the day. But once you know what it really is, you can set your lights to match if that’s the look you’re after. By using the LightColor Meter, you’ll know what you’re actually getting. If your lights are bicolour or daylight- only, the Datacolor gizmo also includes filter libraries from Profoto, LEE and Rosco, making it easy to select the right colour- correcting gels to get the warmth and green/magenta settings you want. It comes with two AAA batteries, has a magnetic plate to fix the included small stand, plus it has a standard mount for fixing to a stand or tripod. On the front is the measuring dome, which gives an overall exposure and temperature reading. For more precise use, the dome can be recessed so it will measure the output from one specific light source. The meter works with the free Datacolor LightColor Meter app, available for iOS and Android, and it connects via Bluetooth. It streams data to the phone for easy remote monitoring. The app allows selection of photo or video mode, where it’s easy to dial in shutter speed or angle, ISO and T stop or f-stop. Being able to measure hue and colour temperature is the real strength of Datacolor’s latest invention. The colour of any ambient light can be displayed as a Kelvin reading and +/- green or magenta
CONTROL CENTRAL The LightColor Meter app makes adjustments and monitoring simple
figure on colour graphs or chromacity charts for the technically advanced. This way you can accurately measure the colour of all your lights and make them match, rather than trusting what you think you’ve set, or set some lights warmer or cooler than others for creative effects. At least you’re in charge of the colour rather than leaving it to chance. It’s great for multi-light shoots or when mixing artificial with ambient light, and perfect for green-screen work too. It also saves time in post as you’ll have the right exposure, and puts you in total control of your lighting’s colour.
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