Best Light Meter — Top 8 Ranked for Photography, Film & Video

Best Light Meter for Photography

8. Lumu Power 2

The Lumu Power 2 doesn’t look like a conventional light meter, and that’s what makes it great. Simply download Lumu’s free app and plug the sensor into your iPhone and you’ve got a professional-grade meter in the palm of your hand (as well as a video editing tool). Utilizing your phone makes the Lumu Power 2 both compact and as powerful as your Apple processor. The main drawback for the device is its price, and even after you pay it, there are a few features on the app that you have to pay to unlock.

With the Digisix 2, Gossen stripped away all the frills. Incredibly compact and straight-forward to use, the Digisix 2 is perfect for anyone who doesn’t need anything beyond the most basic aspects of a light meter. Point the small device at your subject, click, and you’ve got a reading almost instantaneously that stays on the screen until you take another measurement. It’s simplicity is also its drawback; it lacks settings for T-stop readings and shutter speeds. At almost a hundred dollars less than the Lumu Power 2, however, it’s a great bang for your buck.

Sekonic is the best in the business when it comes to light meters (as you’ll see), and the TwinMate doesn’t disappoint. The L-208 TwinMate stands out on this list for its analog nature– it’s the only device here where you can watch the needle swing to represent the amount of light on a scene. This doesn’t just look cool, it gives you a tangible sense of how light shifts in different sections of your scene in real time. 

Sure, the needle reading requires you to estimate a bit more than with a digital sensor, but for someone who wants to understand how light refracts and reflects throughout a scene, this is the ideal device.

Probably the best deal on our list, the Dr. Meter LX1330B Digital Illuminance provides high-quality light reads for an incredibly low price. It’s an inexpensive light meter that has four ranges to choose from, allowing you more control over how you measure and what your read is. It also has a low-power mode, allowing you to stretch its use if you’re at a location where a power strip isn’t nearby.

The Gossen Digipro F2 is the best of both worlds: it’s compact and light weight like its simpler counterparts while also offering the high-end reads and wide range of a professional meter. The Digipro F2 offers both incident and reflected light measurement, so it’s great for both indoor and outdoor shoots.

Like the Kenko KFM-1100, the Digipro F2 offers everything a professional cinematographer or photographer would need while also being very user-friendly and accessible to beginners. It’s simple, powerful, and can fit in your pocket.

Probably the best entry-point meter on our list, the Sekonic L-308X-U Flashmate is compact, easy to use, and remarkably accurate. The Flashmate is versatile and can be used in almost any setting beyond near-total darkness. It doesn’t have some of the most advanced features of more professional meters, but it does have cine-mode, which works great for cinematographers.

The ultimate case for the Flashmate, however, is its price. You simply aren’t going to find a light meter of this high quality for this low cost.