Unsurprisingly, light meters measure light–how bright it is–or not. Basically, you point the device at a face or room or puppy, and it’ll tell you how bright it is. Back in the day, before super-duper pocket computer devices, they were stand-alone units. Photographers and videographers used them to determine their lens settings. My Dad had one in is camera bag and I loved fiddling with it–how bright is this closet?, how bright is the sun? They were cool looking gizmos with a lot of character–scroll down for a couple examples.

Old School Light Meters

Light Meter Wrap Up

You can still find the olden time ones (in good working order) at thrift stores, and they do sell new ones (affiliate link) for under $20. The free-or-next-to-it option is downloading an app for your super-duper pocket computer device. They work great.

But if I had an extra $35 sitting around, I’d score a stand-alone light meter–old or new–and send it off to play.

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