Light meters
Weston Ranger 9 light meter User manual
User manual for Weston Ranger 9 light meter. 36 pages in English. Read the original PDF, download or print a copy without registration.
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Document details
- Brand
- Weston
- Model / document
- Weston Ranger 9 light meter
- Document type
- User manual
- Language
- English
- Pages
- 36
- File size
- 2.4 MB
- Category
- Light meters
- Document date
- Not specified in catalog
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Page 5 · Read text
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when you look through the viewfinder,you will see fhe subTecfas
shown here, The meter "sees" exactly what you see inside that
circular area, Now, firmly p/ess the ON-OFFPOINTERBUTTON.
This permitsthe pointerto swing to the correctlight reading.Release
the buttonand the pointerwillremairilockedatthat position,ffi
F
Rotatethe arrow until ii is aligned with the samenumber indicated
by the pointer-ln this case,slightly over 18,
Useany combinationof speedand f-stopvaluesrequiredby prevailing
circumstances.For example,if you must stop action at a sporting
event,you may decideto shootat | 11000second;thecorresponding
f-stopin this instance,is f-|l.Or, if fhe scenerequiresa maximum
depth of focus,you may use f-22 at 11250second' lt's that easy!
For the fine points, seepage22,
;*,*girView original page 5Page 7 · Read text
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technique :
You'll get more satisfying picturesif you adaptyour
exposure technique to prevailing circumsfances, The
three basictechniquesshownhere and on the following
pages use reflected light, Should you choose fo use
incidentlight refer to "Special Effects"section,
camera position technique
For mostoutdoorscenes,you will takeyour measurement
at the camera and measurethe light which arrives at
the lens. Avoid sky light which inflatesthe reading,
sometimescauses underexposure.Use the ARTproce'
d ure described previously,
;: il#&M;View original page 7Page 8 · Read text
crose-up technique
Use fhr,sfor portraitsor any scene in which there is a
singlesubjectand the backgroundis of secondaryimpor-
tance, ln general, the reading should be taken within
arm'slength of the subiect(in this photo for example,
you would take a reading of the girl's cheek)' Here
again, use the ARTprocedureunlessthe subiect is a
person's face.ln /his case,refer to the meter dial (see
position next# inside back cover)and you will note a C
to the arrow, ln this situation,you will rotate the C
to the correct setting, NOT the arrow, Otherwise,the
procedureis the sameas before.lncidentally,be careful
with the meter'sshadow:if it fallson the portionof the
face being measured,it will give you a false reading,
-".:-. r,,.g1*lt..,.-,*",,kdid$fffib*.View original page 8Page 9 · Read text
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brightness range technique
fhrs is the most useful methodfor sceneswhich have
a wide range of light values, as for example, in this
scene. Taketwo readings. One for the high value, the
other for the low value. Pick a value half way between
the two, and proceedwith your exposurein the normal
manner. For example,if the two readingsare 10 and 16,
rotate the arrow to 13.
rM" 11View original page 9Page 11 · Read text
www.butkus.us INTERCHANGEABLECALCULATORS-permiteasy re- placementwith AnselAdamsZoneDial. ADVANCEDSENSITIVITY-acombinationof cadmium sulphide cell-and proven Weston meter movement- gives precise results, even under extreme lighting conditions I Ranger 9 features MILLION-TO-ONEBRIGHTNESSR,4NGE-0.002 to 2000 candlesper squarefootrangegivesunexcelledversatility. EYE-LEVELVIEWFINDER-letsyou seeexactlywhat the mefer sees. TWO LIGHT SCALES-for high and low tight tevets. EXPOSUREDIAL-gives easilyreadablevalues for speed and f-stop, indicates limits of both black and white (U and O) and color (A and C) films, permitsnegative densitycontrol,aids in compensatingfor f ilters,Provides EV Exposure Settings for Polaroid and other cameras using fhis sysfem. 14View original page 11
Page 12 · Read text
POINTERLOCKON-OFFBUTTON-givesmetera photo-
graphic memory, lockspointer at correct light reading
without necessityof holding finger on butYon,
Ranger 9 features
EITHER REFLECTEDOR INCIDENT LIGHT MEAS-
UREMENTS-converteravailable for incident light
measurements.
ASAFILM SPEEDLOCK-preventsaccidentalchange
in ASAsetting.
BATTERYCHECK-|| pointer fails to reach red line,
replace batteries. For your convenience,Ranger g is
designedto take either of two major types of batteries,
COIN STOIS-/or conveniencein replacing batteries
and calculator,
AMERICANMADE FORQUALITYANDDEPENDABILITY
t cView original page 12Page 14 · Read text
working in extremely
Iovv light lerzefs
The O position is ideal for black and white pic-
tures taken in extremely low light. By taking
a close-up reading of the brightest object in
the scene, and setting the O position at the
correspondingvalue on the light scale of the
exposure control dial, correct exposure will
be given to all areas in the scene which have
brightness values correspondingto the range *l
coveredby the U and O positions.Occasionally,
a backlightedor contrasty scene exceedseven
the wide acceptancerange of black and white
film. ln this event,the exposurecan be keyedto {that portion of the scene-eif her the shadowsor
highlights, whichever are most important-by
placingthe U or O oppositethe darkestor bright- Iest reading respectively,View original page 14Page 15 · Read text
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densfty control-A and C
color film
The A and C positionson the exposure control
dia,lrepresenta brighfnessratio of 4 to 1 and can
be of great value in color work, Attempt to have
the colors of interest fall between the A and C
positionsfor most faithfui rendering, Although
most color films have a range or latitude which
exceeds th is ratio, if these colors f all w ith in th is
range,you can be assured that the remainder of
/he scene will be properly exposed, When using
black and white film, the A is used to indicate
absence of contrast, and C to indicate contrast,
7 ne A prov idesa conven ient way of h ali in g nor-
rnal exposurefor f lat scenessuch as landscapes
ln which there is poor contrast between high'
lights and shadows, The C provides double nor-
mal exposureas ind icated by the 2X, and is used
for scenes of very h ig h contrast such as back'
I ig hted su bjects,
1 7View original page 15Page 16 · Read text
incident
light readings
lncident lighl is the light which falls on the
su bject-as opposed to ref lected lig ht wh ich
arrivesat the camera's lens, The Rangerg takes
both types o/ readings, although reflected light is
preferable in the majority o/ cases, For certain
types of photography such as copy work, incident
light readings may be found convenient,
The Ranger g is con verted to incident light read-
ings by attaching the Westonlnverconeas shown,
With the lnvercone in place, stand at the subject
to be photographed and point the meter at the
camera. Otherwise the procedure is the same as
with ref lected I ig ht readi n g s,
Ansel Adams Zone System-Special cal-
culator for the Ansel Adams famous zone system Kqlwi I I be avai lable as an accessory, ?b \al -L X
1 9View original page 16Page 17 · Read text
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moyies
Any of the techniquesdescribed for determining
exposureson stillsubiecfscan alsobe used for
movies, First, determine the exposureindex of
the film to be used from the manufacturer's
data sheetand setth is n u m ber in the EXPOSURE
INDEX WINDOW, From your camera booklet
determineyour camera'sshutter speedwhich,
for the purposeof illustration,we will assumeto
be 1130 second. Having made your exposure
reading in the customarymanner,you will find
the correct f-stopoppositethe 1130secondvalue
(in this case,f 5,6),lf your camera shootsat 16FPS SHUTTERSPEEDSIN SECONDS
frames per second,no further adjustmentsare (1) (2) (3) required.For cameras which operate at other
8 LlLs Ll2O Ll25 frame speeds,consult table. L2 Ll2O 1/30 tl4o
16 1/30 L/4O tlso For example,find the shutter speedat 16 FPS I;24 L/4O 1/60 1/80 for your camera from your camera instruction ,{
32 tl6} 1/80 1/100 book-say,for example,ll30atl6 FPSas under-
48 1/100 L/L25 1/150 lined. The required shutter speedfor different
64 L/L25 1/150 1./2OO FPS speedswill be found in the samecolumn, {j
JView original page 17Page 19 · Read text
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the television screenforexposure TELEVISION-Adjust
tor contrasty black and whites, Placethe camera on a tripod, set the shutter at 1l2S secondand +special effects focus on the lines acrossfhe screen.Dim the
room lights, Takea close-up averagereadingSNOW,BEACH AND WATERSCENES-Take Ii holding the meter about six inchesfrom thereadingsof the brightest and darkesfobiecfs screen.Sel fhe meterarrowat this readingandand use the f lstop midway betweenor take a se/ecfthe camerasettingsin the usualmanner,readingfrom the palm of your hand and usethe
"C" position, Most appealing snow textures
IIoccurwhen the sceneis back-lightedor cross- *l
AERIALPICTURES-To prevent the sky fromlighted. inflating the reading, aim the meter down to- III
COPYWORK-When copying pagesof a book ward the ground, ln general, below 1,000feet
or photographsin blackand white or color, take use the meter reading indicated;from 1,000to
a reading from a white card placed over the 2,000feet stop down 113 f lstop; from 2,000to
subject,Divide the exposureindex by fi.veand 4,000feet closedown I 12 f lstop; above4,000sef lhis value in the Exposurelndex window. feet close the camera aperture one full stop itIII?:
Point the arrow at the light reading obtained from the reading, Use a Skylight Fitter with
and selectthe cameraseilings as usual, daylight color film (no exposure correction).View original page 19Page 20 · Read text
OVERCAST.SCENESfrequently lack contrast sively contrasty,Exposurefor black and white
due to diffused light and absenceof shadows. pictures can be improved by doubling the
ln such situations,black and white pictures exposureindicatedby placing the "C" position
can be improvedby using the "A" positionon opposite the brightness reading, Remember,
the meter rather than the arrow when scene "C" standsfor contrasf,so usethe "C" posi-
brightness is measuredfrom the camera. tion for contrastypictures,
ABSENCEOF CONTRAST-ForblackandwhiteKEY AND FILLLIGHTS-Fornormal resultsin scenes with little or no contrast, set the "A"studiophotography,the lighting contrastrange on the meter at the readingobtained.This willshould be limited to 8:l for color, and O4:l for halve the exposure,give a better print. Re-blackand white, This rneansthat the key light
member,"A" standsfor absenceof contrast,for color shouldproduceno more than I times
the light falling on the subject from the fill FLASHOUTDOORScan be used to iltuminatelights, and for black and white the key light
shadows,especiallyof backlightedsubjects.Forshould be /ess than 64 times the fill light,
best results,use the f lashas a fill-in, secondary
sourceonly! Use blue bulbs with daylightcolor
CONTRASTYSC ENES-Occasionally, scenes film, Checkthe flash lamp carton and find the
meteredfrom the cameraposition will be exces- guidenumber.Aim the meterat the sceneandView original page 20Page 21 · Read text
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i
Ii
I
determine the f lstop, Now divide the flash Measurethe distanceof the bellows extension I
guidenumberby the f lstop number to get the (lens-to-filmdistance),Assumethis distance
proper flash distancefrom the subject, This to be | 6", Now lookon the f lstopscaleand f ind .f
will provide a 2 to 1 ratio, with the sunlight the number l6 and directlybelowon the shut- " IiI
beingtwiceas strongas the flash. ter speedsca/ewill be found 1125second.The ,. 1i
new shutter speed(l /25) should be used with
EXTENDEDBELLOWS-Wherethe subject-to- the f lstop selectedpreviously (f 15.6),Align
lens distanceis less than 8 times the focal ihese two valueson the meter dial and any of
length of the lens,a correctiveshutter speed the exposure combinations aligned may be
must be computed,ln this computation,if the Ltsed,i,e.,1150sec,,f la;l ll00 sec,,f 12,8,etc, i
focal length of the /ens is given in millimeters, J{
convertit to inchesby dividingthe focallength MEASURINGROOMI LL:JMINATION-To de-
by 25 (l inch : 25mm), termine the footcandlesof light falling on any I
surfacesuch as awriting deskor work bench,
EXAMPLE: Assumeyour lenshasa focallength take a reading from a piece of white paper
of 8u,and you are shootingat a shutter speed lying on the surface you want to measure,
of 11100second at f 15,6,Using the f lstop Move red arrow to that light reading, The
numbersas focal length numbers (take f 18 to candlesper square foot measurementwill be
be a focallength of 8"),placethe 8 on the f lstop found oppositethat number, Forexample,if the
scaleabovethe 11100secondshutter speed, light readingis 11, movered arrow to | | on theView original page 21Page 22 · Read text
calculator dial, The candles per square foot lf your pictures indicate equipment errors
equivalentwill be found oppositethis number, change the listed exposureindexes, lowering
Multiplying the candles per square foot by 4 them if consistentlyunderexposed,and raising
gives approximate footcandles; when the them if overexposed.
lnverconeis used the multiplying factor is 25,
zero corrector
Check the positionof the meter pointer occa-
sionally to be sure it returns to zero when all
a working team light is excluded from the photo-conductive
cell. Using the high sca/e, cover cell com-It is possiblethat slight errorsin camerashut-
pletely and turn the zero corrector until the/er speeds, lenscalibrationsas well as exposure pointer is directly over zero on the light scale,meters may be additive and result in consis-
tently over- or under-exposure,
care of your meter
Your camera and exposure meter should be Normal temperaturesand humidity will not
tested togetheras a working team by making harm the meter but temperaturesin excessof
trial exposuresof the same sceneat different l30oF (which you may find in the glove com-
exposureindexesto determineif any compen- partment of a car) may affect the meter's
sationis necessary. accuracy,
25View original page 22Page 23 · Read text
www.butkus.us when you change your battery Whenreplacingthe battery,keep plus (+) terminal down, negative(-) terminal upper- most, . , as shownhere.UsebatterytypePX l4 or two PX | 3's, available from any camera dealer, Type PX | 3's require use of f iber adapter ring as shown to prevenf excessive play in chamber, LEATHERCASE-equippedwith snapsto permit easyremovalof f laps,View original page 23
Page 28 · Read text
when you look through the viewfinder,you will see fhe subTecfas
shown here, The meter "sees" exactly what you see inside that
circular area, Now, firmly p/ess the ON-OFFPOINTERBUTTON.
This permitsthe pointerto swing to the correctlight reading.Release
the buttonand the pointerwillremairilockedatthat position,ffi
F
Rotatethe arrow until ii is aligned with the samenumber indicated
by the pointer-ln this case,slightly over 18,
Useany combinationof speedand f-stopvaluesrequiredby prevailing
circumstances.For example,if you must stop action at a sporting
event,you may decideto shootat | 11000second;thecorresponding
f-stopin this instance,is f-|l.Or, if fhe scenerequiresa maximum
depth of focus,you may use f-22 at 11250second' lt's that easy!
For the fine points, seepage22,
;*,*girView original page 28Page 29 · Read text
www.butkus.us
technique :
You'll get more satisfying picturesif you adaptyour
exposure technique to prevailing circumsfances, The
three basictechniquesshownhere and on the following
pages use reflected light, Should you choose fo use
incidentlight refer to "Special Effects"section,
camera position technique
For mostoutdoorscenes,you will takeyour measurement
at the camera and measurethe light which arrives at
the lens. Avoid sky light which inflatesthe reading,
sometimescauses underexposure.Use the ARTproce'
d ure described previously,
;: il#&M;View original page 29Page 30 · Read text
crose-up technique
Use fhr,sfor portraitsor any scene in which there is a
singlesubjectand the backgroundis of secondaryimpor-
tance, ln general, the reading should be taken within
arm'slength of the subiect(in this photo for example,
you would take a reading of the girl's cheek)' Here
again, use the ARTprocedureunlessthe subiect is a
person's face.ln /his case,refer to the meter dial (see
position next# inside back cover)and you will note a C
to the arrow, ln this situation,you will rotate the C
to the correct setting, NOT the arrow, Otherwise,the
procedureis the sameas before.lncidentally,be careful
with the meter'sshadow:if it fallson the portionof the
face being measured,it will give you a false reading,
-".:-. r,,.g1*lt..,.-,*",,kdid$fffib*.View original page 30Page 32 · Read text
INTERCHANGEABLECALCULATORS-permiteasy re- placementwith AnselAdamsZoneDial. ADVANCEDSENSITIVITY-acombinationof cadmium sulphide cell-and proven Weston meter movement- gives precise results, even under extreme lighting conditions I Ranger 9 features MILLION-TO-ONEBRIGHTNESSR,4NGE-0.002 to 2000 candlesper squarefootrangegivesunexcelledversatility. EYE-LEVELVIEWFINDER-letsyou seeexactlywhat the mefer sees. TWO LIGHT SCALES-for high and low tight tevets. EXPOSUREDIAL-gives easilyreadablevalues for speed and f-stop, indicates limits of both black and white (U and O) and color (A and C) films, permitsnegative densitycontrol,aids in compensatingfor f ilters,Provides EV Exposure Settings for Polaroid and other cameras using fhis sysfem. 14View original page 32
Page 34 · Read text
working in extremely
Iovv light lerzefs
The O position is ideal for black and white pic-
tures taken in extremely low light. By taking
a close-up reading of the brightest object in
the scene, and setting the O position at the
correspondingvalue on the light scale of the
exposure control dial, correct exposure will
be given to all areas in the scene which have
brightness values correspondingto the range *l
coveredby the U and O positions.Occasionally,
a backlightedor contrasty scene exceedseven
the wide acceptancerange of black and white
film. ln this event,the exposurecan be keyedto {that portion of the scene-eif her the shadowsor
highlights, whichever are most important-by
placingthe U or O oppositethe darkestor bright- Iest reading respectively,View original page 34From the M. Butkus archive. Original publisher and archive notices are retained.
Check the model and edition against your equipment.
PDF verified 2026-10-10.