matching light and media over a century ago.
Toronto. For over 30 years now, light values have been of little interest, especially to those brought up on digital technology.
Built-in metering and very fast sensitive media automatically compensate for light levels allowing the ‘photographer’ to concentrate on framing and holding the camera/smartphone steady while shooting. Poor framing? blurry shot? Results are immediate and ready to go again to reach perfection.
In the early days, right up to a few decades before film and analogue became a niche technology, cameras and lenses were slow and media far slower again. Many tables, mechanical gadgets, and primitive light meters evolved to assist the neophyte.
The more professional solution was experience and shooting outdoors, or with bright studios. Many decades later as technology progressed, professionals used electric studio lighting, while those in doors and on the go – professional and amateur alike – used flash powder, then bulbs, and finally electronic flash; first external then internal.
For a while smaller flash units found a use as fill-in flash to soften the H&D curve and thereby lessen the impact of shadows (or the use of lighting from back of the subject – a familiar newbie error).
The digital era brought automatic adjustment of camera/smartphone to match the far faster media speed with ambient lighting. Delegating external lighting to professional use, giving dimension or mystery to each image.
Our 2026 Events are well underway. Next Sunday (May 24th) is our famous Spring Fair (continuous for over a half century). Collectors will find tables full of interesting items to extend their collections or add to their user gear – perhaps even a strange old calculator gizmo or a weird looking light meter. Free parking; low admission fee; good food; and friendly people beckon for all to come and enjoy browsing our Spring Fair!
