Zeiss Ikon 'Ikophot' light meter

Back in the days before convenient in-camera lightmeters became the norm, photographers could do one of two things to help themselves chose a suitable exposure for their photographs.  They could take their best guess, often judged from rough guidelines in their camera manual, or they could use a handheld lightmeter.  These often used a selenium cell which produced a voltage proportional to light exposure.  In a meter such as the Ikophot this exposure was represented by a needle jumping along a scale which could be read off against the previously assigned value for film speed, giving the user corresponding aperture and shutter speed values.  These were then set on the camera and voila! Perfect exposures every time...


The Ikophot sits in an attractive brown leather case with a short brass chain which allows the photographer to secure the lightmeter to the wrist.  The case flips open and folds back giving a bulk which makes the meter feel secure in the hand.  There's a little push-on hood secured to the case which can be slipped out and attached to the meter for taking incident meter readings.

One of the good things about selenium light meters is that the cell generates enough power to work alone without the need for additional batteries.  When I first got it, I wondered how accurate my Ikophot would be after all these years.  But with no battery to drain, I've tested it alongside the meter on my Canon 600D and got identical results.  Now we have to wait and see how the first roll of film shot with this little vintage meter turns out.  Watch this space.