Bought a $150 light meter, then my phone app did the same job

I got a Sekonic for shooting portraits in a dim backyard last summer, thought it would be a game changer. Cost me $150 and honestly it did help me nail exposure on the first roll, no more wasted frames guessing. But then I compared it to a free app on my phone, same readings within a stop, and I felt like I blew cash for nothing extra. Is a real meter worth it for the build quality and battery life, or are we all just paying for nostalgia? What do you folks use when you shoot without a digital screen?

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richard_shah23d ago

My phone app saved my butt so many times, yet here I am still carrying that clunky Sekonic like it's my security blanket lol. The build quality is nice, but let's be real, I mostly use it to look professional while the app does the actual thinking. If I'm not shooting film, I'm just trusting the histogram and praying, which is basically my whole photography style.