Availability of colour meters

[Helen B]

Since Minolta stopped making the Color Meter IIIF, and the existing stocks rapidly disappeared, the price of second-hand ones has gone from about $500 to over $700, and it seems to be rising. It used to sell new for about $900 from B&H as I recall. For many photographers the CM IIIF appears to be the only one worth considering. Thank goodness I already have one. The II isn't a bad substitute for continuous light, and is much cheaper. I don't know anyone who uses the Gossen 3F, but it appears to come with a domed (cardioid response) diffuser which wouldn't be the preferred choice for most purposes, I guess.

Do any of you have experience of the Gossen vs the Minolta? I get asked about this, and as my experience is only with the Minolta meters they are all I can advise about.

Thanks,
Helen

 

[Early Riser]

Helen, I have the minolta II color meter, that meter does work with continuous and flash. You just need to switch to the flash head for that purpose. The all in one design of the IIIf is a superior method, however my II served me well for many years.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Dear Helen,

I have the opposite problem: experience with the Gossen but not the Minolta.

The diffuser is flat but (I think, I haven't checked) has the same fitting as the much more common domed diffuser for the light meters.

I'm very happy with the Gossen and find it hard to imagine that the Minolta is better.

Cheers,

Roger

 

[pgomena]

Don't forget the Broncolor meters. Usually the more expensive choice . . .

http://www.sinarbron.com/bron/meters/fcc.php

Peter Gomena

 

[Helen B]

Thanks for all the information. I've seen the flash heads for the Minolta CM II on eBay, but I've never used the flash head in practice.

The illustration of the 3F on the Gossen website seems to show a dome - it's good to hear that a disk is supplied. I've never seen one in the flesh. As for the Broncolor FCC - I'd never even heard of it. I can't find any specs on the web. Does it measure green-magenta balance as well as CCT?

Thanks again,
Helen

 

[pgomena]

Helen, I think the FCC is the latest incarnation of a long line of Broncolor color meters. As I remember, they are extremely accurate, and the one model I remember did measure green-magenta balance and color temperature. It was some time ago.

Too bad Minolta discontinued their meters. We had one in our studio a few years back, and it was a vital tool in balancing outdoor light temperature on location shoots, and also of great value balancing lighting in the studio, especially when shooting d-----l, which requires tight color balance between light sources.

Peter Gomena