How does a Minolta Color Analyzer II work?

[unwantedfocus]

Hello everyone,

I got my hands a couple of months a ago on a black and white enlarger it was cheap and only cost me 10 euros, however I kept scouting various online platforms to essentially get a color enlarger. I scored on a Minolta Color Enlarger II with all the accessories. After downloading the manual online to see what the "Minolta Color Analyzer II" does im still not quiet sure.

The only topic I could find is this one.

Could someone tell what a Minolta Color Analyzer is good for should I use it at all? How do I Operate it? Any suggestions are heavily appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[wiltw]

Proper color balance entails the right mix of Cyan, Yellow, and Magenta light. So once you have arrived at the might mix of the three colors to render a 'neutral' color print, you can use the meter to read that specific 'mix' of colors and remember that. But if someone prints with more than one type of paper, you can arrive at the right filter combination for that second paper, and you have have the meter remember the second combination, too.

So when you print a negative, and the lighting is not daylight balanced, you can alter enlarger settings until you have the right balance, which matches what the color enlarging meter has in it memory, and make a print with those settings.

 

[AgX]

Basically to start one uses a negative that is representative for ones work, typically it should include a neutral area. Then "by hand" one sets (basically trial and error with some insight in which direction the change of filtration has to go) a filtration that results in a pleasing print colourwise. This then is ones standard. Then one meters the light and calibrates the analyzer to this. As long one uses the same film, the same paper, same enlarger the analyzer will filter out the effect of the lighting at ones scenes. At changing those paramerters the analyzer must be recalibrated. Better analyzers got a memory to store its calibration settings.


I did not een know that this model of analyzer was even marketed in Germany.

 

[unwantedfocus]

Thank you for the answers! Would you guys recommend I actively use it?

I did not een know that this model of analyzer was even marketed in Germany.

I do not know if this was purchased in Germany, I just bought it yesterday. It includes all the accessories from what I've seen (see below In the .pdf). There Is one lens included but I don't know which one yet it was a very good deal from an older gentlemen which found it in an attic so I didn't bother to ask. I will do a separate post once the packages arrive.

https://www.pacificrimcamera.com/rl/00058/00058.pdf

 

[wiltw]

I did some research on the Minolta Color Analyzer II, and found that it was offered as an accessory to the Minolta Color Enlarger II

https://www.pacificrimcamera.com/rl/00058/00058.pdf

So a key question is whether it is 'matched' to the characteristics of that enlarger (as I believe the Color Analyzer (I) is matched to the Minolta Color Enlarger (I). If so, it may have limited applicability to other purposes,and would be of little use except to a Minolta color enlarger owner. It certainly explains why I had never previously enountered mention of this meter.

This description of the Color Analyzer (I) makes it clear as to how integrated to the enlarger its operation is:
http://www.jollinger.com/photo/enlargers/minolta.html

"The analyzer consists of three basic parts: a probe, an analyzer lens board unit, and a meter module. The meter module bolts onto the left side of thelamphouse with three knurled screws. The regular lens board is removed and the analyzing lens board is bolted on in its place, using four screws. The probe is hung on a bar on the left side of the meter module, well out of the way. Plug the analyzer's power line into the keyed outlet on the power supply and you're set to go.

Before we start to calibrate the system, let's put it into perspective in terms of other analyzers. Basically, most analyzers work through a probe which contains photomultipliers that do the job of detecting cyan, magenta and yellow right on the baseboard. We can use these units to read a flesh tone or gray card, or take an integrated reading by scrambling the image with a ground-plastic disc. This type of analyzer can be used with any enlarger and is an accessory rather than an integral part of the enlarger. The Minolta Analyzer is different. It has its cells located in the lens board facing the negative, and it makes an integrated reading only. The scrambling is built in, so all decisions and options of what to read or calibrate no longer exist. Versatility is traded for one totally worked-out operating method which becomes an integral part of the enlarger. From a certain point of view, it makes sense. Most photographers never include a neutral gray card in the scene. In addition, many scenes, such as landscapes, contain no flesh tones. In these circumstances the integrated or scrambled method is the only alternative. From this point of view, we can't fault Minolta's designers for having chosen this one option."
​

The same article continues to describe the Color Enlarger II, and the Color Analyzer II:

"I have used the Color Enlarger II for both B&W and color printing for prints up to 16x20 and have found it a delight to use. The light output is high enough to allow less than 15-second exposures at f/8 for 11x14 Cibachromes and all controls are both smooth and reliable. With the enlarger I used the accessory Minolta Stabilizer II because I consider a voltage stabilizer to be absolutely essential for consistent color printing. Unlike some other stabilizers I've used this model is wonderfully quiet; its hum is almost imperceptible.

One other gadget that I had the opportunity to play with was the Minolta Color Analyzer II, a compact, spot-type analyzer for determining filtration and exposure for color negatives or transparencies. It is a single "on-easel" unit with two programmable memory banks to store color analysis for later recall. Programming and analyzing is accomplished by matching the brightness level of two green LEDs. A red LED warning signal comes on when the brightness of the projected image is insufficient to make a proper reading. An optional diffuser is available for averaged readings but I feel that this defeats the point of using an analyzer in the first place.

If all the above sounds straightforward, try reading the instruction book, which will make you think otherwise. It may be a mental block on my part but with most analyzers I feel you need a degree in computer sciences before you are able to program and use the thing. The Minolta Color Analyzer II is no worse than any other in this respect and in use certainly gives reliable results. But for most amateur and even professional use, I question the usefulness of these gadgets. Each new batch of paper has to be analyzed as does each type of film. If you always print from the same film stock and can afford to buy large quantities of paper with the same batch number, then an analyzer may pay for itself. But for the rest of us, I think the money would be better spent on a few more boxes of paper."​

 

[AgX]

Good point, Wiltw. I did not consider this.
But nonetheless the OP next to looking at site for stuff being offered should dive into the principles of colour printing first, maybe wih an old textbook, and then look at what stuf he got can be useful or what he might need in addition.


Some photo stuff with a little bit of background knowledge is easy to understand, other may be enigmatic or even misleading. Even some simple items as a mechanical timer-switch may work other than expected. In one case I experienced it even worked different from what said in the manual.