Ilford EM10

[tallenpatterson]

Anyone ever use the Ilford EM10 exposure monitor? My darkroom background involved test strips, etc., but never this gadget. It was in a collection of items I received. Just curious. Thanks!

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I had one before it was stolen. I loved it. Very useful little gadget.

 

[MattKing]

I use one regularly to match light intensities. For example, if I make a 5x7 print I like, I measure the light intensity with the enlarger set for that enlargement, change the magnification to yield an 8x10, and then use the EM10 to help me adjust the lens aperture to match the light intensity from the 5x7 setup.
I also use it to ensure consistent light intensity for contact proof prints.
There is also an old thread here on APUG started by Ole on using the EM10 as an analyzer.

 

[Kevin Harding]

I have one of these and should start to use it.

Can I confirm my understanding of how this works: you "calibrate it" to a shadow area with detail (a bright area on the baseboard), take note of the setting number, and then, when adjusting negative or etc., open the aperture until the same amount of light is detected by the sensor? Could be quite useful if I were to actually pull this out of its box.

 

[MattKing]

I have one of these and should start to use it.

Can I confirm my understanding of how this works: you "calibrate it" to a shadow area with detail (a bright area on the baseboard), take note of the setting number, and then, when adjusting negative or etc., open the aperture until the same amount of light is detected by the sensor? Could be quite useful if I were to actually pull this out of its box.

It can be used that way.
The challenge is always with determining where to place the sensor.
I also use it with no negative in place or, alternatively, measuring the rebate area between negatives. That gets me close, and makes my test strip process much more useful.

 

[Wayne]

I use one regularly to match light intensities. For example, if I make a 5x7 print I like, I measure the light intensity with the enlarger set for that enlargement, change the magnification to yield an 8x10, and then use the EM10 to help me adjust the lens aperture to match the light intensity from the 5x7 setup.
I also use it to ensure consistent light intensity for contact proof prints.
There is also an old thread here on APUG started by Ole on using the EM10 as an analyzer.

This is how I use mine, when I remember to use it. Nice little gadget.

 

[Rick A]

I have one sitting on a shelf, haven't used it in a very long time.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Anyone ever use the Ilford EM10 exposure monitor? My darkroom background involved test strips, etc., but never this gadget. It was in a collection of items I received. Just curious. Thanks!

Yes, it's a very handy tool if properly calibrated.

 

[darkroommike]

You can use it very handily for light intensity matching and you could include a gray card in the scene or meter off something that's about middle gray. I prefer to start my tests there rather than at shadow densities. I used the gray card all the time when shooting copy negatives.

 

[pentaxuser]

I have one but have never used it. However does it not rely on having a lens with a continuous aperture adjustment i.e. not a stepped aperture lens with discrete stops as the correct aperture might be for instance somewhere in between say f5.6 and f8?

pentaxuser

 

[tedr1]

Yes the original purpose was to find the aperture setting for a given exposure time. I believe it was introduced to accompany some of Ilford's color paper products where reciprocity failure forces the use of a narrow range of exposure duration. The EM10 works with exposure duration as a fixed quantity and aperture as the variable. On the other hand the common printing experience with negative paper materials, especially black and white, is that reciprocity is not a determining factor and the aperture is pre-selected and exposure duration is the variable.

 

[Bob Carnie]

I never used one - but I constantly use the CARNIE LIMT tool - over the years this has come in handy.

 

[ac12]

As with all enlarging meters, you first need to make a GOOD print.
Then select a consistent part of the image to meter; example darkest shadow with detail. Where you meter does not matter, as long as you are consistent.
Then note the number on the dial, so that you can get back to that setting. Though I forget how sensitive the dial is, if you move the dial.
Then when you print another negative, you put the meter under the similar part of the image and adjust the aperture.
And yes it is a bit tricky with a lens that has a detent. As you get very close to the detent, the aperture ring will want to move to the detent. If it does, you can compensate a bit with the time + or - about 1/4 stop of time, or just ignore the slight difference.

As Matt said, it is good for making contact prints and when you change the image size. Especially the image size. Sometimes I will make several different prints from the same negative, but with different crops and magnifications (enlarger head height). With the meter once I get the first print, I don't have to do additional test strips for the different magnifications after that.

One caution, turn off ALL the safelights, as they will affect your reading. This makes it tricky to use in a club/community/school darkroom, where the safelight over the developing trays are constantly on.

 

[ac12]

You can also use it as a negative analyser, to measure tonal/density range.
But first you have to calibrate it.

Get a 1 stop ND gel, and cut into 6 pieces.
Choose a meter dial setting that is convenient and adjust the lens to that. This is your ZERO. You could use the same ZERO as you did for your exposure above.
Then put 1 piece of the ND gel over the sensor. With a pencil mark the dial.
Add another piece of gel, and mark the dial.
Continue on till you have 6 pieces of gel on the sensor.
You now have your EM10 calibrated to measure 6 stops of density range.

With a new negative, set the meter to the ZERO mark.
Put the sensor in the lightest part of the image, then zero the meter by adjusting the aperture.
Then move the EM10 to the darkest part of the image, turn the dial to get the reading at that point.
Then read the dial, and see how many stops it shows from the ZERO point.
The image range can be either pure clear/black or shadow/highlight detail, whichever you decide to use. Just be consistent.
Then you match your paper/filter grade to the results, and you have a starting point for what paper/filter grade to use.

Matching paper/filter grade to image density range is a different but related topic.
There you have to calibrate your paper to a standard step chart negative, to determine the density range of each paper.

The only problem you will have is an image that does not have the complete black to white tonal range; such as black to gray or white to gray.

 

[Patrick Robert James]

I have had one for maybe 20 years and have never found a use for it, but to use it for contact prints makes perfect sense!

 

[MattKing]

It is probably useful to note that my darkroom is a temporary one, and I sometimes work in other people's darkrooms. As a result, having a very portable piece of equipment that allows me to match light intensity to a previously determined level is of particular benefit to me.