Soligor / Pentax Spot Meter Question

bascom49 · Oct 20, 2014

I just bought a Pentax digital spot meter. I took several readings with it and compared those readings to my Soligor that I have been using.
Standing in shade and metering open sky, the sidewalk, street, whatever in bright sun the Soligor reads consistently 1 1/3 to two stops higher than the Pentax.

Inside in shade, no artificial lighting whatsoever, both meters read identical.

The exterior readings were EV 14 to 15 with the Pentax, 16-17 with the Soligor.

Interior with ambient light from large plateglass windows the meter readings were in the EV 8 or 9 range but identical.

Does anyone have any ideas? Maybe the Soligor is just trashed ?

Thanks,
Charles

chriscrawfordphoto · Oct 20, 2014

Which one gives accurate exposures on film? One of them needs recalibrated. Since they agree in dim light and disagee in bright light, one of them is not linear (meaning it is accurate at somevlight levels and not at others).

MattKing · Oct 20, 2014

chriscrawfordphoto said:
Which one gives accurate exposures on film? One of them needs recalibrated. Since they agree in dim light and disagee in bright light, one of them is not linear (meaning it is accurate at somevlight levels and not at others).

Or alternatively, both of them are non-linear, just in different ways.

A photographer who has two thermometers ....

Muihlinn · Oct 20, 2014

comparing meter readings is the quickest way to reach insanity.

without having to guess about the linearity choosed by the manufacturer, the K factor correction can explain that, also that the spot while not easily can be metering in another place you're seeing, or whatever, the number of possible causes is wide.

shutterfinger · Oct 20, 2014

Set up an 18% gray card in various lighting and read the card with each meter from the same angle/height. Indoor incandescent, outdoor deep shade, open shade, direct sunlight. A slight shift in meter angle can cause a 1EV or more difference in reading.
The meters should be within 1 stop of each other. Introduce a 3rd meter be it handheld or SLR with a normal lens, the two that are closest to agreement should be considered correct with the higher difference one the one that needs calibrating.

chriscrawfordphoto · Oct 20, 2014

MattKing said:
Or alternatively, both of them are non-linear, just in different ways.

A photographer who has two thermometers ....

I have 5 handheld meters and al three match EXACTLY, not even a tenth of a stop difference.

John Koehrer · Oct 20, 2014

The K factor wouldn't cause that kind of difference.
My SWAG is the CDS cells in the Soligor are old & tired. It may be possible to have adjusted.
I think(?) the cells in the Pentax are SBC's a big improvement.

But......which gives better negatives?

Arvee · Oct 20, 2014

The numbers you're seeing with the Pentax correspond to numbers I see on my Pentax V spotmeter for similar targets. My Pentax is calibrated to values about 2/3 to 1 stop more exposure than my Gossen meters. The Gossens are calibrated to approximately 5600K and are very close to 18%. Pentax meters are closer to 12-14% and 3400K or about 2/3 stop more exposure. I'd bet money on the Pentax; I believe the Soligor is reading a tad high.

Pentax spotmeters are setup so that the display (swing needle/digital display) read as though they are set for ISO 100. So, an exterior reading on the display will be in the neighborhood of 14-15 EV (gray card will read 15 in bright sunlight) which is the correct reading for ISO 100. Actual exposure is then calculated by changing the ISO dial to actual film speed and the calculator will reflect the correct exposure for a film speed other than 100.

TheMissingLink · Oct 21, 2014

I own 3 meters: One of them is a Soligor which I use since the mid 80s without any trouble.

The Soligor has been known to be sensible for scattered light. This meter works reliably for me since I use a small plastic tube to shade the lens.

With this tube I don't notice any difference to my other meters except sometimes a 1/3 stop, depending on the "circumstances".

The other meters are Sekonic L-758 (too complicated for me) and Gossen Spotmaster II (to slow for ZS and a bad viewfinder for me).

Take the cardboard out of a roll of toilet paper, shorten it to around 4 cm, fold it somehow to a smaller diameter, attach it to the lens and meter again.

RalphLambrecht · Oct 21, 2014

bascom49 said:
I just bought a Pentax digital spot meter. I took several readings with it and compared those readings to my Soligor that I have been using.
Standing in shade and metering open sky, the sidewalk, street, whatever in bright sun the Soligor reads consistently 1 1/3 to two stops higher than the Pentax.

Inside in shade, no artificial lighting whatsoever, both meters read identical.

The exterior readings were EV 14 to 15 with the Pentax, 16-17 with the Soligor.

Interior with ambient light from large plateglass windows the meter readings were in the EV 8 or 9 range but identical.

Does anyone have any ideas? Maybe the Soligor is just trashed ?

Thanks,
Charles

I don't think, the Pentax reads EVs.

RalphLambrecht · Oct 21, 2014

chriscrawfordphoto said:
I have 5 handheld meters and al three match EXACTLY, not even a tenth of a stop difference.

same here;well,within 1/3 stop butthat's including different manufacturers.my Gossens measure identical values. Today's equipment is excellent.compared to decades agoNevertheless, all measurements have to be taken with a grain of salt.only sunny'16' is consistent.

DREW WILEY · Oct 21, 2014

Flare can sometimes be an issue. The Pentax has a multicoated lens, but any meter needs shading in direct sun, just like a camera lens. I
have used the Pentax meters for many years, and currently have several of them which read identically over their full range. If any of them
differs from the others in the least, I send it in for recalibration, which in my case only happens about once a decade. The only way to know
for sure is to have it checked. I also once used Minolta Spotmeter F's, and they too identically matched my Pentax meters.

Jerry Parker · Oct 21, 2014

Did I miss something?

chriscrawfordphoto said:
I have 5 handheld meters and al three match EXACTLY, not even a tenth of a stop difference.

So you have 3 meters that match. What do the other 2 read?

chriscrawfordphoto · Oct 21, 2014

Jerry Parker said:
So you have 3 meters that match. What do the other 2 read?

All 5 match...I was half asleep when I typed my previous post.

Mark_S · Oct 24, 2014

I don't have 5 meters, but I have two, which agree very closely.
I have the Pentax digital spot meter, and a Minolta Autometer IV with the 5degree spot attachment. Agreement between meters is not too much to ask.

DREW WILEY · Oct 24, 2014

All mine match EXACTLY, not just at midpoint, but over their entire range. If they didn't, I'd have the suspect one recalibrated.

Alan Gales · Oct 24, 2014

DREW WILEY said:
All mine match EXACTLY, not just at midpoint, but over their entire range. If they didn't, I'd have the suspect one recalibrated.

I own 3 Pentax spot meters, two digital and one analog. All mine match.

I was wondering if I was being a bit anal owning three of them. I'm glad to see I'm not alone!

Alan Gales · Oct 24, 2014

chriscrawfordphoto said:
All 5 match...I was half asleep when I typed my previous post.

Wow! You are worse than I am. I've only got 3.

I also own 3 Calumet shutter speed testers.

David Allen · Oct 25, 2014

DREW WILEY said:
Flare can sometimes be an issue. The Pentax has a multicoated lens, but any meter needs shading in direct sun, just like a camera lens. I
have used the Pentax meters for many years, and currently have several of them which read identically over their full range. If any of them
differs from the others in the least, I send it in for recalibration, which in my case only happens about once a decade. The only way to know
for sure is to have it checked. I also once used Minolta Spotmeter F's, and they too identically matched my Pentax meters.

I concur with the flare idea. All spot meters suffer to some degree due to the fact that a lens is being used as part of the metering process. This is generally more pronounced in bright sunlight. When students come to me with a spot meter, the very first thing that I do is improvise some sort of lens shade. This can be something as simple as fitting the inner core of a toilet role over the meter's lens. Then we conduct tests to establish EI, development time, etc. Having eliminated the flare factor, the only thing that the student needs to learn is where to point the meter (not so simple as it might sound - when I say meter the darkest shadow in which you wish to retain detail and place it on Zone III, often they meter a tiny extremely dark shadow area that you would never want to retain detail in. It is for that reason that I prefer getting in close, but not too close, to the important shadows and meter with a Weston meter).

Bests,

David.
www.dsallen.de

E. von Hoegh · Oct 25, 2014

MattKing said:
Or alternatively, both of them are non-linear, just in different ways.

A photographer who has two thermometers ....

That's why I have three LunaPros.

ChuckP · Oct 26, 2014

My old metal body Soligor had flare problems. I really noticed them when comparing it to a new Pentax V I bought. I hope that the later Soligor meters had better flare control. Try the toilet paper roll on the Soligor to see if it improves. The flare will lead you to under expose shadows metered beside bright areas.

Jerry Parker · Dec 3, 2014

bascom49 said:
I just bought a Pentax digital spot meter. I took several readings with it and compared those readings to my Soligor that I have been using.
Standing in shade and metering open sky, the sidewalk, street, whatever in bright sun the Soligor reads consistently 1 1/3 to two stops higher than the Pentax.

Inside in shade, no artificial lighting whatsoever, both meters read identical.

The exterior readings were EV 14 to 15 with the Pentax, 16-17 with the Soligor.

Interior with ambient light from large plateglass windows the meter readings were in the EV 8 or 9 range but identical.

Does anyone have any ideas? Maybe the Soligor is just trashed ?

Thanks,
Charles

Just send them both to Richard Ritter. www.lg4mat.net

outwest · Dec 5, 2014

At one time I somehow ended up with 5 Pentax meters and 2 Soligors. The Pentax ones (of different vintages and analog and digital) all agreed and the two Soligors neither agreed with the Pentaxes or each other and we're talking the indicated aperture/shutter speed.

Soligor / Pentax Spot Meter Question

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