Difference between Ultra-Spot and Ultra-Spot 2

[Tom Davis]

Could someone with experience please tell me the difference between the Gossen Ultra-Spot and Ultra-Spot 2. It appears to do with the sensitivity range of the meter, but I'm not at all sure what practical difference it makes.

thanks much in advance,

[Ted Harris]

Tom, you are correct. The II is more sensitive, 2 stops iIRC. For the most part I wouldn't think it makes any practical difference since the range of the original Ultra Spot is quite good. Mor eimportant question to me would be do you wnat a meter that large? This meter is a monster, yes it has lotsa features but it is larger than many 35mm cameras and no lightweight either.

[Tom Davis]

Thanks for the quick reply, Ted, that's exactly the information I was looking for.

I'm torn between getting just the regular Ultra-Spot to use as I'm learning the Zone System "in the field" or doing what most experienced folks appear to do and use the Pentax Digital Spot and do the math in their head. Of course I could just use my E-1 that I'll most likely also have along, but now that I'm seriously beginning the large format "thing," I'm trying to learn it from the ground up (so to speak).

By the way, Ted: I've now added an FA to my HF. It arrived today and even though the HF is a more elegant and lighter design, I suspect that I'm going to end up doing enough portrait work to justify keeping the FA and selling off the HF. I wanted to thank you for your posts from roughly a year ago which I went back to now that I've finally started in on large format.

[Ted Harris]

Tom, you are welcome. If you are going to do a lot of portrait work then tilting the HF on its side might indeed get tiresome.

As for the meters, if you canstand the weight then the Ultra Pro is an elegant solution for Zone work but as you are already thinking you can use a Pentax Digital Spot .... add a Zone System scale if you like for around $5 if Calumet still sells them. Finally there is one other solution, the Sekonic L 778. This meter has a scale thqta allows you to set three different zones and note where they fall when you meter. It was discontinued several years ago (in large part because it was getting too expensive, it sold for over 750 when discontinued). With a bit of searching you can find them used. KEH had one a month ago. I originally bought it as a backup meter to my pentax Digital Spot but have made it my primary meter. Still larger than the Pentax though.

[tomdavis111]

Again, Ted, thanks for the pointer to the Sekonic 778. I'll look it up, though the Ultra is very tempting since I think it'd be a great "learning tool" even it's huge.

[Jack Flesher]

I would STRONGLY suggest any new-comer to view cameras take a close look at a Pentax digital spot meter:

1) At first blush it appears archaic in design and features when compared to the newest offerings, but in real-life use it simply blows the others out of the water for convenience.

2) It is no longer made and will have to be purchased used -- and usually commands as much as a newer full-featured spot meter.

3) It also requires a slight shift in the way you think about using a meter, but this mental shift is in fact what makes it more convenient. (If it has the little "Zone VI" tape already mounted, that is a help -- but if not one can be made easily.)

My .02,

[Ralph Barker]

FWIW, I bought one of the Sekonic L-778s about 10 years ago (after my older Pentax spot meter jumped into a deep ravine). It's an excellent meter of the "pistol grip" style, although somewhat large.

To expand on Ted's desciption, the three little triangles can be positioned in relation to each other, and then moved around on the display as a group. Thus, combined with the memory function (up to three readings), it makes Zone work a snap.

I haven't used the digital version of the Pentax meter, however, so I can't make any personal comparitive assessment of them.

[Slade Zumhofe]

I would have to agree with Jack. I have owned the Ultra-Spot for 12 years and have no complaints. It has worked flawlessly. I purchased it for the same reason--easier zone system readings. But, my buddy has the Pentax with zone scale--old, ugly, and "not cool"--but I have grown to like it more. After about two years of messing the the zone settings on the Ult Spt I now just use the EV as they are simpler but I have to do the math in my head while my buddy just looks at his scale.

I won't get rid of the Ult Spt but if I had to do it all again I would get the Pentax with zone scale--simpler and faster.

You did mention doing portraits....with flash? I know the Ult Spt can be used as a flash meter as well so this may be of some consideration.

Hope this helps.

[Eric Pederson]

I am uncertain, but I believe the Ultra-Spot II has a brighter display as well (it is a bit dim with the Ultra-Spot I).

[Ted Harris]

I have and regularly use both the Sekonic 778 and the Pentax Digital Spot. I have also used at one time or another the Ultra Spot, a Bewi Spot and a Minolta Spot meter. Out of all of them I settled on the 778 because of its mulkti functions and its ability to do nearly instant dead on Zone readings and on the Pentax bacuase of its size and simplicity. I fell in love with the Ultra Pro before I had ever seen one based on past experiences with assorted Luna Pro's. I was apalled whe I saw its size and just never could take a liking to it. The 778 is, indeed larger than the Pentax Digital,but nothing like the Gossen.

I, too strongly recommend the Pentax Digital and it would be my first choice if I only had a single meter. I find that most of the time I use the 778 the same way I use the Pentax that is I sweep the meter back and forth across the scene and check again in the bright areas and the deep shadows. I do the math casually in my head without too much regard for accuracy relying instead on experience. Works fine in most circumstances and is exactly what the Pentax excels at. When moe critical metering is required you need to work more slowly with the Pentax, or any meter for that matter. Never forget though that any meter is a guide, a reference point.

[Jack Flesher]

Good points all and I agree with them --

FWIW I use a "modern" Sekonic 558 in the studio or as my back-up -- it does spot and ambient in normal or flash mode.

[Rick Moore]

I bought an used Ultra Spot about five years ago and still like it very much. Coming from the original metal Soligar spot meter, I never realized it was heavy until I picked up the Pentax Digital Spot. Still, it really is a nice meter and I am so used to it, it is just a natural part of my routine. If weight really bothered me, I wouldn't use an 8x10. Also, it is a very sturdy device, having survived a several drops onto hard surfaces without any discernable damage.

The main gripe I have about the Ultra Spot is its voracious appetite for batteries, the square nine volt variety. It eats them even if you leave the meter switched off. I have talked with several other Ultra Spot users, and they have the same complaint, so I do not think this is a flaw with my meter. It eats one every few months. I've taken to disconnecting the battery if I don't plan on shooting for a couple of weeks or longer.

I was told by someone who had owned an both an Ultra Spot and an Ultra Spot II that the II had significantly better battery life.

[Oren Grad]

2) It is no longer made and will have to be purchased used

I'm not sure that's true. Both Pentax Japan and Pentax USA still list it as current on their websites, and both B&H and Calumet still catalog it (at $450 and $500, respectively), though both are currently showing as out of stock. Robert White in the UK shows it in stock for 289 pounds, and describes the design as having been updated recently with an LCD in place of the LED. And if you're willing to pay the princely sum of $750, you can order it directly through the Pentax USA website.

[Arne Croell]

Gossen still lists the Ultraspot 2 on their web site - thats not 100% proof ist still made, but the site seems to be up to date, listing upcoming tradeshows:

http://www.gossen-photo.de/english/index.html

Note that the Ultraspot is called Spotmaster in Europe and on the site, too.

[Jack Flesher]

I'm not sure that's true. Both Pentax Japan and Pentax USA still list it as current on their websites, and both B&H and Calumet still catalog it (at $450 and $500, respectively), though both are currently showing as out of stock. Robert White in the UK shows it in stock for 289 pounds, and describes the design as having been updated recently with an LCD in place of the LED. And if you're willing to pay the princely sum of $750, you can order it directly through the Pentax USA website.

Interesting -- and good news for LF photographers! Maybe the "update" is a reintroduced model, back by popular demand? I know the LED version was discontinued a few years ago and at that time Pentax claimed they were no longer going to produce it.

[Slade Zumhofe]

The main gripe I have about the Ultra Spot is its voracious appetite for batteries, the square nine volt variety. It eats them even if you leave the meter switched off. I have talked with several other Ultra Spot users, and they have the same complaint, so I do not think this is a flaw with my meter. It eats one every few months. I've taken to disconnecting the battery if I don't plan on shooting for a couple of weeks or longer.


Rick, I think you may have an issue with your meter, or maybe you and your friends....or maybe I got lucky come to think of it. I have owned my Ultra Spot for many years--and have only had to change the battery 3 times. I would see if you could get it looked at.

[Tom Davis]

I want to thank everyone for their input. I ended up getting an Ultra-Spot 2, which I think will help me learn the Zone system in the field. But if its size does prove to be a distraction, I'll just take that learning experience and apply it with the Pentax (which does appear still to be made).

thanks again.

[evan clarke]

Hi,
I have Ultra Spot and Ultra Spot2 and can tell no difference in my use of them. I bought a Gossen Starlite this year which is the same size as the Sekonic and it does Zone System and will meter incident...EC