Hi, everyone.
I’m interested in buying a spectrophotometer and have been looking at the X-Rite ColorMunki Photo and the Datacolor SpyderPRINT.
Does anyone have strong opinions either way about the two units? Curious to know what people are using.
Both are good and will do what you need. I’m using the SpyderPrint since I already had it. I have no complaints. It’s not exactly intuitive how to use any of these devices for what are essentially indirect indirect measurements in the sense that we are reading the result of the negative printed in the darkroom, not the negative itself, and all of the documentation I have found is for reading digital prints. So I wrote a little article with illustrations for the SpyderPrint.
I’d be happy to do the same for other devices if I only had them! I’m not sure about this, but I think that with the ColorMunki you have the option of using ColorPort software as well as the ColorMunki software. Maybe Walker will confirm or refute my speculation. 
Another thing to consider is the eyeOne (i1) Pro. On ebay, a used i1 Pro tends to sell in the same price range as a new ColorMunki or SpyderPrint. There are several versions though, so you do need to know what you are looking for. I’ve been following them for a little while and plan to get one when I have a few extra $s, if for no other reason than so I can learn ColorPort.
Keith - many thanks for the info and for the link to your article - very interesting (along with the other writing on your site).
From what I’ve been able to find, the ColorMunki can’t be used with ColorPort.
Over on the Piezography Forum, Walker mentioned that “a used i1Pro1 can be very cost effective. Just don’t buy a RevA version get RevB or RevC or higher if going with i1Pro1”. Good to know…
Here’s one for example. I just noticed there’s a Pro II kit for a fairly decent price too.
Did you choose a printer yet? I was going to make some comments about the 1430 vs. 3880 if it’s of any interest. I have and use both.
I went with the 1430. I couldn’t find any 3880s around - and besides, there’s something about knowing that it’s new and hasn’t been sitting for a while that worked for me (plus, a new 1430 is a pretty good price). I’m just waiting on the CISS for the unit (they are back-ordered right now) and then I can get started.
Any pointers on the use of the machine would be much appreciated though. Did you get any pizza wheels - and if so, what did you do about them…
I should say, too, that the 1430 will be used only for PiezoDN - I don’t plan to print anything else with it.
Just to keep the threads separate, I’ll reply to your questions on the other one.
Keith - thanks for the info about spectrophotometers. As it turned out, I found a really good deal on an i1 Pro yesterday (posted to Kijiji up here in Canada). I’ve downloaded Colorport (despite what X-rite says, it works on new Mac operating systems) and will start working with with early next week.
In case anyone is interested in buying a used i1 Pro, I found this article really helpful:
I don’t have a photospectrometer yet, but I am considering buying a SpyderPrint. Your article made me confident that it’s a good choice for making icc profiles for PiezoDN negatives. Thanks for sharing it!
One problem: In the final paragraph, the article mentions the tools QTR-Linearize-Quad and QTR-Create-ICC. I found Windows executables with these names in the QTR “Eye-One” directory. The Piezography Manual calls the droplets. Are these tools generic, or do they only work with targets measured with Eye-One? The README only talks about Eye-One.
Yeah - droplets, applets, whatever - they are not something that you open like a regular app or program. You select the quad you are modifying and the measurement text file you are using to make the modification, and either drag them together to the droplet, or right-click and open. It may be slightly different in Windows, I don’t know, and I don’t have access to it to find out.
They work with measurement files from any spectro, not just the i1. I suppose they would work with old school density readings compiled into a text file too, or even data from a scanner target. The file doesn’t have to be in cgats format, though those that the PiezoDN tools create are. The numbers do have to be in continuously ascending or descending order though, which is why you generally can’t feed it raw data - it MUST be smoothed.