Monitor Calibrating - DPChallenge Forums

12/31/2007 02:31:34 AM · #1

I am not trying to complain about my score...

There is something wrong apparently with the monitor(s) I work with.

Can someone who sees my img as very dark adjust it accordingly so I can see what was wrong? My image is full of nice an d crisp details that I though would make it appealing.

Thanks!

Tibi

Konica Minolta MF 85mm f/1.7

12/31/2007 02:37:00 AM · #2

It is very dark on my monitor. Are you able to look at it on someone elses computer to see if it looks different. I had the same trouble and I bought a monitor calibrator. It has made a difference. It could also be that if you are using a laptop that the back lighting is giving a false sense of brightness.

fotomann_forever

12/31/2007 02:42:24 AM · #3

To be honest, I think it's more a matter of the subject needing a bit of lighting, either fill or rim to set him off.

briantammy

Olympus PEN E-P3

12/31/2007 02:45:14 AM · #4

to me the image is quite dark, but i know that's relative. The man is completely black except a faint belt line. I also don't see any detail in the face of the beams as they are also too dark. The far wall at the end of the corridor is also completely black except for three small spots, two down low and a faint one over the left one.

12/31/2007 02:45:21 AM · #5

Originally posted by fotomann_forever:

To be honest, I think it's more a matter of the subject needing a bit of lighting, either fill or rim to set him off.

I don't complain about and you are right, thanks, but the comments pointed out that was to dark..

I am worried about the monitor

12/31/2007 02:49:56 AM · #6

I boosted the brightness (110) and again (45) that's the result

Any details pop up?

Many thanks!

Message edited by author 2007-12-31 02:50:43.

Pentax FA 28-80mm 3.5-5.6 AF - Silver

12/31/2007 03:19:00 AM · #7

For me this is much better. The original is dark and dingy, looks under exposed. The lightened one now looks brighter and clearer and looks like a well light station. It could possibly even go down a notch or two depending on the feeling you were wanting.

Puckzzz

Pentax K10D

12/31/2007 03:25:01 AM · #8

I was one of those too dark yellers ;-)

the second one is much better.

aliqui

Nikon D300s

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II

12/31/2007 03:32:18 AM · #9

One thing I sometimes do is overexpose the photo in Photoshop and then bring it back (darken it) to where I want. Your original may have looked just fine to you at first, but your second edit shows you just how bright you can go while still maintaining your intended feel.

I think it has less to do with monitor calibration and more to do with how you were looking at the photo. We're always more forgiving with our own photos. I think our minds fill in blanks (dark areas, etc) without realizing it.

fotomann_forever

12/31/2007 03:34:29 AM · #10

[thumb]627611[/thumb]

About here looks decent to me. It really is subjective.

12/31/2007 03:34:41 AM · #11

So Tiber, I am interested to know if the lighter shot still looks acceptable on your monitor or it looks way to bright.

12/31/2007 04:28:01 AM · #12

Originally posted by Monique64:

So Tiber, I am interested to know if the lighter shot still looks acceptable on your monitor or it looks way to bright.

way to bright!

Camabs

Canon EOS-20D

Canon EF 35mm f/2.0

12/31/2007 05:20:37 AM · #13

I agree that the lighter version is nicer to look at AND gives a stronger feeling of emptiness, which I think the picture was meant to express.

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED

12/31/2007 05:25:38 AM · #14

Originally posted by Tiberius:

Originally posted by Monique64:
So Tiber, I am interested to know if the lighter shot still looks acceptable on your monitor or it looks way to bright.

way to bright!

So you may need to calibrate the brightness of your monitor or you wil be constantly guessing what others are seeing.

mjwood0

Nikon D200

12/31/2007 06:37:22 AM · #15

I struggled with this too -- now I calibrate. Since I'm using only LCDs now, I still struggle due to the backlighting of the monitor with dark shots. They are still 100X better than my aging CRT.

Anyway, I think the first shot is good, but for me it was very difficult to pick out the person. In fact, unless I looked close, all I could see where the legs.

The second one is quite bright. Not necessarily too bright, but definitely does change the feel of the image and I'm not sure it's what you were going for.

Fotomanns version is good. I'd possibly make it just a slight bit brighter, but it clearly shows the size of the space (what's missing from the dark version in my opinion) and the subject without it looking like there were headlights lighting the whole thing.

Try looking at it from another computer if you can.

Good luck! Colors / brightness is a pain in the butt when you're trying to make your images portable...

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

12/31/2007 08:22:35 AM · #16

I played with the contrast on my monitor (lap top LCD, yeah I know) and none of the pics look like I wanted to. Time for a monitor!

Thank you guys!

Happy New Year!

doctornick

Apple iPhone 13 Pro

12/31/2007 08:34:56 AM · #17

Originally posted by Tiberius:

I played with the contrast on my monitor (lap top LCD, yeah I know) and none of the pics look like I wanted to. Time for a monitor!

Thank you guys!

Happy New Year!

You need a Calibrator like the Spyder Express.