Monitor differences - eeep! - DPChallenge Forums

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS

10/05/2003 03:39:46 AM · #1

Heya all

Just completed a submission photo (so have to be a little cryptic here), was quite happy with it. Some nice contrast, mostly black with some light from the side, a something with some brown in, which I had desaturated to a degree. Yes thank you, that will do.

Submitted.

I've just seen the photo on another monitor sitting right next to the first and rather than the nice blacks I see on my monitor I see it as a sepia sort of photo, and the more striking effect I was going for is lost. I think the "different" monitor is the original one here, rather than mine being the norm. Interestingly, the two monitors here are the same make/model.

Hang on, wait .... We have three monitors here. Just looked at it on a third. I basically have .... nice blacks, off blacks with a brown tinge, and definate browns.

How do people get round this sort of problem, or is it one of those impossibles? If I saw the photo on my monitor I'd give it a 10 (ok, I wouldn't, maybe a 9, but it's my photo ;) but on another monitor it would drop to a 7 at most (though being my photo obviously it still needs a 10 ;).

Previously I've had a nice sepia photo, but when I saw it on my monitor at work it looked like greyscale that hadn't quite worked.

I've done the Adobe gamma whatsit by the way.

I am not talking about this particular photo, or even the brown, just the "how to cope with the vast array of monitors".

I can balance mine to match each other easily enough ... but it may still not be what most people see.

Ideas?

Message edited by author 2003-10-05 04:04:11.

medic391

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

10/05/2003 08:02:35 AM · #2

perhaps the two other monitors are what most other people see. Have you tried to calabrate your monitor? Have you tried to re-edit your picture with one of the other monitors?

Konador

Canon EOS-500D Rebel T1i

10/05/2003 08:23:15 AM · #3

I think your monitor must be too dark. When you think you have a black, check the code of the colour. If it is real black it will be #000000, however if it's brown it might be something like #5F5803. Black will look black on any monitor, but not black will only look black on poorly calibrated ones.

emorgan49

Olympus E-5

Olympus 50mm f/1.8 MF Normal Zuiko

10/05/2003 09:02:15 AM · #4

There will be a wide array of voter monitors also. Dark photos will, therefore, suffer in the voting. Make sure yours is as good as it can get. The up side is that you'll have a good excuse when you end up in 10th place instead of first.

10/05/2003 10:47:43 AM · #5

Medic: I think my monitors may be the unusual ones. I say that only as when I was disappointed in a photo I put up when I saw it from my work PC a few weeks ago I checked it out on a couple of other work ones and got the same result :(

I can't show the example I have right noiw as it is in the challenge, otherwise I could ask what others see. Might do that after the challenge.

Konador: Ahhh, ok, good thinking batman! Did a screen capture and checked something that is absolutely black on my monitor. Came in as #1A1617, or R:26 G:22 B:23 I don't know though if those are far enough off black to matter (the mid 20's for the RGB doesn't seem that unreasonable to me, I'm not sure quite what the eye can detect as black). Hunting around the "blacks" though I am hitting RGB values occasioanlly with one of them at 50, and that does seem to be a worry.

I think calibration is indeed the problem somehow, but Adobe Gamma isn't helping at all.

What's the trick to not being "too black"? Is it the Adobe thing rather than brightness/contrast? I think this is indeed what is happening, looking back at other stuff I have done. Adobe really hasn't helped at all.

Emorgan: Yes, and I bet many voters have monitors far more off than mine, some even with "blacker" monitors which would make mine look too black even. As for your up side ... I'll add it to my growing list of excuses as to why I never win .... though I have a loooong way to go to even reach 10th place ;)

Thanks all :)

Message edited by author 2003-10-05 10:51:52.

ButterflySis

Canon EOS-50D

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II

10/05/2003 10:58:27 AM · #6

Whenever I've seen this come up before on other forums someone would post a grayscale strip. I'm not sure how accurate that is, but here's a link I found for you. Monitor Callibration

I've seen color strips used before, too, but I couldn't find one right off. Hope this helps.

Gordon

RIM BlackBerry Curve

Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM

10/05/2003 11:23:45 AM · #7

Originally posted by natator:

Konador: Ahhh, ok, good thinking batman! Did a screen capture and checked something that is absolutely black on my monitor. Came in as #1A1617, or R:26 G:22 B:23 I don't know though if those are far enough off black to matter (the mid 20's for the RGB doesn't seem that unreasonable to me, I'm not sure quite what the eye can detect as black). Hunting around the "blacks" though I am hitting RGB values occasioanlly with one of them at 50, and that does seem to be a worry.

What's the trick to not being "too black"? Is it the Adobe thing rather than brightness/contrast? I think this is indeed what is happening, looking back at other stuff I have done. Adobe really hasn't helped at all.

Thanks all :)

If look at that compared to an exposure scale, what looks like black on your monitor looks like a dark to medium grey on my monitor.

Some monitors, particularly older ones just plain can't be calibrated bright enough, but most can. Certainly Adobe Gamma is better than using nothing, but not by much, as it is based on how accurate your eyes are, depending on things like how bright the room lights are, what colour the walls are, how long since you were last in bright or dark light, how tired you are, how long your monitor has been switched on etc.

You'll notice for example probably almost a one stop difference in what you think black is if you calibrate after looking out a bright window - so it isn't a very reliable way to do things. //www.drycreekphoto.com/Learn/monitor_calibration.htm has good info on the ways monitors are more accurately calibrated.

The other thing you have to consider is that probably 90% of the voters also have monitors that are badly configured for image work, and will vote accordingly - so anything that uses the full tonal range or is particularly dark or light will not do well

Message edited by author 2003-10-05 11:24:53.

cykhansen

Canon PowerShot G1

10/05/2003 12:03:56 PM · #8

I came across this place with a link to a grayscale ... discovered that no matter how bright & how much contrast I use, I still can't distinguish the 4 rightmost bars.

RA Photo Club
There's a link -- "click here to adjust your monitor"

Is there a tutorial on Adobe Gamma at DPC ? That would be helpful.

10/08/2003 03:55:41 AM · #9

Well, sadly the black and white bars didn't help at all. If I do what they say and adjust the brightness and contrast to see all the bars ..... well, basically I can't, it is outside the range of adjustment.

Adobe gamma doesn't help there either :(

RHoldenSr

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0L USM

10/08/2003 05:22:51 AM · #10

Did you try "Image" Adjustments" "Selective Color" and choose "Black" from the drop down menu and then push the black slider at the bottom all the way to the right 100%.

This will darken just the blacks 100%

Calvus

magnetic9999

Canon EOS-20D

Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX Aspherical DF for Canon

10/08/2003 07:47:02 AM · #11

welcome to the biggest limitation of on-line picture sharing ..