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DPChallenge Forums >> Hardware and Software >> Help with MONITOR calibration
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10/25/2013 10:45:29 AM · #1
I work on a MacMini and have an old 19" Apple Cinema monitor. I noticed a big difference of same image on other monitors. Mine seems awfully contrasty and saturated. I tweaked the calibration in vain.
I am afraid I need a new monitor.

I'd like to know who is happy with a monitor and what calibration is using.

Thanks.
10/25/2013 10:55:40 AM · #2
I use some combination of 5 monitors depending on where I am. All of them show differently, and I have not been able to adequately adjust them to match. Much like myself, I suspect even with a new monitor you will need a calibration tool. On that note, does anyone have any good advice on a calibration tool that is fairly inexpensive, and can calibrate multiple monitors?
10/25/2013 07:26:51 PM · #3
bump for more help
10/31/2013 12:42:21 AM · #4
I use a Colormunki brand device to calibrate my two monitors, there is a quick method but I would advise to use the advanced method because it adjusts brightness which varies a lot with monitor brands. I do not yet have a real good quality monitor, one is a Dell that has a good reputation for the price and my other monitor is a Samsung which is overly bright even after adjustment. Even though they are both calibrated sitting next to each other they do not look exactly the same. So bottom line I think my next buy will be a real photo monitor. At least they are coming way down in price

I like the Colormunki though, I print some and it will also analyze print results and create custom profiles.
10/31/2013 02:14:30 AM · #5
Similar issues with me too.
11/16/2013 04:19:53 AM · #6
I just bought a Spyder 4 Pro. I calibrated my Dell U2412m and my new Asus Full HD laptop. Calibrated looks dull...

11/16/2013 10:55:29 AM · #7
Originally posted by Tiberius:

Calibrated looks dull...


As I'm about to calibrate my monitors for the first time (I know, blasphemy), I've been looking into this. Apparently, it is far more important to calibrate for printing than for online viewing. It seems that the biggest gripe about printing is that they come back darker than what we see on our screens, presumably because most of us prefer our screens bright and have them set that way, misleading us to believe that the image file possesses the same visual information. Some people have suggested toggling the calibration on when working on images you plan to print, then toggling it off for anything you will post online.

As for deals, Spyder is offering a $79 limited time offer on one of their calibrators.
11/16/2013 11:50:01 AM · #8
Originally posted by tanguera:

Originally posted by Tiberius:

Calibrated looks dull...


...(I know, blasphemy),... Apparently, it is far more important to calibrate for printing than for online viewing...

As for deals, Spyder is offering a $79 limited time offer on one of their calibrators.


First time for me too

I paid for mine USD180 is the pro version that allows to calibrate multiple monitors. I decided to buy it after I "calibrated by eye" and PP some image and then submitted to one of the stocks sites. It was rejected for the following reason: Poor Lighting--Image has exposure issues and/or incorrect white balance. It looked awesome on my monitor(s) though. After calibration I re-PP-ed the image and re-submitted with a note explaining. Next morning was approved.

Now the monitor of my new laptop does not cover all the sRGB but only 78% (RGB61%) while my 24" Dell covers sRGB 97% (RGB78%). After calibration somehow I was expecting to have similar output on both monitors. Well, I was wrong. SO there is some confusion. Maybe someone can chime in and bring some light.

Nevertheless both my monitors are calibrated now!

Message edited by author 2013-11-16 12:02:56.
11/16/2013 11:52:39 AM · #9
These are the two versions of the image:

Rejected



Approved



Edit: Sorry mariuca to hijack your thread :)

Message edited by author 2013-11-16 11:54:00.
11/16/2013 12:10:24 PM · #10
Thanks all.
Tibi your story is interesting and on my monitor, I preferred the rejected image, ha , ha! Who knows the true image?! As lovely as it is, it remains in my memory at a special level of beauty

Johanna, most interesting exercise yours. I have to digest now all this. Last night I looked at my pics on a think pad and what a disaster! Everything was watered down, washed like jeans - there is no way to know on which screen people look so I decided way back that a picture exists ONLY when printed. Therefore I try to print all my stuff that I like.

Still having my husband look into the calibration. Thanks. And please keep me posted with your exploration. You are so good at this!
11/16/2013 12:22:37 PM · #11
ThinkPads are generally known for their average monitors. Of course depends on the model. The new x230 and x240 apparently have good IPS screens. The W530 is though standard in the industry and its FHD monitor covers RGB 97%. I could have ordered a ThinkPad T530 with the same screen but the rest of the specs were so so and it was out of my budget.

Retina MacBook are regarded as very good monitors.
11/17/2013 12:07:38 AM · #12
Some more experiments.

My new laptop monitor had a cast of yellow that really concerned me (read drive me nuts!!!) After some research it seemed to be a software provided by the manufacturer that was meant to improve the image. Got rid of it and seems so fat that the yellow cast is gone. I will re-calibrate and see what happens. if black is black and white is white I'll be a very happy owner of a calibrated new computer.

Conclusion: bloatware that comes with laptops can screw your computer
11/17/2013 06:52:18 AM · #13
Originally posted by Tiberius:

These are the two versions of the image:

Rejected



Approved



Edit: Sorry mariuca to hijack your thread :)


On my monitor the 'rejected' image looks much better; the approved one looks washed out.
11/17/2013 06:57:08 AM · #14
Originally posted by Tiberius:

ThinkPads are generally known for their average monitors. Of course depends on the model. The new x230 and x240 apparently have good IPS screens. The W530 is though standard in the industry and its FHD monitor covers RGB 97%. I could have ordered a ThinkPad T530 with the same screen but the rest of the specs were so so and it was out of my budget.

Retina MacBook are regarded as very good monitors.


The trouble here is that which monitor do we 'regard as very good monitor'? the one that shows bright and contrasty pictures? or the one that shows dull but realistic images! and how to recognize which one is which type before buying?
11/17/2013 09:53:34 AM · #15
Originally posted by artistChan:



The trouble here is that which monitor do we 'regard as very good monitor'? the one that shows bright and contrasty pictures? or the one that shows dull but realistic images! and how to recognize which one is which type before buying?


Better to think of monitor quality in terms of the objective performance specifications instead of subjective appearance. The good (and really expensive) monitors have color stability (not changing over time after warm-up), color fidelity (if it is supposed to display rgb 231, 231, 231, it gets very close), a big color gamut (able to display bigger range of colors than lesser monitors), and wide dynamic range (able to show details in both very dark and very light parts of an image -- for example, see the black/white wedge below entries when voting: you ideally should see differences in every square along the gradient), and maybe a wider set of viewing angles before display values are dramatically affected. Find out before buying by checking the specifications.

How you perceive things on your screen can also be affected by the color temperature of your ambient room light, the color your walls are painted, the color of background surrounding your image on the screen, and what else is lit in the area. Viewing images surrounded by a neutral background helps. Critical print publishing preparation can justify putting a very high end monitor into a controlled viewing box to reduce such variables. Not needed for web posting purposes.

Valid baseline can't be achieved by eye. Get an instrument like ColorMunki to calibrate your monitor as accurately as possible. Once you have a valid baseline, you can adjust image variables (and select proofing settings in Photoshop, for example) to see what your image might look like using a particular calibrated printer, or different color space). Use your image editing tool to adjust pictures to be brighter or duller, have more or less contrast, etc., knowing that you have a valid starting point. That gives you much more reliable control than changing the monitor settings arbitrarily or "to taste."
11/17/2013 10:16:13 AM · #16
That's why I bought the Spyder4Pro.
11/17/2013 10:40:06 PM · #17
I kept comparing a set of images on my new Asus, on my iPad retina, and now at my MacBook Pro (no-retina). It looks slightly different on each of them.

After further reading appears also that the warmer white point is preferred by many photographers.

Now (USD180 shorter) I fell better knowing it does not really matter unless you print.
11/17/2013 11:02:00 PM · #18
Having recently done a fair bit of research in to this (which resulted in the purchase of a Spyder calibration tool and new Eizo monitor), I've learned that both the monitor and calibration are equally important when it comes to getting prints looking like what's on your screen. The calibration part is pretty obvious, however having an IPS monitor is equally so. Why? For the simple reason that the image on an IPS monitor doesn't change much depending upon your viewing angle. With non-IPS monitors (which is still most of the monitors on the market) you only need tilt the screen up/down or view it slightly side-on and brightness/contrast etc look different. This is especially true with laptops, where you probably end up viewing the screen at a different angle every time you use it.

As for getting images to look as good on someone else's monitor as your own - forget it. Unless their monitor is calibrate just the same as yours, there'll likely always be difference in the way the image looks. That's just the way it is. :)
11/17/2013 11:07:09 PM · #19
My new Asus N550JV has a IPS monitor. My issues were with a yellow tint and with the color gamut (not that I understand much about it hehe)
11/20/2013 10:28:10 PM · #20
Short Update:

My Dell u2412m monitor was faulty and being still covered by warranty was sent back and replaced. Its the second monitor they replace!
I just finished calibrating the new one and yes, it looks awesome. I re-calibrated my Asus laptop and it matches the Dell.

My daughter asked me to help a bit for a project so I got to shot tethered with my 6D. Shooting tethered also allowed me in live view to use pick tool to adjust the white balance (we used a mix of tungsten and fluorescent - don't ask why). Overall I was very pleased as the colors on the monitor matched the real ones.

T

Message edited by author 2013-11-20 22:29:16.
11/21/2013 11:25:43 AM · #21
Originally posted by Tiberius:

Overall I was very pleased as the colors on the monitor matched the real ones.

T

It'd be a miracle if it happened with me ;)
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