Advices for Ball Head, Graphic Tablet and Monitor Calibration

[patatedouce]

Hi everyone,
I'm an hobbyist photographer and I do some photo editing on photoshop and plan to do more.
I read different reviews on internet and now i'm asking to TPF people!
So i have 3 questions, at the moment with only one answer but maybe you can change my mind!
I'll begin with the one answered :
_ 1) Is the graphic tablet worth it?
I read a lot of positive reviews about graphic tablet, and I ended with the Wacom Intuos 4 Medium (I didn't buy it yet).
At first, I considered the Large version but the price is quite high for an Intuos, and i saw that many "photoshoppers" recommended the Medium one because of the size, no dragging/editing with a large tablet all day long that 'ache' the arm.

_ 2) What about the Monitor Calibration?
I have a 23" Samsung LCD monitor which is not an IPS panel (or something like that?) and because those IPS are very expensive.
And i'm not selling or printing my pictures but I published on internet (like 500px). I really don't know if i should purchase one, i read 50/50 answers against or for a monitor calibration depending of how 'serious' you are. At the moment I'm stuck with the Spyder 3 pro (which is on rebate on amazon).

_ 3) Which Ball Head should i get? (Mine is broken)
Finally for that, I know I should try the ball head and that everyone have their own preferences. But I would like to hear some advices at which ball head do you have and could recommend for me. I did not really search information on that, but i saw that you needed a ball head that can support the weight of the camera and lens.
I own a Canon 600D (T3i Rebel) with a 18-135mm, 50mm and 10-22mm and my tripod is a Velbon Ultra Luxi.
I'm more focused on landscapes and cityscapes if that can help?

I thank you for all your answer and time for it.
I'll go sleep a bit for now because it's very late.

 

[analog.universe]

You didn't mention a budget, but I use a Markins Q10 Ball Head and it's awesome. Great strength to weight ratio, stays where you put it, even during tightening and loosening, standard arca-swiss style qr plate. They also make smaller and bigger ones....

 

[ann]

Look at Rightstuff heads, they aren't cheap, but will last a life time, add an L bracket to the mix and things get easier (at least for me).

I have a Wacom Cintuq 12 and it is terrific.

If your happy with the prints and their relationship to your monitor , maybe not, I use a colormunki as it will allow me to make my own ICC profiles.

 

[analog.universe]

I actually use a ReallyRightStuff L bracket with my Markins head. They are top notch as well, but their heads are a lot more weight to carry, which was a concern for me since I often hike with mine. I feel like ReallyRightStuff does make more of an effort toward ergonomics though, Markins is pretty minimalist.

 

[patatedouce]

You didn't mention a budget, but I use a Markins Q10 Ball Head and it's awesome. Great strength to weight ratio, stays where you put it, even during tightening and loosening, standard arca-swiss style qr plate. They also make smaller and bigger ones....

My budget for the ball head should be around 200-300$, I didn't think about that!

Look at Rightstuff heads, they aren't cheap, but will last a life time, add an L bracket to the mix and things get easier (at least for me).

I have a Wacom Cintuq 12 and it is terrific.

If your happy with the prints and their relationship to your monitor , maybe not, I use a colormunki as it will allow me to make my own ICC profiles.

I saw the cintiq too, but I can't afford that, maybe for the next years!
Well, i'm not printing at all, so the monitor calibration is not needed?

I actually use a ReallyRightStuff L bracket with my Markins head. They are top notch as well, but their heads are a lot more weight to carry, which was a concern for me since I often hike with mine. I feel like ReallyRightStuff does make more of an effort toward ergonomics though, Markins is pretty minimalist.

I saw the price of the Mankins ball head, I will see if I will buy the monitor calibration, if not I may try this one!
I have never heard of ReallyRightStuff to be honest, and it's less expensive that the Mankins, I'll try those too when i'll go to the stores!

Thank you for your answers!

 

[KmH]

Look at the Wacom Intuos 4 Medium then in lieu of the more expensive Cintiq 12.

Save some more by buying a refurbished or used unit:

Wacom Intuos4 Medium Pen Tablet

For monitor calibration look at the recently discontinued (and price reduced) X-Rite i1Display 2 Color Calibrator for LCD, CRT, and Laptop Displays

 

[unpopular]

Do not try to calibrate your monitor with a ball head. That isn't what they are designed for. It doesn't work. Trust me.

I agree with others, Wacom is the best and they support legacy products. I use a Graphire 2 which I pulled out of my dad's trashcan, the pen was broken - my much younger brother jammed the stylus up inside it - so I called Wacom and they told me that teh Bamboo pens are compatible. $30 later, I have a functioning tablet. I even called later and spoke with a manager to compliment the support rep, very helpful and prompt.

 

[thierry]

My budy has the Wacom and loves it. Definetly go with that, Like KMH said you can get a good deal by purchasing a used or refubished one here:

Amazon.com: Wacom Intuos4 Medium Pen Tablet: Electronics


For a ball head, I use a Vanguard pistol grip. I love it, it is solid. However I am not too sure what ball heads are compatible with your Velbon.


For color calibration, I use Datacolor Spyder 3 Pro. It works great for me. I have also heard great things about X-Rite iDisplay.

Amazon.com: Datacolor DC S3P100 3 PRO

 

[patatedouce]

Do not try to calibrate your monitor with a ball head. That isn't what they are designed for. It doesn't work. Trust me.

Mmh, you mean calibrate the monitor with a monitor calibration device?? The ball head is for my tripod.

Look at the Wacom Intuos 4 Medium then in lieu of the more expensive Cintiq 12.
Save some more by buying a refurbished or used unit:
X-Rite i1Display 2 Color Calibrator for LCD, CRT, and Laptop Displays [/SIZE]

For a ball head, I use a Vanguard pistol grip. I love it, it is solid. However I am not too sure what ball heads are compatible with your Velbon.

For color calibration, I use Datacolor Spyder 3 Pro. It works great for me. I have also heard great things about X-Rite iDisplay.
Amazon.com: Datacolor DC S3P100 3 PRO

Ok, my choice was already over the Medium Intuos 4, i just wanted to know what would you say, and i'm pleased to hear that's a good choice! I'll order it for Christmas!

About the monitor calibration, as a serious 'amateur', do I really need it? Like i said, i'm not printing or selling anything.
Thanks again, i'll check the ball head later!

 

[Overread]

As a serious amateur yes you do - without it you've no idea what your looking at and whilst you can try a best guess with your own eyes, that almost always fails. That is because our vision is highly bias, your eyes/brain will adjust to different brightnesses, colours, colour casts and will even try to interpret what it sees based on past experience, not on what actually might be there. A hardware calibration device removes all this uncertainty and gives you a solid, workable consistent result. Furthermore screens will drift out of calibration over time, so its not just a one trick use.

Furthermore, whilst you say you're not, you might want to do some prints in the future; without calibration this is a nightmare to make sure that your shots are going to come out looking good on print.


Of course you've got to prioritise how you purchase things; myself I would tend to err toward photo capture before photo editing. Simply as you can always edit a shot again if you have it; but you can't always go back to take as shot that you missed because your gear wasn't up to the challenge.

 

[thierry]

As a serious amateur yes you do - without it you've no idea what your looking at and whilst you can try a best guess with your own eyes, that almost always fails. That is because our vision is highly bias, your eyes/brain will adjust to different brightnesses, colours, colour casts and will even try to interpret what it sees based on past experience, not on what actually might be there. A hardware calibration device removes all this uncertainty and gives you a solid, workable consistent result. Furthermore screens will drift out of calibration over time, so its not just a one trick use.

Furthermore, whilst you say you're not, you might want to do some prints in the future; without calibration this is a nightmare to make sure that your shots are going to come out looking good on print.


Of course you've got to prioritise how you purchase things; myself I would tend to err toward photo capture before photo editing. Simply as you can always edit a shot again if you have it; but you can't always go back to take as shot that you missed because your gear wasn't up to the challenge.

^ What the main man said :thumbup:

 

[patatedouce]

As a serious amateur yes you do - without it you've no idea what your looking at and whilst you can try a best guess with your own eyes, that almost always fails. That is because our vision is highly bias, your eyes/brain will adjust to different brightnesses, colours, colour casts and will even try to interpret what it sees based on past experience, not on what actually might be there. A hardware calibration device removes all this uncertainty and gives you a solid, workable consistent result. Furthermore screens will drift out of calibration over time, so its not just a one trick use.

Furthermore, whilst you say you're not, you might want to do some prints in the future; without calibration this is a nightmare to make sure that your shots are going to come out looking good on print.


Of course you've got to prioritise how you purchase things; myself I would tend to err toward photo capture before photo editing. Simply as you can always edit a shot again if you have it; but you can't always go back to take as shot that you missed because your gear wasn't up to the challenge.

Thank you for the explanation! I'll consider buying one then. Between the spyder3 or the Xrite.

 

[Garbz]

One thing that needs to be mentioned is that the benefit of calibration depends entirely on your screen. Some TN panels (which is the most common panel type) I have run a calibrator over has resulted in weird colour casts on the screen. Also even if you calibrate a TN panel it doesn't help you in that they can't display 8bit colours (they dither instead), and that your calibration is meaningless unless you view the screen DEAD ON. The problem with that and large displays is that when you're sitting infront of your monitor even if you view the middle of the screen dead on the sides of the screen will be about 5-10deg from right angle and will be slightly different.

I have no experience with any 23" Samsung monitors so I can't comment on your case but in some cases it may be worth saving the money on the calibrator and putting it into a decent screen first.

 

[patatedouce]

One thing that needs to be mentioned is that the benefit of calibration depends entirely on your screen. Some TN panels (which is the most common panel type) I have run a calibrator over has resulted in weird colour casts on the screen. Also even if you calibrate a TN panel it doesn't help you in that they can't display 8bit colours (they dither instead), and that your calibration is meaningless unless you view the screen DEAD ON. The problem with that and large displays is that when you're sitting infront of your monitor even if you view the middle of the screen dead on the sides of the screen will be about 5-10deg from right angle and will be slightly different.
I have no experience with any 23" Samsung monitors so I can't comment on your case but in some cases it may be worth saving the money on the calibrator and putting it into a decent screen first.

Woah, I didn't know that, thank for the info! I have a Samsung PX2370, a friend of mine is willing to lend me his Dell U2410 because he received his new NEC monitors not so long ago. I wonder if monitor calibration will work fine with the Dell or my Samsung?