How Often?

TwoRails · Jan 11, 2009

Remembering a couple of old articles I read, before LCDs, your average computer user's monitor was too bright. On a blank screen, where it is as black as the tube could get, most would have it a zone or three too bright and it would be grey and not black. Many monitors (and TVs) use to come from the factory with brightness and contrast cranked up near max instead of around 50%. Though I still prefer a CRT, I would *guess* that the majority of forum members have LCDs...

Patrick · Jan 11, 2009

eyeye said:
Well that isn't exactly true Partick. I was told my skin tones were green by someone who had a calibrated monitor. When we received the prints they were very much not green. But then I calibrated and have had nothing but trouble. It seems comments with color, contrast, etc should be given and taken with a grain of salt.

Unless your printer color corrected. :bigangel:

I try, really try to take with with a grain of salt but you know after awhile it becomes like a fly buzzing around your head you can't seem to kill. :lol:

Overread · Jan 11, 2009

don't forget that with compression details are lost as well - some areas can look very under or overexposed where in reality there is detail still in them - just that it does not show at internet sizes.

JerryPH · Jan 11, 2009

Patrick said:
Well maybe I'm being just a little anal about it then.

Maybe just a little. Most are not off more than a stop,in my experience (I've calibrated something like 200 monitors now and none were terribly far off). Now calibration, I am sure you know, is not just about exposure, but the colours. I've seen some really wacky colours on a few of the monitors I calibrated in the past. The latest generation of LCD monitors are pretty good. If anything, they are a touch on the green side and a 1/2 stop too bright.

Patrick said:
Unless your monitor is calibrated you've got no business commenting on on colors or darkness. But there always those who don't understand just how important it is.

That would exclude about 90% of the CC's from ever being posted... lol

Josh66 · Jan 11, 2009

Phelan said:
As someone who's never calibrated a monitor before, what is the procedure for doing so?

DSLR noob said:
I'm still awaiting this answer.

It's really quite simple with the right gear.

There are a few out there.

Pantone makes a few - Huey, Huey Pro, Eye One (or i1)

Spyder 3 is another popular one.

I'm sure there are a few more, those were just the ones I could think of right off the top of my head.

You just get one of these devices, hang this thing on the front of your monitor, and it runs some tests, checks colors, all that kind of stuff, then fixes your monitor.

Patrick · Jan 11, 2009

That would exclude about 90% of the CC's from ever being posted... lol

Oh geeezzz I hope not!

JerryPH · Jan 11, 2009

Patrick said:
Oh geeezzz I hope not!

For me, about 3-4 times a week is normal... wait... are we talking sex or monitor calibration... dammit, I need to go find the title of this tread again! :lol:

BrandonS · Jan 12, 2009

I wish I had a monitor worth calibrating. I only have a laptop and it has the chrome bumper of my project car burned into it.

ksmattfish · Jan 12, 2009

These guys have lot's of great articles, including reviews on monitor profiling kits. You have to register to access the articles; it's worth it.

ShootSmarter.com - Home

Monitor profiling kit article

ShootSmarter.com

jlykins · Jan 12, 2009

Monthly

Johnboy2978 · Jan 12, 2009

Unless I'm getting ready to edit images that we for a paying client, I get to it about every 2-3 months. When editing paid images, I do it before I start regardless of when it was last calibrated.

eyeye · Jan 12, 2009

Patrick said:
Unless your printer color corrected. :bigangel:

I try, really try to take with with a grain of salt but you know after awhile it becomes like a fly buzzing around your head you can't seem to kill.

I dont think so. It looked fine on every monitor I looked at. I think calibration is over-rated

ANYONE know how to fix the color/brightness with the internet only? Yes, everyone thinks I am insane, but I swear! I am not slow, before calibration internet photos seemed mostly fine. Now things look good in PS or lightroom and look way off on the internet (anything from smugmug to any webpage to photobucket)

Johnboy2978 · Jan 12, 2009

are you saving the final image as rgb color space? PS and other programs have the ability to use other color space profiles, the internet does not therefore, an image could look just right in PS or LR but when you upload it to the net, it looks washed out and about 15% desaturated.

eyeye · Jan 13, 2009

its other people's photos too. Like http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/people-photography/152301-do-you-like-better.html
to me the girl is neon orange in all but the first photo.

TwoRails · Jan 13, 2009

eyeye said:
its other people's photos too. Like http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/people-photography/152301-do-you-like-better.html
to me the girl is neon orange in all but the first photo.

I wouldn't quite call it "neon" but it does have a "Copper Tone" look to the few that are showing. (do they still make that stuff?)

eyeye said:
... ANYONE know how to fix the color/brightness with the internet only? Yes, everyone thinks I am insane, but I swear! I am not slow, before calibration internet photos seemed mostly fine. Now things look good in PS or lightroom and look way off on the internet (anything from smugmug to any webpage to photobucket)

It sounds like your editor is using a different color profile from your computer, which from what little I've seen, is common. That is to say that many folks take the time to set up their editor for proper color but don't spend (or even think of) time setting up the computer in general.

You can check this by (this is for XP Pro) right clicking on empty space on your Desktop to bring up Display Properties.

Now click on Settings, then on the Advanced button.

In this dialog window, click on Color Management, and see the list of registered profiles, and which one is the default / current profile.

That should match your editor profile, assuming it is using the right profile.

Things do get screwy sometimes. For instance, I've never had a problem with losing my color profile but after my most recent computer update (basically a new build) whenever I fire up my editor, I lose my "desktop" profile, which means "other things," like the Web, now don't look right. I have to reset the Desktop profile after opening the editor... One of life's little annoyances.

HTH