A color accurate monitor is a vital accessory to crafting photographs. Since it is the primary means of viewing and editing your photographs, if your monitor is not accurate, you are not able to accurately assess the success of your photographs, or see problems that you need to work on.
A lot of photographers confuse a color accurate monitor with a “good” monitor. You might have a “good” monitor that costs more than an average monitor, but most “good” monitors are not color accurate.
My definition of a color accurate monitor is one that is marketed to graphics professionals and photographers as being able to meet professional standards of color accuracy. The easiest way to identify one is by the percentage of a given RGB colorspace that the manufacturer claims it will reproduce. NEC, LaCie, Eizo, and others have displays that meet these criteria.
These displays aren’t cheap…the least expensive will run you about $900, but they will give you accurate color if you use them with a calibration device.
Do you have a color accurate monitor? Take the poll and let us know!
Until recently, I haven’t been too concerned about monitor calibration because I still do all my b&w printing in my darkroom and have had West Coast Imaging drum scan my large format film and make Exhibition Prints with their Chromira printer. However, I have recently put up a temporary website until I build a “real” website so now monitor calibration is important to me. Also, I would like to upload some less critical images that I have scanned myself so I need to have a well calibrated monitor. To that end, I have ordered a monitor calibration tool which I haven’t received yet. I found your blog on the accuracy of monitors interesting while, at the same time, discouraging, because it appears that I now need to buy yet another piece of expensive hardware which I can’t afford.
Your poll asks customers if their monitor covers more than 69% AdobeRGB. I was interested in seeing just how my monitor rated but I can’t find any specs on it, even at the manufacturer’s website (Samsung). Do you have any suggestions for how someone can find what that specification is for their monitor. I had never even heard of such a specification until I read your blog and I would like to know that spec for my existing (new) monitor and any monitors I may buy in the future. Is there a website that publishes such information?
Thanks,
Tom Johnston
Tom,
What is the exact model of your monitor? If you couldn’t find a percent of RGB rating for it, it probably isn’t color accurate. Manufacturers use these numbers as a selling point for color accurate models, and the percentage of RGB is usually displayed prominently in the features (but sometimes you have do dig down into the spec sheet to find it).
The type of panel used in the LCD can also be a clue. Most color-accurate LCDs use IPS panels – see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TFT_LCD#IPS , which cost more than other LCD technologies.
You can see a partial list of color accurate monitors at http://www.westcoastimaging.com/wci/page/info/photoshoptip/LCD.html
Hi Rich. I’ve been sending in tests to WCI for prints on supergloss paper. The prints have been absolutely gorgeous, but each time they’ve come back with a slight yellow cast when they should have more blue. I’ve been routinely calibrating my monitor. Is the reason that I don’t have a color accurate monitor? It doesn’t seem that the colors are off except for the slight color cast. They just come back a bit warm. Any thoughts? Thanks so much. I’m absolutely set on working it out cause I’ve never seen such beautiful prints as the ones you’ve sent me. Thanks again!
Carl
Hi, Carl!
So you have a regular monitor that you calibrate, correct? In that case, the monitor always has to be the primary suspect. Non color-accurate monitors can have color biases, notably in a blue/yellow color axis. I have a great looking non color-accurate NEC that is really good, but has enough of a yellow bias that it makes it useless for printing, even though it is more accurate than 99% of most non color-accurate displays.
That being said, there is another contributing factor. SuperGloss has a warmer base than most photo papers. There are certain blues you just won’t be able to get because there is always a little yellow from the base mixed in. For critical results on any paper, I always recommend proofing, and for SuperGloss I recommend it even more strongly. Your calibration device cannot compensate for this subtle bias, but with experience you can learn to expect it. That’s what we do at West Coast Imaging.
So expect a warmer look to your Supergloss prints that no amount of color correction in Photoshop can remove…and proof when you want the most exacting results.
Thanks Rich. I appreciate the info!