Toronto Photography Meetup Group

Was wondering if anyone had any reviews/suggestions for a colorimeter(I don't even know if i'm spelling that right) I'm thinking I may need to calibrate my monitor after printing some photo's this week.

We talked about them in a class last night but wanted reviews from people who actually use them. They can be expensive - can you rent one anywhere?

Thanks!

I'm currently using the Spyder2 - $80.

http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.ph ... id=SW0.433

The one limitation of the express is that you are limited to one monitor. The default settings work very well though. I've had good results with it. However, it's an older product and has been replaced with the Spyder3.


I have a friend with the Pantone Huey - $100. Seems to work as well (some say better).

http://www.henrys.com/webapp/wcs/stores ... mID=168761

If you have an Amerifriend (or can ship to US). It's just $50 USD on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/Pantone-MEU101-hu ... =8-1-spell

and the review are very good. Probably better than the Spyder.

I am interested too.

I know that displays need regular calibration because of shifts in ambient lighting conditions, and how displays age and the backlighting (LCD) may dim with age, but I wonder how significant is this shift with time? Reason I ask that is, could I be satisfied with simply borrowing one, calibrating it once, and then leaving it alone for a year or so?

How much shift have people observed?

I am also using the Spyder 2. Limited but seems to work fine.

I haven't notice any real shifting of colors, etc. but I calibrate every 3 weeks or so just because it's easy and it is sitting beside my desk anyways.

Also the Spyder 2 Pro uses the same hardware, just different software you can dl on from the site. Now if you only had a cdkey.. hmm...

Henry's has the Spyder3 Pro on sale for $179 now ie. $50 off.

I use a Pantone Huey Pro, that I picked up on sale for $80.
very compact, meets my needs nicely.

Is this an upcoming sale? It's still listed at $229 on their website.

Andy

Is this an upcoming sale? It's still listed at $229 on their website.

Andy

Damn, looks the sale on it is over.

I've had my GretagMacbeth/X-rite EyeOne Display 2 for years now and it's always delivered excellent results for me, whether CRT, LCD, or laptop.

You can borrow but you'll be repeating the process. I try to do mine every 2 months or when I think the color is off. Spyder here.


Randy

Are there any numbers on the drift?

I'm not selling my photos, and I hardly print anything. Of the stuff I print, the color match is 'good enough' meaning I don't get weird greenish skin tone or such. It's not perfect, for sure, and it could be better, but I can adjust my expectations...

If the drift is in the order of less than 10% every 3 months, and in random directions, then I sort of don't really mind.

However, if the drift is more than that, and in consistent direction as the monitor ages, then I suppose a colorimter would be really useful.

So, any experiences to share?

I keep my past monitor profiles, and I can use the DisplayProfile.exe utility to switch back and forth between them. The last time I profiled my two displays was on September 5, 2009. The time before that was March 9, 2009. There is an almost imperceptible difference between the two profiles. In fact, I'm not even sure I'm seeing anything... it could just be my brain playing tricks on me, expecting to see a change when I click from one profile to the other. I know the utility is working, because I can select the wrong profile and instantly see a big change on the monitor.

This is with a Dell 2405FPW purchased in September 2005, and a Dell 3007WFP purchased in January 2006. So even a few years on, they are maintaining their colours well. Both monitors pretty much stay on 24x7 too.