What monitor to get?

[WhiteD3]

SWMBO has decided she needs a PC of her own so I'm generously donating my Asus PG191 monitor to the cause which means I can get a new one:D

I'm after a 24" LCD wide screen which would be good for photo editing. Preferably with a webcam and speaker built-in, but that's not a show stopper.

Apart from a big contrast ratio, what else should I be looking for in the specs?

Cheers.

[cols110]

I just got a new 27 inch Mac and the screen if fantastic, still getting used to the mac side of things though after many years with a PC.

[Taz]

If you print your images, then you may want to look out for good static contrast with good (dark) blacks. This will usually mean a lower maximum brightness, which is also a good thing if you edit for printing, as anything more than around 160cd/m2 wont match a print under indoor lighting.

If the budget can be stretched a bit... we will soon have editing sotfware that will support a full 10-bit pipeline (10-bit per color, or 30-bit per pixel). Windows 7 has this as part of its API, so I would expect mainstream editing software packages to support it real soon now. 10-bit buys you a much bigger color gamut, but you will need a graphics card that supports it (nvidia and ati do em) and a 10-bit native monitor - the cheapest is the HP dreamcast.

[Chucaro]

A good monitor it is important for photo editing but monitor calibration hardware/software is a more important if you like to have a pro results.

Once you have the monitor calibrated then make sure that you have the correct printer profiles for your printer and paper.

I rate the Eizo monitors among the best but the Apple is very good as well.

Have a look THIS (http://www.imagescience.com.au/kb/questions/120/Monitors+For+High+Quality+Imaging+Work) site for an excellent info.

Cheers

[drifter]

A good monitor it is important for photo editing but monitor calibration hardware/software is a more important if you like to have a pro results.

Once you have the monitor calibrated then make sure that you have the correct printer profiles for your printer and paper.

I rate the Eizo monitors among the best but the Apple is very good as well.

Have a look THIS (http://www.imagescience.com.au/kb/questions/120/Monitors+For+High+Quality+Imaging+Work) site for an excellent info.

Cheers

+1 - I use a Spyder calibrator on my monitors.

[dmdigital]

Me too - Spyder3. Makes a surprising difference.

[OrangeZXr10R]

yup, I let my Munki do my calibration, every 4 weeks

[Taz]

If your just after a mainstream display - look out for an in plane switching panel [IPS]. These panels provide a better off-axis response so you dont loose color and contrast if your head isnt directly infront of the display. Some manufactures wont say if the the panel is IPS or not, but if the field of view is quoated as 178degrees it usually is. BTW, the adopted standard for these "field of view" figures are for when the contrast ratio drops to 10%. So it's a pretty useless figure really.

[5teve]

dell do a very well priced 2209wa but its a bugger to find,... and only 22" but its very good value and e-IPS

do a search on dell outlet australia and it should come up with a list of refurb or returned items at a discount Australia Dell Outlet | Dell Australia (http://www1.ap.dell.com/au/en/dfo/df.aspx'refid=df&s=dfo) you have to keep looking tho...

Thanks

Steve

[300+]

The Dell Ultra sharp 24 is the one to get as it covers the full colour gamut and does not change brightness as you view from different angles. Shame it is $799...

If you want to borrow my Spyder let me know. The profile loads a couple of seconds after the computer boots up and I notice the change every time.

Cheers, Steve

[WhiteD3]

Thanks for the feedback folks. Unfortunately my budget doesn't run to an $800 monitor, let alone $2000 ones at this time. So I got an Acer H243HX. Picture is great although the sound is crap, but then its a monitor not a stereo:cool:

[300+]

I know what you mean! I settled on the top of the line Samsung 24 inch. It had great reviews and cost less than half of the dell.

My employer at the time had a major discount rate with Dell but there was so little margin on those monitors we couldn't get much off (or so the rep told me).

Cheers, Steve

[DeanoH]

A good monitor it is important for photo editing but monitor calibration hardware/software is a more important if you like to have a pro results.

Once you have the monitor calibrated then make sure that you have the correct printer profiles for your printer and paper.

I rate the Eizo monitors among the best but the Apple is very good as well.

Have a look THIS (http://www.imagescience.com.au/kb/questions/120/Monitors+For+High+Quality+Imaging+Work) site for an excellent info.

Cheers

Right on the money Arthur.
Monitor calibation can be an absolute nightmare, especially with LCD monitors which IMHO don't hold a candle to a good old fashioned quality CRT monitor.
My suggestion would be, if cost is an issue and size isn't you can pick up a quality second hand Trinitron monitor (usually Sony or Dell) for throw away prices. Professional quality Viewsonic and Mitsubishi CRT monitors which cost $1000+ two or three years ago can be got for a song. These monitors are usually 19" plus in 4:3 ratio and offer high and variable resolution, something LCD panels don't give you.
My 19" analogue Dell Trinitron CRT gives me better resolution than my 19" HP digital LCD panel and I reckon the colour is much more accurate.
This is one area IMHO where analogue is better than digital.
Not for everyone but you can get a high quality result for next to nothing.

As for calibrating paper to the printer I gave up some time ago and use Canon Paper with my Canon Printer and Epson Paper with my Epson Printer and find the results OK. Using HP paper in either has poorer results , but would probably be OK in a HP printer. I find that Kodak paper works better with the Canon than the Epson


Deano