Apple vs Eizo on a tight budget

[louisb1]

I (think) I need to get a better monitor for preparing my pictures prior to printing. I am currently using an Asus 2216W

which I do not think I can callibrate effectively. I am using a Huey Pro callibrator.

 

My pictures generally come out dark when printed on my R2400 not matter how often I callibrate, tweak, profile in

CS3 etc. I do eventually get acceptable prints but all round I am beginning to question whether or not the entire

problem begins at the point I am looking at the photographs on screen.

 

My budget is not limitless so a $3,000 top of the range screen is out of the question, in any case I am in the UK so

all finances are in GBP.

 

For GBP 599 I can get an Apple 23inch Cinema display, bearing in mind I will be using this with a PC, so I

understand that callibrating can be an issue. My research shows that these are regarded as excellent displays for

photographic purposes.

 

For GBP 900 I can get an Eizo Colouredge CG222W display which by all accounts is a good entry level type display

for digital photography. Again, the net has many reports of the quality of this display but it is GBP300 more than the

Apple display and I could use that savings for a better callibrator.

 

Or am I missing out on an even better choice at a better price?

 

I appreciate that questions like this come up pretty regularly but I would welcome any opinions about my choices.

 

Louis

[joseph_martines]

I think I would look at an iMac 20" or 24" if they fit into my budget.

 

I would certainly try my images out by taking them to the vendor on a thumb/USB drive and see what the results would be

before I made the purchase.

[custom film holders for fl]

I am not sure a monitor is going to solve your problem. Maybe, but there are multiple weak links in your chain that could also be contributing to your problem. The dark print with the 2400 is a common problem that many people have, even when using a top of the line monitor. The Hueys have been unreliable for some people. I just want to prepare you that the monitor may not be your only issue.

 

Don't forget to look at the Samsung 245T which has a high-end panel in it. Dell also makes a similar monitor which sells in the $600-700 range.

[custom film holders for fl]

Don't buy a 20" monitor. It has too much resolution for its size and thus the text and menus will be unbearably small for surfing the web, etc. I just invested in a 20" monitor with a nice S-IPS panel and hate it for many daily tasks. Awesome for editing photos though because of the panel. You can increase the font size via the desktop and within your browser, but that screws up the layout on many of the websites you will visit.

[mark_schafer1]

The best combination is a Eizo CG series monitor (i would even consider a used one, the have usage counters build in and

Eizo introduced a couple of new versions, so i would imagine some used ones to pop up).

And to profile, nothing beats the Eye1 Photo system, expensive, but you'll have it forever. Maybe you could split the cost

with a friend. Once you have the paper profiled, you're good for a couple of month (inks and paper from the same batch

obviously) and the monitor every 6-8+ weeks, plenty of time to share the calibration system. Or see if some one even rent

them out...

[mark_schafer1]

Oh, and as a test if the monitor you like has a decent gradation, open Photoshop create a black to white gradient and make

it as big as the monitor. Apple's LCD's have some severe banding problems in the dark greys that i personally find

unacceptable. The best i've seen is the Eizo CG 220 that displays Adobe RGB, flawless, but the older 10bit CG210 where

fine so they're now the most rented monitors i keep seeing on shoots, rental studios and a bunch of post production houses

in the States. And the new ones are only getting better with 12-14bit LUT. cheers, m

[frans_waterlander]

If your prints come out too dark, chances are that your monitor is too bright. Compare a all-white image on your monitor (all R, G and B values at 255) with a blank piece of printer paper illuminated by your digital darkroom lighting; if brightnesses don't match, change the monitor and/or lighting brightness. Don't use dimmers for your lighting as they would severely change the color temperature.

 

As for monitors, look at the NEC 90 series with the letter i in the product name, indicating an IPS panel.

[ted_springer]

I currently own an IMAC intel 20" and love it! I would get the 30" screen if I could afford it (and get rid of my tv). It's really nice

to be able to multi task in several windows. Also get the spyder 3 pro.

[patricklavoie]

Apple 23inch Cinema display, bearing in mind I will be using this with a PC, so I understand that callibrating can be an issue..."

 

I dotn understand what youre talking about?! if you use a spider3 or eye1, all will be fine..you dont need something special to plug it on a pc.

 

 

"...The dark print with the 2400 is a common problem that many people have, even when using a top of the line monitor.."

 

Common to people who dont have the latest driver from epson web site, or have a bad monitor calibration. i ahve a 2400 and it work perfectly on my Intel Mac.

 

 

"..Apple's LCD's have some severe banding problems in the dark greys.."

 

I have one for the past 3years, work on it 50hrs a week and never seen any *banding* in my grasycale ramp?! I replace it 2 month ago with a NEC because i want a bigger monitor..still work fine.

 

________________

 

I would consider a NEC 2690wuxi-sv over a Eizo personnaly, probably the same price or close to. Come with is calibration device, cover 93% of the adobe rgb..the best choice among professional.

[louisb1]

Guys, thanks for the answers. Hadn't thought of NEC, should have occured to me though.

 

Patrick, trust me, I've tried every trick in the trade to get over the dark print on my R2400 and I've come to the conclusion that the cheap monitor I have just does not callibrate finely enough.

 

I'm going to research the NEC monitors. Can anyone recommend a trustworthy company in the UK to buy these type of monitors from?

 

LouisB

[frans_waterlander]

Louis,

 

Think about it. If your monitor is too bright, you have the tendency to edit your images too dark and that will show when you print them, no matter what calibrator you use. Monitor brightness needs to match lighting brightness as I have explained above, so there are no hard and fast values, but for many lighting conditions a monitor brightness of between 90 and 120 cd/m^2 (also called nits) will be a good starting point.

[johnlakkas]

I am not an expert but there can be lot's of problems disabling you from making a good print, some of them you would never imagine (like working environment, and room light). I have bought the Luminous Landscape From Camera to Print video tutorial download for less than 40$ and for sure it is both affordable and highly educative on all these matters. (I am not advertising it, or having any kind of cooperation :-). For these money it can save you a lot more and of course learn lot's of stuff. Believe me you won't regret it.