New monitor

[lisae]

<p>My new Dell u2311h arrived today. I have the Sypder3 Pro, but haven't set it up yet. I'll do that tonight. </p>

<p>I have two quick questions -- will the monitor software give me all the settings I need, or do I need to change something in the graphics card control panel on the monitor as well?</p>

<p>Also, will I get used to the extra "pop" of the new monitor? My son set up the monitor for me, using standard settings. Right now, everything seems too bright and a little too saturated and I'm not sure I even like looking at it. Is that normal, or will that change with monitor calibration? </p>

<p> </p>

[lisae]

<p>Never mind. I think I got it figured out. </p>

[howard_m]

<p>the extra 'pop' is because 99% of all new monitors come out of the box set to a brightness so high that it can be seen from orbit. </p>

[lisae]

<p>Thanks, Howard. I figured that was the problem, and my husband helped me set it to a more acceptable level. </p>

<p>If I may ask another question? I noticed that the pictures that were slightly on the warm side with the old monitor, now look even warmer and sometimes orange on the new monitor. This is mostly true of pictures shot under fluorescent lights. I see the same thing on our HDTV with the local newscast - every thing on the warm side looks very saturated and tends toward orange. The calibration helped settle things down a bit, but is that common with HD monitors?</p>

<p> </p>

[howard_m]

<p>I honestly don't know as I just acquired my first HDTV (it's been *years* since I owned/watched a TV). Fluorescent lights tend toward green/blue (cooler) colors and not warm unless overcompensated for during filming/taping/broadcast. Just like in the music & radio business, there is a volume war because people perceive louder as 'better', ditto video where bright/saturate == 'better'. So the broadcasters crank it up to be competitive and the viewers are the losers. </p>

<p>The first I did w/ my HDTV (Samsung plasma) was lower the brightness & contrast. I need to perhaps explore calibrating it using the unit I use to calibrate my computer monitor.</p>

[lisae]

<p>Thanks, you may be right about the over-saturation. I'm going to do some more research today and tweak the monitor controls a bit more and see what I get.</p>

[chas_frady]

<p>Best practice with the Dell U2311 for general digital photography use, is use the preset offered by the newest Spyder3 Pro software (ver.4). It includes 120cd/m2 luminance, 2.2 gamma, and 6500k white point.</p>

<p>Start by resetting your monitor to factory default settings. Your PC's video card should be reset to defaults also. Then lower the Brightness value to 30. Leave all other monitor settings as is.</p>

<p>Now run the Spyder3 software, but don't change any monitor settings. Just let the software do its work to measure your monitor's performance and create a profile.</p>

[lisae]

<p>Chas, thank you very much. That's exactly what I needed to know. I think my son changed the default video card settings when he set up the monitor and that may be the source of the problem.</p>

[chas_frady]

<p>Lisa, keep in mind that the luminance value of 120cd/m2 is only a starting point. I actually have a similar Dell monitor and I found 120cd/m2 to be a good luminance value for MY purposes, mostly printing to my own photo printer. But the optimal luminance value is largely influenced by the ambient light conditions in YOUR work environment. You may need to step up to a higher luminance level. But I don't 'recommend using the U2311h at lower than 110cd/m2... and even that is probably pushing it too far.</p>

[lisae]

<p>Thanks. I'll add that to my notes.</p>