raw photo adjustments and calibrated monitor

[bjc]

i read in tim grey book about workflow for photoshop cs 2 that "you can make depeendable color adjustments- includding white balance-- only if you are working with a calibrated and profiled monitor display" can someone explain that to me??? and how to do that if i have to do that???? find this technical stuff a bit confusing.... thanks, bobbie

[jtaubman]

All Monitors display colours, but a colour can be different on different screens, just stand in TV shop and compare the same program on different TV's for an example.

Monitor calibration is simply a method of making sure the colours are correct on your monitor. There are several tools to do this from Adobe Gamma a software program which comes with PS, I think. Through to top of the range hardware and software combos which can calibrate your monitor and printer so what you see on the screen is what comes out on the printer.

The basic hardware ones are around £70 here in the UK, rising to several hundred for full packages. I don't have one myself currently and have used Adobe Gamma to get the monitor as close as I can with out it. I will probably get a spyder or huey, but as I use a twin monitor setup I need the "pro" version not the home one.

[ima]

I haven't calibrated my monitor yet, but plan to get one of these (http://www.colorvision.com/product-mc.php), not sure which one though :confused: