Press Correspondent wrote:
DotCom Editor wrote:
I have this monitor and it is excellent. Be sure to get the Spectravision II color management solution (I recommend buying the SV software only and then an actual X-Rite i1 Display Pro that you can use on any monitor). Also get the hood. I teach color-managed workflow and always recommend this solution. Good luck.
Thank you for your reply. Please let me make sure I understood it correctly:
1. You recommend a 27" monitor instead of 24"
The small USD$122 incremental price of the 2560 x 1440 27-inch NEC PA271W over the 1920 x 1200 24-inch NEC PA241W is hugely worthwhile. The 24-inch feels positively claustrophobic in comparison. Be sure your video card supports 2560 x 1440 resolution. DisplayPort is the preferred connection method, but this is not a requirement. I profile my monitor weekly. (I come from a publishing background where designers sat in dim offices and profiled their CRT monitors twice
daily. Yikes!)
You paid thousands for your camera gear, don't be a cheapskate when it comes to a monitor. You look into the monitor much more than you look into your camera.
- NEC 24-inch P241W (without SpectraVision), 1920 x 1200 resolution. It covers 75.2% of aRGB and 96.7% of sRGB. It's a bargain; possibly near an end-of-life markdown. MSRP $749, $549 at B&H. (The hood is $99 at B&H.) In my opinion, this is an wholly unsatisfactory investment for any serious photographer.
- NEC 24-inch PA241W -- note the "A" in the model number -- (no SpectraVision), 1920 x 1200; 98.1% of aRGB, 100% of sRGB. If you want 24 inches, this is the one. $999 MSRP; $737 at B&H. (The hood is $99 at B&H.)
- NEC 27-inch PA271W (the one I have); 2560 x 1440; 97.1% of aRGB, 100% of sRGB. MSRP $1,199, a mere $859 at B&H. It's a fabulous investment. Look at the huge increase in pixels. Much, much more real estate. I strongly urge you to go this way. (The hood is $106 at B&H.)
Here's another way to look at this:
- 1920 x 1200 = 2,304,000 pixels
- 2560 x 1440 = 3,686,400 pixels -- 60 percent more pixels for just $122 more!!!
2. Instead of buying a monitor bunled with a calibrator, you recommend buying separately a monitor only, plus the monitor calibration software from the monitor maker, plus X-Rite i1 Display Pro, as long as all three are compatible.
The NEC branded SpectraVision II calibrator device is an X-Rite i1 Display Pro that has been physically crippled so it works
only with NEC monitors. Much better for you to buy the SpectraView II software online directly from NEC as a download for $99, and buy an actual X-Rite branded i1 Display Pro from B&H for $209. You can then use the X-Rite device on
any monitor from
any manufacturer. The software supports a variety of colorimeters and spectrophotometers. Go to this link to learn more; click on the Compatibility tab for a list of supported color sensors. The Datacolor Spyder 3 and Spyder 4 are also supported, but I am not a fan of Datacolor products. Always let your monitor warm up for at least 30 minutes to stabilize before you calibrate and profile, regardless of manufacturer.
http://www.necdisplay.com/support-and-services/spectra-view-II/Overview
3. You insist that a hood is a must and should be invested in even for non professional purposes.
I think the hood is a good investment; it is not a necessity. It cuts way down on the likelihood of glare and undesirable reflection from the ambient room lighting.
And you are always wearing a black or color-neutral dark gray shirt when you edit photos, right? You can always by the hood later. I ordered the hood the same time as my monitor, but it took two weeks extra since B&H did not have it in stock at the time.
Did I get all this right? Thanks for sharing your expertise!
Yes, you are on your way. I'm sooooooooo glad I stepped up to the 27-inch monitor. You just gotta trust me on this one.
I would indeed prefer a 27" monitor, but I have hoped to get an LED unit instead of CCFL and neiher NEC nor EIZO make any 27" LED monitors yet for color critical work. Dell does, but I am reluctant to invest in Dell. I see NEC PA271W is on sale for $859, which seems a great deal, or for $1,359 with a calibrator, but $500 for the calibrator with software seems excessive as it is $300 separately.
LED vs. CCFL is a specious argument, IMHO. Sure, CCFL costs a teeny-tiny bit more to operate, but it is a long-proven technology for color-critical work. LED, though the technology is not new, has no track record for color-critical work. I see this as an investment, not a science experiment.
Another factor: Monitors are ridiculously bright out of the box, typically 300 cd/m^2 (candelas per square meter) or more. That's horrible for photography and is the main reason people complain their images looked great onscreen but prints are way too dark. You need to turn down the luminosity of the monitor to match your printer. The recommend starting luminosity for photography is 120 cd/m^2. My NEC PA271W is turned down even more, to 100 cd/m^2. This is the best match for my printer. (Luminosity is a scientific measurement, brightness is the human perception. The same exact luminosity could be too bright for one person and too dim for another. That's measurement vs. perception.)
I teach color-managed workflow and printing. Though they are worth only two cents, these are my opinions. Feel free to ask additional questions. Good luck to you.
Perhaps it makes some difference for iPhone help really up close to your eyes, but already no difference whatsoever for iPad looked at from a normal reading distance without a magnifying glass.
