Posted by Darren White on October 6, 2008 at 1:02 AM
I am in the process of switching computer systems. I am tired of windows and for what I do on a computer I do feel that the Macs would work better for me.
My question is.....
have any of you went from a CRT screen on a desktop to a new hd screen on the new Macbook pros?
my crt has been so reliable over the last 10 years and my prints always come back looking exactly how I see them on the screen....I am scared of switching to a new HD screen with the higher contrast ratios and brighter colors...
I am wondering if or how you adjusted to make sure your images stayed consistent
Thanks in advance for any advice or help you can give!
We're currently using a mix of LaCie CRTs and big Apple flat monitors on our desktops, plus a couple of older Macbook pros with the original "dull" screens rather than the HD screens. Can't help you on the HDs, but I will say that using the Macbook Pro for CC is a bit of a challenge even after calibrating. Can't say why, because I try to be conscious of viewing angle and all. Our lab has commented on the difference however when we are shooting on the road and sending them images prepped on the laptops. To further confound the dilema, when moving between the CRTs and the big screens on the desktops, the CRTs take second fiddle to the newer Apple monitors. My wife absolutely refuses to work on the CRTs now, and she's our color guru.
Posted by Steve Foss on October 6, 2008 at 8:43 AM
Darren, keep your CRT and hook it up to the Macbook Pro. My wife, a computer graphic designer, has a G4 laptop she does much of her work on, but when it comes to toning color for jobs being sent to the printer she uses an older calibrated CRT monitor that she keeps connected to the laptop. Just takes the right kind of connector/adaptor (it's a PC, not a Mac, CRT). Wherever you're buying the computer, they should be able to help you with the right kind of adaptor.
That way you can have the best of both worlds, a shiny new Mac (yeah!) and your familiar, spot-on-color CRT for color toning. You may have to recalibrate the monitor after connecting to the new Mac.
I find working on laptops for pp just impossible as you are never sure you have the right angle of view...haven't worked with the Apple "cinema" monitors, but have seen them side by side with CRTs and the difference is amazing (the apple monitor being the best).
Posted by Keith Bauer on October 6, 2008 at 11:36 AM
I'm not using a MacBook Pro, but see if this makes sense. I'm using a NEC 2690 with SpectraView II to calibrate it on my Mac Pro. Most calibration systems create information that modifies the Look Up Table (LUT) in the video card. Using SpectraView, the video card is set to a neutral response. The calibration settings are stored in something equivalent to a LUT in the monitor itself. Using this on a laptop might be work well, since one of the big problems with laptops and critical color work is that the video cards are not on par with video cards in desktop machines. I'm very happy with the NEC monitor. Do a Google search and I'm sure you'll find many articles about this monitor. After using this, there is no way I'd ever go back to the CRT I had before.
Posted by Phillip Noll on October 6, 2008 at 12:23 PM
If you end up purchasing an iMac please be advised that there are issues with the luminance setting of the lcd display. See this thread.
I think the Macbook displays are fine.
Posted by Greg Vaughn on October 6, 2008 at 1:10 PM
Hi Darren,
After 20+ years of using PCs, I bought a 15" MacBookPro last year, and now hardly ever use the desktop PC. When it's time for critical Photoshop work, I just plug in the larger, calibrated external monitor. With a CRT, you might have to use an adapter to hook it up to the MBP's DCI port, but as I recall laptop even came with the adapter.
One of my shooting pards has been a dedicated PC user since day one. He got curious about Mac and bought an iMac last year. Problems occurred and he had to send it in for repair. Not a big issue you would think, since he still has a couple of high end PCs.
You should have heard him fuss and whine! He was worse than a kid waiting for Christmas anticipating the return of his beloved iMac. He cursed and fussed every time he turned on a PC in the interim.
Kinda fun to watch, since up till a year ago he was the biggest anti-Mac PC user I've ever known. The Mac's back now, and he donated both PCs to the local school.
Posted by Kelly Rowe on October 6, 2008 at 2:01 PM
I have a MacBook Pro that calibrates well with Eye-One. Be aware though, that the luminance on the laptop display drifts constantly. We also have an iMac 20 that is able to get a luminance of 120, but it's near the bottom of the brightness slider.
Posted by Jim DeWitt on October 6, 2008 at 2:24 PM
Darren -
I am a long-time Mac user. I get very satisfactory results with my Mac Pro and an Apple 23" monitor calibrated with a Spyder2. I don't see the luminance drift that I get on my MacBook Pro 15 inch. I had to re-calibrate the 23 inch going from Tiger to Leopard, but otherwise it has been completely stable across a wide viewing angle.
Jim DeWitt
Posted by Craig Strand on October 6, 2008 at 3:20 PM
Hi Darren,
I uppgraded my mac last year to a Mac pro with a 30in HD Cinema display. I feel that I get an accurate display that matches my processed images and did do a little calibration with an "eye one match."
Since I'm in Battle Ground as well, your welcome to call and come over with some images on a cd that you can look at on my display, if that will help in making your decision. 360 907-0195 Let me know if I can be of assistance.
Discussion
10 repliesMy question is.....
have any of you went from a CRT screen on a desktop to a new hd screen on the new Macbook pros?
my crt has been so reliable over the last 10 years and my prints always come back looking exactly how I see them on the screen....I am scared of switching to a new HD screen with the higher contrast ratios and brighter colors...
I am wondering if or how you adjusted to make sure your images stayed consistent
Thanks in advance for any advice or help you can give!
We're currently using a mix of LaCie CRTs and big Apple flat monitors on our desktops, plus a couple of older Macbook pros with the original "dull" screens rather than the HD screens. Can't help you on the HDs, but I will say that using the Macbook Pro for CC is a bit of a challenge even after calibrating. Can't say why, because I try to be conscious of viewing angle and all. Our lab has commented on the difference however when we are shooting on the road and sending them images prepped on the laptops. To further confound the dilema, when moving between the CRTs and the big screens on the desktops, the CRTs take second fiddle to the newer Apple monitors. My wife absolutely refuses to work on the CRTs now, and she's our color guru.
That way you can have the best of both worlds, a shiny new Mac (yeah!) and your familiar, spot-on-color CRT for color toning. You may have to recalibrate the monitor after connecting to the new Mac.
I think the Macbook displays are fine.
After 20+ years of using PCs, I bought a 15" MacBookPro last year, and now hardly ever use the desktop PC. When it's time for critical Photoshop work, I just plug in the larger, calibrated external monitor. With a CRT, you might have to use an adapter to hook it up to the MBP's DCI port, but as I recall laptop even came with the adapter.
One of my shooting pards has been a dedicated PC user since day one. He got curious about Mac and bought an iMac last year. Problems occurred and he had to send it in for repair. Not a big issue you would think, since he still has a couple of high end PCs.
You should have heard him fuss and whine! He was worse than a kid waiting for Christmas anticipating the return of his beloved iMac. He cursed and fussed every time he turned on a PC in the interim.
Kinda fun to watch, since up till a year ago he was the biggest anti-Mac PC user I've ever known. The Mac's back now, and he donated both PCs to the local school.
I am a long-time Mac user. I get very satisfactory results with my Mac Pro and an Apple 23" monitor calibrated with a Spyder2. I don't see the luminance drift that I get on my MacBook Pro 15 inch. I had to re-calibrate the 23 inch going from Tiger to Leopard, but otherwise it has been completely stable across a wide viewing angle.
Jim DeWitt
I uppgraded my mac last year to a Mac pro with a 30in HD Cinema display. I feel that I get an accurate display that matches my processed images and did do a little calibration with an "eye one match."
Since I'm in Battle Ground as well, your welcome to call and come over with some images on a cd that you can look at on my display, if that will help in making your decision. 360 907-0195 Let me know if I can be of assistance.