Monitors for Photographers

It may finally be time to replace my old CRT monitor of about 8 years. Does anybody have a suggestion for a mid-range LCD monitor? Suggestions on screen size, resolution, brand, etc. would be appreciated. This may be my one Christmas gift this year. Thanks, and Merry Christmas to all NPN photographers

Tom:

I recently purchased an NEC. They're a bit pricey, but lower than the LaCie (which is an NEC with a LaCie label on it). B&H usually has some pretty decent prices on them, and they come with a calibration system.

Good luck,

I suspect this is not the answer you want but here goes. Two or three years ago I was reading reviews of monitors for photographers. Each review had 3 or 4 PC monitors to recommend but each review always said:
"only get one of those if you don't get a Mac monitor because they are clearly top notch". So 2 years ago I purchased the smaller of the 2 available iMacs and could not be happier. In addition to an excellent monitor the entire unit is very portable...room to room...or to any location away from home. No, it's not exactly laptop convenient but I don't need a laptop unless I'm flying somewhere. You'll pay more certainly than for a PC monitor alone but if it's financially possible, you should be very happy.

My 2 cents is......One word MAC.

You can get a rebuilt MAC if your $$ is tight but your not going to get anything as good as far as true color if you go PC. Our still department at the paper I work at is all MAC and we just bought a magazine and they used PC monitors. The 2 publications have now integrated and the photo staffs and archives have become one. When we went through the archive for them the color balance was all over the map and now that all of the work is up online for sale its easy to pick out their work vs. ours as far as color balance.

Hi Tom,

The Apple monitors are gorgeous because they use IPS panels which are hugely superior to the standard TFT panels in most budget monitors. If you're going to invest you probably want to spring for the IPS technology and be happy for years to come (if you've seen the outrageous screen on the iPhone4, that's an IPS display). The only gripe some people have about the Apple monitors is the glossy finish, but in a properly darkened studio set up for editing that won't be an issue. Just for an alternative, Dell now makes a VERY good line of IPS panel monitors with a No Dead Pixel guarantee, and they use a matte finish on their screens. The 24" model is the U2410 which is currently on sale for $499 and comes with a three year warranty. Even CNet was impressed with this monitor. They also have a 27" and a 30" if you wanted a drive-in movie screen on your desk. Apple makes those sizes too. Both are great choices depending on budget. Dennis is correct, B&H has a big line of graphics monitors by NEC, LaCie and Eizo. Those are usually near four figures for the starting price, FYI.

So there's some choices! Have fun shopping!

This PC Hardware Help page has a list of IPS panel monitors, which should help. Note that some similarly numbered models may use TFT panels, so look carefully. And sometimes the panel type is hard to find and isn't listed anywhere.

Since you asked for suggestions on a mid-priced LCD monitor, I will try to be more specific than the blanket, get a mac answer, wow does that open a can of worms, (like asking for the time and getting instruction on building a watch). It is my opinion that a high quality monitor alone will not give the results that I believe you ultimately are looking for. You need to also think of calibration and profiling of the display to achieve what is accurate in color reproduction, after all that is what a photographer is ultimately after, accurate color reproduction, not just a good looking screen. Paul is correct in that S-IPS & S-PVA displays are superior to the traditional TFT's with the edge going to S-IPS. That said, that alone will not produce more accurate color rendition. I would consider a display and a calibration "system" but not just any of the two such as brand "a" display and brand "b" calibration system, but units that are specifically built for each other. I don't want to sound like a commercial here so I will add this link to an article which helps to explain more of what I consider a very good mid priced display and calibration hardware/software. The link David supplied is a great resource as well.

Merry Christmas to you too Tom!

I just bought a Dell U2410 monitor which is an ISP type monitor 24" with the ability to reproduce 95% of Adobe RGB color space. I use an X-rite i One display 2 calibrator and have been thrilled. some early reviews mention a color shift form side to side on the screen. This has been fixed and my monitor is perfect.

Cost about $600.

I use my old 19" as a second monitor with the desktop spread across both so in Photo Shop I have the image with the left hand tool bar and top tool bar on the 24" and the history and palate on the 19". It is great to have all that real estate for the image alone.

Thanks everyone for the good information on monitors. I think I know what I need to get now. Fortunately, it looks like monitor prices have really come down since I last priced flat panels several years ago. I agree with those that mentioned that the Mac© monitors are fantastic. However, I have been working on PC's for over 20 years. All of my software is for Windows© and it is hard to teach an old dog new tricks. Thanks again and Merry Christmas everybody.

There's no reason you can't get an Apple monitor for your PC if that's what you reply want. They're completely compatible.