Monitor Calibration

[markf]

I have gotten some new Dell 20" Flat Panel LCD monitors. I have also purchased a LaCie blue eye hardware calibration device. The calibration software that came with it is asking me to set a target gamma and white point. The default values are gamma 2.2 and white point 5000.

 

I'm not sure what I should select here. I'm thinking that gamma 2.2 is a "standard" and that 5000 seems low and I seem to recall 6500 as a white point/temperature number Perhaps these are values I recall form CRT monitors. I'm not sure.

 

Does anyone have any idea what I should be using or where to find this info. The monitor docs don't specify any of this.

 

Thanks for any reply

[Crazy Homeless Guy]

i previously thought that 5500 was the white point for movie, and 6500 for print. ..but after doing a little reading, it seems like it is up in the air.

 

i guess macs traditionally used a 5000 white point, and 1.8 gamma. which partially explains why they became so dominant in early computer graphics work. 5000 is considered daylight, and 1.8 is supposedly similar to the dot gain on paper. don't ask me to explain that more, because i don't know. at the time mac was shipping with setting ready for print, windows was shipping with a standard of 9300 or so, which is incredibly blue.

 

however the white point seems to be up to individual preferences and tastes, but i would not exceed a 6500 white point. ...for awhile i was using a 6000 white point, but recently i have been working at 6500 with a 2.2 gamma.

 

when you look at your screen, the white should be close to the white of a sheet of paper, which varies with lighting conditions, and paper types.

 

i am sure this is something that everyone has an opinion, or at least everyone that attempts to calibrate their monitor.

[Jeff Mottle]

6500K/2.2 is what I would reccommend. Ultimately what you are trying to do is match your viewing environment. Some of the newwer high end colorimeters allow you to measure the ambient environment color temperature so you can adjust your screen to match. Everything you do in color calibration is to ensure your screen matches your viewing environment, you profile devices to known values and you linearize devices to ensure the largest range of color possible for that device.

[markf]

As always, the fine people on this forum return fast , helpful replies.

 

Thank you both!

 

Any other replies appreciated.

 

Upgrading is an expensive but necessary exercise in frustration/patience/perseverance.