Calibrating

[Gray]

Just how important is calibrating? I've never done it, so am I missing out, or is it only something pros really need to do?

I understand that to calibrate a monitor you need some kind of little hardware thingy that you stick on the front of the screen and then you run through some software that sets it up.

As I said, I've never done it, so would I notice a difference if I did? Or is it a waste of money (as some of the equipment I've seen that's recommended is £250+).

Thanks!

 

[Gray]

Also depends what you want it for - movies require a different setup to photo work and games. Depends how serious you are I guess - what did you want it for?

Mainly for making my photo print-outs to look vaguely similar to what they look like on screen. At the moment, my Viewsonic VP930 displays the photos on screen vastly different to how they are printed out.

The problem with calibrating using purely software relies on "guessing", as in "move this slider until the foreground blends into the background" etc. Plus you have to make sure that the light in the room is perfect, and so on.

I just wondered if the "hardware thingy" made it all easier by taking out the guess-work.

Once I've calibrated my monitor, any tips on how to make the photo colours match it? Anyone know of any good comprehensive guides anywhere?

 

[Gray]

Those links would be most helpful, yes please.