POSTS

Color it right: color calibration with the spyder 3 pro

By hisham

Ensuring that color remains consistent across display devices and printers is a definite must for anyone who takes photography and compositing work seriously.

For the past five months I’ve been using a Spyder 3 Pro to calibrate four monitors connected to my Hack Pro system. So far I’ve been extremely pleased with its ease of use with both OS X and Windows 7. The software for both platforms is intuitive and simple to use. I can attest that it’s fully compatible with Snow Leopard.

The difference Spyder’s proper calibration makes is quite amazing; almost like getting a new monitor.

When prompted by the software, you simply attach the Spyder to the monitor using the provided suction cup or dangling it using the USB cable. The software then runs through several calibration algorithms so that it figures out the optimum color profile for your monitor. The difference Spyder’s proper calibration makes is quite amazing; almost like getting a new monitor.

I have two Dell FP2001s, one Dell FP2007 and one Dell S1909W, all connected via DVI. Previous to using the Spyder, it was quite tortuous aiming for consistent color across all the monitors by fiddling with brightness, gamma and color temperature settings manually; most often than not, the results left a lot to be desired. With the Spyder, it’s a breeze to calibrate.

The little bugger also comes with a neat little stand to keep it perched on your workbench so that it takes care of monitoring the ambient light level in the surrounding environment.

As of writing, you can get the Spyder for 29% off at Amazon.com at a price of $139.