Monitor Qualities
Now we have got an idea about the technologies behind the panels, let⤙s examine at some qualities of screens and how they are relevant to the best monitors for photography
colour Gamut
Put simply, the colour gamut of a monitor is the range of colors|colors} it⤙s able to displaying. A good photographer⤙s monitor will have a wide colour range, often measured against the Adobe RGB spectrum. Ideally, a monitor for photography will cover at least the sRGB spectrum and beyond if possible.
A screen with a wide color gamut will reproduce greener greens and redder reds, for example. This is often referred to as color saturation and is obviously a good thing in a monitor for photography. The graph below shows how color gamuts are generally represented.
Color Depth
Having a wide color range alone is not sufficient to make a monitor good for photography. Color gamut tells you nothing about the amount of colours a monitor for photography can display. The number of colors is generally called the color depth. It⤙s possible to have a very wide colour gamut but only a tiny color depth. This would mean the monitor could display a few very saturated colors but there would be few, if any, intermediate colours between them.
A good colour depth will result in smoother transitions between colours and less banding on the screen. It will also allow colors to be displayed more accurately, all qualities of monitor coveted by photographers.
Color depth is often represented by a number of bits; the higher the number of bits the more colors the screen is capable of producing. Twisted Nematic (TN) displays are able to produce 6-bit color, or 18-bit color depth (6 pixels of green, 6 pixels of blue and 6 pixels of red equals 18 bits). These monitors can produce 262, 144 colours. TN displays use a color simulation technique known as dithering to increase the perceived number of colors. If you are after a good photographic monitor you want more colours available to you than this and a screen that doesn⤙t use color simulation. IPS and PVA panels are capable for producing 8-bit colour (24-bit color depth) and can display 16.7million colors. This is known as ⤽true colour⤠and is the minimum color depth you should look for in a monitor for photographic use.
best monitors for photography
Modern IPS and PVA monitors can even produce 10-bit colour (30-bit color depth) allowing the monitor to display over a billion colours. However, in order to display the full colour depth the software and hardware must be compatible with 10-bit color. If you have the right kit then 10-bit monitors are the best monitors for photographers.
Colour Calibration
Color calibration is an essential element of getting your panel to display accurate colors. Many of the best monitors for photography are self-calibrating, but for the mid to low end monitors you will need to use a color calibrator (colorimeter) and suitable software. If you plan on printing your photos yourself you will also need to calibrate your printer. These also range in price and quality.
Colour accuracy is measured in delta-E; the lower the delta-E, the more accurate the colour representation. A delta-E of below 1 is imperceptible to the human eye. Delta-E⤙s of 2 to 4 are considered good and require a sensitive eye to spot the difference. A delta-E of above 5 should be avoided if you are looking for a monitor for photography.
best monitor for photographers
Contrast Ratio
Contrast ratios are the measurement of the whitest white vs the deepest black a screen is able to produce. High contrast ratios are desirable in monitors for photography because they help to ensure that bright colors look brighter and deep colors look deeper. There are two common types of contrast ratio; static and dynamic. Static contrast ratios are measured with a consistent backlight level whereas dynamic contrast ratios are measured with different backlight levels. In dynamic contrast ratios the white has been measured with the backlight at its brightest and the black with the backlight virtually off. This explains why dynamic contrast ratios are much larger than static contrast ratios.
Response Times
Response times of panels are usually how long it takes for one pixel to change from one shade of gray to another and is measure in milliseconds (ms). IPS monitors sacrifice response rate for a bigger range, depth and accuracy of colour. TN monitors, on the other hand, have poor color reproduction but quick response times. Response times are more relevant to gaming and entertainment than for a photographer⤙s monitor but you may be looking for an all-round screen capable of both accurate color reproduction and playing games and watching films. Some modern IPS and PVA panel have reduced their response times to 6ms, which is still quite a way off the super quick speeds of TN monitors (2ms), but is good enough to handle all but the most intense gaming.
Monitor Qualities
Now we have got an understanding of the technologies behind the monitors, let⤙s examine at some qualities of screens and how they⤘re relevant to the best monitors for photography
color Gamut
Put simply, the color gamut of a screen is the range of colors|colors} it is able to displaying. A good monitor for photography will have a wide colour range, often measured against the Adobe RGB spectrum. Ideally, a monitor for photography will cover at least the sRGB spectrum and beyond if possible.
A monitor with a wide color gamut will reproduce greener greens and redder reds, for example. This is often called color saturation and is obviously a good thing in a photographer⤙s monitor. The graph below shows how color gamuts are generally represented.
Colour Depth
Having a wide color gamut alone is not sufficient to make a monitor good for photography. Colour gamut tells you nothing about the number of colors a monitor for photography can display. The number of colors is often called the colour depth. It⤙s possible to have a very wide colour gamut but only a tiny color depth. This would mean the screen could display a few very saturated colours but there would be few, if any, intermediate colours between them.
A good color depth will result in smoother transitions between colors and less banding on the screen. It will also allow colors to be displayed more accurately, all qualities of monitor desirable to photographers.
Colour depth is often represented by a number of bits; the higher the number of bits the more colors the panel is capable of displaying. Twisted Nematic (TN) displays are able to produce 6-bit color, or 18-bit color depth (6 pixels of green, 6 pixels of blue and 6 pixels of red equals 18 bits). These panels can produce 262, 144 colors. TN displays use a color simulation technique known as dithering to increase the perceived number of colors. If you⤙re looking for a good monitor for photography you want more colours available to you than this and a panel that does not use color simulation. IPS and PVA panels are capable for producing 8-bit color (24-bit color depth) and can display 16.7million colors. This is known as ⤽true colour⤠and is the minimum color depth you should look for in a monitor for photographic use.
best monitors for photography
Modern IPS and PVA screens can even produce 10-bit colour (30-bit colour depth) allowing the monitor to display over a billion colors. However, in order to display the full colour depth the software and hardware must be compatible with 10-bit color. If you have the right kit then 10-bit monitors are the best monitors for photographers.
Color Calibration
Color calibration is an essential element of getting your panel to display accurate colors. Many of the best monitors for photography are self-calibrating, but for the mid to low end panels you will need to use a colour calibrator (colorimeter) and suitable software. If you plan on printing your photos yourself you will also need to calibrate your printer. These also vary in price and quality.
Colour accuracy is measured in delta-E; the smaller the delta-E, the more accurate the colour representation. A delta-E of below 1 is imperceptible to the human eye. Delta-E⤙s of 2 to 4 are considered good and require a sensitive eye to spot the difference. A delta-E of above 5 should be avoided if you are looking for a monitor for photographic use.
monitors for photographers
Contrast Ratio
Contrast ratios are the measurement of the brightest white vs the darkest black a monitor is able to display. High contrast ratios are desirable in monitors for photography because they help to ensure that bright colours look brighter and deep colors look darker. There are two common types of contrast ratio; static and dynamic. Static contrast ratios are measured with a uniform backlight level but dynamic contrast ratios are measured with different backlight levels. In dynamic contrast ratios the white has been measured with the backlight at its brightest and the black with the backlight virtually off. This is why dynamic contrast ratios are much larger than static contrast ratios.
Response Times
Response times of monitors are usually how long it takes for one pixel to change from one shade of grey to another and is measure in milliseconds (ms). IPS panels forego response rate for a bigger range, depth and accuracy of color. TN monitors, on the other hand, have poor colour reproduction but quick response times. Response times are more important for gaming and entertainment than for a photographer⤙s monitor but you may be looking for an all-round monitor capable of both accurate colour reproduction and gaming and watching movies. Some modern IPS and PVA screen have reduced their response times to 6ms, which is still quite a way off the super quick speeds of TN monitors (2ms), but is good enough to handle all but the most intense games.
Now we have got an understanding of the technologies behind the monitors, let⤙s examine at some qualities of screens and how they⤘re relevant to the best monitors for photography
color Gamut
Put simply, the color gamut of a screen is the range of colors|colors} it is able to displaying. A good monitor for photography will have a wide colour range, often measured against the Adobe RGB spectrum. Ideally, a monitor for photography will cover at least the sRGB spectrum and beyond if possible.
A monitor with a wide color gamut will reproduce greener greens and redder reds, for example. This is often called color saturation and is obviously a good thing in a photographer⤙s monitor. The graph below shows how color gamuts are generally represented.
Colour Depth
Having a wide color gamut alone is not sufficient to make a monitor good for photography. Colour gamut tells you nothing about the number of colors a monitor for photography can display. The number of colors is often called the colour depth. It⤙s possible to have a very wide colour gamut but only a tiny color depth. This would mean the screen could display a few very saturated colours but there would be few, if any, intermediate colours between them.
A good color depth will result in smoother transitions between colors and less banding on the screen. It will also allow colors to be displayed more accurately, all qualities of monitor desirable to photographers.
Colour depth is often represented by a number of bits; the higher the number of bits the more colors the panel is capable of displaying. Twisted Nematic (TN) displays are able to produce 6-bit color, or 18-bit color depth (6 pixels of green, 6 pixels of blue and 6 pixels of red equals 18 bits). These panels can produce 262, 144 colors. TN displays use a color simulation technique known as dithering to increase the perceived number of colors. If you⤙re looking for a good monitor for photography you want more colours available to you than this and a panel that does not use color simulation. IPS and PVA panels are capable for producing 8-bit color (24-bit color depth) and can display 16.7million colors. This is known as ⤽true colour⤠and is the minimum color depth you should look for in a monitor for photographic use.
best monitors for photography
Modern IPS and PVA screens can even produce 10-bit colour (30-bit colour depth) allowing the monitor to display over a billion colors. However, in order to display the full colour depth the software and hardware must be compatible with 10-bit color. If you have the right kit then 10-bit monitors are the best monitors for photographers.
Color Calibration
Color calibration is an essential element of getting your panel to display accurate colors. Many of the best monitors for photography are self-calibrating, but for the mid to low end panels you will need to use a colour calibrator (colorimeter) and suitable software. If you plan on printing your photos yourself you will also need to calibrate your printer. These also vary in price and quality.
Colour accuracy is measured in delta-E; the smaller the delta-E, the more accurate the colour representation. A delta-E of below 1 is imperceptible to the human eye. Delta-E⤙s of 2 to 4 are considered good and require a sensitive eye to spot the difference. A delta-E of above 5 should be avoided if you are looking for a monitor for photographic use.
monitors for photographers
Contrast Ratio
Contrast ratios are the measurement of the brightest white vs the darkest black a monitor is able to display. High contrast ratios are desirable in monitors for photography because they help to ensure that bright colours look brighter and deep colors look darker. There are two common types of contrast ratio; static and dynamic. Static contrast ratios are measured with a uniform backlight level but dynamic contrast ratios are measured with different backlight levels. In dynamic contrast ratios the white has been measured with the backlight at its brightest and the black with the backlight virtually off. This is why dynamic contrast ratios are much larger than static contrast ratios.
Response Times
Response times of monitors are usually how long it takes for one pixel to change from one shade of grey to another and is measure in milliseconds (ms). IPS panels forego response rate for a bigger range, depth and accuracy of color. TN monitors, on the other hand, have poor colour reproduction but quick response times. Response times are more important for gaming and entertainment than for a photographer⤙s monitor but you may be looking for an all-round monitor capable of both accurate colour reproduction and gaming and watching movies. Some modern IPS and PVA screen have reduced their response times to 6ms, which is still quite a way off the super quick speeds of TN monitors (2ms), but is good enough to handle all but the most intense games.