I’m no David Copperfield, but after consulting with many people in
their homes, studios and offices over the past 15+ years, I’ve seen,
calibrated and profiled more than a few displays. From those
experiences, I’ve learned some tricks of the trade. Here are four tips
that you can use to improve the accuracy and consistency of your monitor
setup. In all cases, I am assuming you have followed the basic tenets
of monitor calibration and profiling.
Most monitors have stands that allow you to adjust them so that the
center of the screen is roughly at eye level (within about five inches
above or below your line of sight is optimal). Of course, everyone’s
desk, chair and physical height are different, so consider using some
type of base for your monitor if your monitor height is too low compared
with your eye level.
Since most laptop screens are much lower than desktop monitors, it’s especially important to use some type of platform to raise your laptop up to eye level so that you don’t have to angle your screen. That will help your monitor produce more accurate results without as many shifts in color or contrast as you move your head slightly while working. A printer stand (or other stand commonly sold at office supply stores), a stack of large books, or another surface, such as the Matthews Half Mini Apple Box (10×12 inches, and 8 inches tall) is ideal for raising most laptops up to eye level. The Matthews Mini Half Apple Box is another option (10×12 inches, and 4 inches tall).
There is one negative aspect to this laptop modification. You will need to use an external keyboard and mouse (or other input device) to make this setup feasible. The intro image above shows a 17 inch laptop on a heavy-duty stand designed for CRT monitors.
In Photoshop, you’ll find the preference for the background color under Photoshop>Preferences>Interface (Fig. 3). There are three options for the background color – Standard Screen Mode, Full Screen with Menus and Full Screen. You can mix and match them to your heart’s content. In Fig. 4, I’ve prepared a side-by-side comparison with a number of different images to give you a quick look at the same file surrounded by black or white.
As described in Tip #3, it’s very common to have slightly different brightness, color and contrast when you are working with multiple monitors, especially if one is older than the other. Even if you are able to make adjustments and view images so that they appear to have very similar contrast and saturation on-screen in Photoshop or another image editor, it’s common to have desktop backgrounds that are slightly different in color and brightness.
Medium gray as a desktop background tone makes the most sense if you want to view images “floating above” the desktop with no color bias. Most photographers view their images in Photoshop, Lightroom, Aperture, or Photoshop Elements, but it’s nice to look at multiple desktop backgrounds on multiple monitors with a seamless gray color, instead of them being “close but no cigar.” The trick to matching your background grays is to first set both of your monitors to a neutral gray (I prefer about a R100/G100/B100 for my desktop, which is about 70% gray). The best way to find step-by-step directions for setting your desktop background is by searching for the following term in your favorite search engine: “How to change desktop background,” followed by “OSX, Windows 7, etc.”
Once you’ve set both monitor backgrounds, then decide which monitor you want to adjust to match the other one, and create a jpg file about 20×20 pixels in size that is slightly darker or lighter than the gray you have on your “favorite” monitor. I recommend saving it at JPG quality 5, and sRGB is a good choice as the embedded profile. Getting the tone right may take a bit of experimentation; I recommend creating about four different grays depending upon whether you think the gray adjustment should be a bit darker, lighter, more warm or cool. Some sample RGB mixes are R100/G100/B95 (a slightly warm gray) if your monitor is a bit too cool, or R100/G100/B105 (a slightly cool gray) if your monitor is a bit warm.
1. View Your Displays at Eye Level
a selection of Matthews Apple Boxes
Since most laptop screens are much lower than desktop monitors, it’s especially important to use some type of platform to raise your laptop up to eye level so that you don’t have to angle your screen. That will help your monitor produce more accurate results without as many shifts in color or contrast as you move your head slightly while working. A printer stand (or other stand commonly sold at office supply stores), a stack of large books, or another surface, such as the Matthews Half Mini Apple Box (10×12 inches, and 8 inches tall) is ideal for raising most laptops up to eye level. The Matthews Mini Half Apple Box is another option (10×12 inches, and 4 inches tall).
There is one negative aspect to this laptop modification. You will need to use an external keyboard and mouse (or other input device) to make this setup feasible. The intro image above shows a 17 inch laptop on a heavy-duty stand designed for CRT monitors.
Table 1: A chart describing various Matthews Apple Boxes.
Part Number Description Weight 259531 Full Mini Apple Box 5 259532 Half Mini Apple Box 3.25 259533 Quarter Mini Apple Box 2.25 259534 Eighth Mini Apple Box 2 259535 Full Mini Apple Box 9.25 259536 Half Mini Apple Box 6.25 259537 Quarter Mini Apple Box 4.5 259538 Eighth Mini Apple Box 4.25
2. Angle Your Second Monitor
If you’ve ever used a view camera, you know how powerful the swings and tilts can be for matching a specific plane of focus with the camera’s lens and film (or sensor). This is known as the Sheimpflug Principle. Similarly, if you have a second monitor to the right or left of your main monitor, you should angle it slightly so that your eyes are on the same plane as your display when you turn your head to the right or left. That, combined with a proper height level, will give you the most accurate and consistent color and contrast.3. Create More or Less Visual Contrast and Saturation by Adjusting Your Image Background
It’s common to have multiple monitors with different overall saturation and brightness levels, even if you’ve meticulously calibrated and profiled them. Monitors age, or you may be using a CRT monitor with an LCD monitor in a dual monitor setup. One way to compensate after you’ve done all you can with hardware and software calibration is to change the background tone in Photoshop, Lightroom, Aperture or other application. Changing the background tone around your photos will cause them to appear more saturated/contrasty if placed on a dark gray or black background, and less saturated/contrasty if placed on a light gray or white background.In Photoshop, you’ll find the preference for the background color under Photoshop>Preferences>Interface (Fig. 3). There are three options for the background color – Standard Screen Mode, Full Screen with Menus and Full Screen. You can mix and match them to your heart’s content. In Fig. 4, I’ve prepared a side-by-side comparison with a number of different images to give you a quick look at the same file surrounded by black or white.
4. Match Your Desktop Backgrounds When Using Multiple Monitors
As described in Tip #3, it’s very common to have slightly different brightness, color and contrast when you are working with multiple monitors, especially if one is older than the other. Even if you are able to make adjustments and view images so that they appear to have very similar contrast and saturation on-screen in Photoshop or another image editor, it’s common to have desktop backgrounds that are slightly different in color and brightness.
Medium gray as a desktop background tone makes the most sense if you want to view images “floating above” the desktop with no color bias. Most photographers view their images in Photoshop, Lightroom, Aperture, or Photoshop Elements, but it’s nice to look at multiple desktop backgrounds on multiple monitors with a seamless gray color, instead of them being “close but no cigar.” The trick to matching your background grays is to first set both of your monitors to a neutral gray (I prefer about a R100/G100/B100 for my desktop, which is about 70% gray). The best way to find step-by-step directions for setting your desktop background is by searching for the following term in your favorite search engine: “How to change desktop background,” followed by “OSX, Windows 7, etc.”
Once you’ve set both monitor backgrounds, then decide which monitor you want to adjust to match the other one, and create a jpg file about 20×20 pixels in size that is slightly darker or lighter than the gray you have on your “favorite” monitor. I recommend saving it at JPG quality 5, and sRGB is a good choice as the embedded profile. Getting the tone right may take a bit of experimentation; I recommend creating about four different grays depending upon whether you think the gray adjustment should be a bit darker, lighter, more warm or cool. Some sample RGB mixes are R100/G100/B95 (a slightly warm gray) if your monitor is a bit too cool, or R100/G100/B105 (a slightly cool gray) if your monitor is a bit warm.