Matt vs. Glossy
After a recent visit to an Apple store I was a little dismayed to see that they were no longer making the matt Cinema HD Monitors like this refurbished model above I use. All the new monitors have the same glossy screens as the iMacs. Ack! How can this be good for accurate photo editing? The added contrast may make images look nice on the screen but if that image has to be printed in a magazine, I can't image it will not suffer in the translation. You need to be able to gage the color, contrast and skin tones as accurately as possible.
My current set up is this 15" Mac Book Pro, bought last year with a matt screen (which cost extra & only ava in 15" or bigger) and then a 2nd older MBP attached to the Cinema Monitor. It has worked very well for me. I will admit I do the majority of my work on my laptop and even considered selling my monitor but now that it is hard to get, I will hold on to it. I'm afraid that one day when I have to replace these, the matt option will no longer be there in any form. All this comes up, as a friend of mine looks to me to offer advice as her daughter prepares to study photography. What do I say? What do you say?
I just feel like Apple, which has long been the first choice of photographers, designers and other creatives is now ignoring us to cater to the masses. I am curious to hear from other pros who have to consider how there images will appear in print? I even posted the question on one of my favorite photo forums, Rangefinder Forum and they have given some great feedback. What is your monitor preference?
all photos & content © Lara Rossignol
Mac skin by Decal Girl
Wednesday, July 27, 2011 at 5:00AM
Reader Comments (10)
This is such a timely topic. I am looking at an upgrade and I really was unsure about the iMac display. It is such a good price though, that it makes it very tempting. I just wish they would give the option of a non glare screen!
Thank you so much for this post. I had not considered the problems a glossy screen might cause. I do weddings and print books through blurb for my clients. I have older iMac and was considering the new ones. It took me awhile to get the print quality I wanted and would hate to have to re-figure it all out! I got some good ideas from the feedback on the forum you posted.
Must say, I just love love your blog!
I hate to be a stickler...and you don't even have to post this in your comments...but I do believe it is matte (not matt). At first I thought it was just a typo and I would never correct someone's spelling when it could possibly just be that, but you used it no less than four times in your post so it's obviously not a typo. Of course, I could be wrong. It could be some photog shorthand that I am not privy to, in which case I apologize in advance. I love your photos btw!
Actually Signy, I looked it up before hand it is spelled both ways according to my dictionary:
matte 1 |mat| (also matt or mat)
adjective
(of a color, paint, or surface) dull and flat, without a shine : matte black.
Thanks, always appreciate any input.
I do think Apple is a bit short sighted... print may one day be a thing of the past but that is a long way off. For your friend's daughter I would rec a MBP and an Ezio display.
my computer ate my previous post ... or at least i think it did :)
i bought an NEC MultiSync 2490UXi about 4 years ago and have been so pleased with the investment. the one i bought is bundled with NEC's color calibration kit and it makes the whole color management thing as painless as it could be. i did loads of research and the NEC MultiSync series has a similar color accuracy reputation to Eizo but at less of a price tag. my monitor, more than any piece of equipment i've purchased so far, has improved my confidence in my images.
i'm a windows person in need of a new computer and i'm toying with the idea of buying an apple. but regardless of what i buy, my monitor isn't going anywhere :)
I'm a PC person, but apple makes everything so shiny and fancy! I couldn't resist and eventually broke down and got an ipod touch. They're irresistible to the eye.
I am totally with you on the matte vs glossy. When I thought my trusty Power PC had bit the dust I broke down and got a new Mac with a glossy screen. I had gotten a new Canon camera and the plug in for the Raw setting wouldn't work with Photoshop CS2 (ok so I'm a bit behind) so I knew it was time.
I do so love the saturated color it gives but you are so right about proofing. Funny thing is I took the Power PC in to get it fixed so I could get items off of it. Turns out the three, yes three power cords I had were the problem. New power cord and now I use my older machine just for final proofing.
where did you get your DECALS?!
Hi Danica,
I got it at decalgirl.com