zuzanne Loc: Crawfordville, FL

I have HP DV7 laptop Computer. When I look at shots on the Canon's LCD Screen the colors look great but when I download to the laptop they look flat or washed out. Is there a way to calibrate laptop for better colors? Camera is set to sRGB not Adobe. Book said that was best setting for it.

Thanks,

Suzanne

bobmielke Loc: Portland, OR

Go to http://www.download.com which is CNET's virus protected site and get Calibrize. It's free and easy to use.

tainkc Loc: Kansas City

Bob, it's Tom. I went to download calibrize on Cnet and my Nod32 popped up a warning saying that it is a potential threat. I know Cnet well enough that It would never do anything such as this. But I have to wonder why it would conflict with Windows 7?

bobmielke Loc: Portland, OR

This Software may not have paid Microsoft the appropriate bribe to be "blessed" by them. I'm using Calibrize on my Windows 7 PC right now.

zuzanne Loc: Crawfordville, FL

Thank you for the info. I downloaded and followed steps. It seemed to make a big difference in photos I downloaded last night. I really appreciate your quick response to my plea for help.

Suzanne

bobmielke Loc: Portland, OR

LOL I am the answer man. :)

tainkc Loc: Kansas City

I kind of figured that. I just wanted your input. Thanks.

photocat Loc: Atlanta, Ga

It isn't just your laptop, this is a common issue with laptops. Bob has given you the route to use.

marcomarks Loc: Ft. Myers, FL

Be careful to not set your monitor to look like your LCD screen because making those match has nothing to do with how your prints will look. What good is seeing vivid color on your monitor if it's not really like that in the file?

After you calibrate the monitor you might just find that it's actually pretty true already with normal natural colors and your Canon LCD is lying to you.

Grandpa in the mountains Loc: Wyoming

This was an old post, but let me throw in another snag. If I print a photo on my HP printer at home, and then take the file to my office and print it on an Epson printer (both are five ink printers) the prints are different. The Epson is superior in my eye. But what is most correct, my camera LCD, my monitor, or my print? And I guess I have no idea how each of you are seeing my file. Of course none of the above measure up to the memory I have of the 3D scene in my mind, with the birds singing and the sound of the water, etc. If I have a commercial outfit print it for me, what will I get?

marcomarks Loc: Ft. Myers, FL

You have to have a standard from which everything else links. That standard has to be your monitor that is calibrated correctly. First, your HP printer isn't meant for only photos and Epson printers rule when printing photos. So that's a difference in quality right there. But...

Having your monitor calibrated in photography is like having studio quality speaker monitors that are calibrated in a recording studio. If you can't see (or hear audio) that is "industry standard" then when you look at your photo (or listen to the audio you recorded) they are going to look (sound) wrong on other systems where they are displayed (played). So calibrating your personal interface that displays (or plays) your creation is paramount to getting everything else right. You can't achieve a product that looks (sounds) as close to perfect as possible to perfect, if you don't start with a way to see (hear) it that is as perfect as possible first.

There are systems for a computer monitor called Color Monkey (or maybe Munkey) that will do this. Once that is done, only then can you tell what your printer(s) are going to make out of what you come up with in your editing. One printer output may be exactly what you expect while the other may not be. So monitor calibration is your starting point.

There are several ways you can tame your printer with a printer profile that came with the printer, letting the printer track Windows colors, printing from your photo editing software, etc. That's a whole different subject but comes after monitor calibration.

After calibrating your monitor, try taking your photo file to Costco where they do a good job of keeping their printers calibrated, and see what you get. Even if it's just a 4X6 for less than 30 cents or an 8X10 for about a dollar, it will give you a good sense of what a printed version of your edited photo will look like. Take it home and hold it up to the side of your monitor and compare. It should be the same. Then print on your two printers and compare all three. If one or the other of your printers is off, that's where you need to tweak the profile driving that printer to get it under control.

Hope that helps.

Grandpa in the mountains Loc: Wyoming

Thank you,
That gives me a few things to work on.