Reddit mentions: The best light meters & accessories

Hard to tell much from the pictures. Miniatures photophraphy is tricky. Here is an awesome tutorial on how to do it to a level of near perfection. But I have some tips from when I started out with just a point-and-shoot camera that might be useful:

Lighting - Someone already mentioned to disable the flash. That's absolutely the right thing to do unless you have a little photo studio setup with seperate flashes setup to key off the camera. Since 99% of the people here don't, what you should use are just some regular lamps. Two lamps slightly above your subject, offset to the left and right, and positioned far enough away to minimize shadows is a great setup. Make sure that they have the same type of bulb that gives off the same color. You can certainly get by with just one light, sometimes even just a room light, but avoid the flash.

Background - Clear backgrounds are best, as it allows the viewers to really just focus on the miniature(s). I used a few clean sheets of printer paper, curving the background sheet so it reduced shadows. The white paper gives the added benefit of "bouncing" light on the model, lighting up the model and reducing shadows.

Camera mode and focusing - Many people use macro mode on their point-and-shoot cameras, but this doesn't always work. Typically this mode is noted by an icon of a flower (for some reason a tulip). Macro mode typically changes a few automatic settings, each camera tends to be slightly different. Play around with this mode and others on your camera to see which one focuses better. Remember that getting close to your mini doesn't make it easier for your camera to focus. The camera has an minimum range on focusing, so you need to find the sweet spot. Cropping a well focused picture is better than trying to fill the frame with out-of-focus subjects.

Tripod - Cheap tripods are awesome for miniatures photography. Even if you're just getting a small desk tripod, a gorillapod, a large sized tripod, or even a phone tripod it doesn't need to be expensive. Expensive tripods are built to be tough for travel, you're likely not doing that, you just need to keep the camera stable and off the floor. You can certainly even get by without a tripod at all if you just stack a few books up or whatever. Really what you need is a way to take a picture with your hands off the camera. Typically all cameras, even phone cameras have a timed shot. Set the timer for the lowest setting, typically 2 seconds. After setting up your shot, and pressing the shutter, you can take your hands off the camera and make sure it doesn't shake or screw up the focus.

Color or White Balance - This can be a bit tricky. Cameras try to automatically adjust to get optimal color from a photo, but sometimes, when lighting or background or subject matter is dominant in color, the pictures end up looking weird. People sometimes describe this as the photo looking too cool/cold (blue hues) or too warm/hot (red hues) and that's usually a sign that the white balance is dorked up. When you take a picture as I recommended with a white sheet of paper as the background, you might see this blue or red hue shift that I'm talking about. You can use a number of free photography editors (like Pixlr) to help you with adjusting this after you've taken the picture. Essentially you're trying to adjust the picture to return white to being white. Trick here is that "white" paper is rarely "pure white" so this complicates matters. Fancier cameras (DSLRs typically) have settings to help adjust and take pictures that are properly balanced, sometimes requiring the photographer to have a reference card to show the camera what white, grey, or black should look like in a photo. Refer to the tutorial I linked at the top of this post for more information on how to achieve this balance using those cards and a DSLR.

That's all I have for photography. Your models look pretty good from what I can see, my one thing... ONE thing would be to drill your weapon barrels, or at the very least paint a little black dot there. Sorry, it's a personal hang-up. As I am a fellow Ork player, I might be able to give you more advice should you need it. Let me know. Here are some of my old blog posts talking about my Orks.

I usually don't use those items to clean my machine. But I am sort of strict when it comes to using the laptop. Like I never use it while eating etc. ThinkPads are fingerprint magnets. It doesn't take much effort to get it all greasy. I usually clean my machine once a week with a micro fibre cloth and some lens cleaning liquid, like the ones you use to wipe off TVs and such. And it seems to have worked well for me. I've seen people use those materials that you mentioned to clean their ThinkPads but I don't know much about them since I never used them. One thing I suppose you need to be careful about the X1E is the Carbon Fibre weave on the top panel. Refrain from using anything like a "magic eraser" unless you are 100% sure that it will not do any harm. But having a good personal hygiene helps to not go to extreme to clean your laptop. My slight OCD regarding having clean hands does help in that regard. :-)


For the calibration you need a Display Calibration hardware product like X-Rite or Spyder X. In combination with those hardware and the supporting software, you can colour correct your panels. I bought mine in Australia and they provide the option to have it calibrated directly from the factory. Although, not sure why that is even an "option". For a laptop this expensive it should come calibrated by default for everyone who picks the 4K screen. Also, what is the point of supplying one of the best panel on the market with your laptop where it is not properly colour corrected. Doesn't do justice to this beautiful screen. Anyway, that is just my thought. If you want I can give you the profile file on mine and you can try it out on yours to see if it makes any difference or not. But usually panel profiles differ for every panel, so better to have it calibrated individually. Also, professionals recommend that you calibrate your display every few months. I am thinking about buying one on eBay during Christmas sales, it is a one time investment and just might be worth it over a long period of time. Now all that remains is convincing my other half why I need a toy that I'll only use 3 or 4 times a year. For me, that is the toughest part in this whole "calibration" issue. ;-) .


Hope you enjoy your X1E for years to come. Cheers.

> I guess what I think looks good don't really look good. lol.

welcome to the world of grading lol. This perfectly describes the past like four years i've spent trying to learn to grade.

As for f1.8, yea i did the same thing for the longest time, and just wound up with tons of soft footage. I also like the shallow DOF, but unless there is a reason, you shouldn't use it. Especially on a wide lens, for some reason people shoot like 28mm wide open. There's like no reason if you have plenty of light. You're not going to be able to get shallow DOF on a 28mm unless you're shooting full frame and your subject is like 4 feet away. Why even try? Just save the shallow DOF shots for when your camera is on a tripod, you have a long lens, and you know that your subject isn't moving.

White balance is an art of it's own. AWB can be good but the major danger of that, is that you're dealing with situations of mixed lighting that might change in mid shot. I always use manual WB so i know exactly what my camera is seeing as white. When you have mixed lighting and are using AWB, the camera has to "guess" what you want to be white. It will either take an average of both, or if one is overpowering the other, it will just balance more to one. If your bride is being lit by windowlight and then moves to be lit by some warm lamp,, you can see the issue here. Also, keep in mind that you have a bright white source in front of you almost the entire day: the dress. As long as it isn't ivory, you can manually balance to the dress. I keep a $7 white popup card in my pocket that i can use at any time. https://www.amazon.com/Lightdow-Balance-Reference-Reflector-version/dp/B00HT9MA1W/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1506634185&sr=8-3&keywords=gray+card

It generally ends up being daytime balance for everything outside (manually balanced to a grey/white card), and then the entire reception i use 3200K. ***KEEP IN MIND that 3200 may not work for everyone, because for the entire reception i am blasting everything with my 3200k lights, so i KNOW that the light hitting them is perfect white. You will have to modify this if you're not. One thing to keep in mind is that typical receptions have window light, and since they're in the evening, the light coming in might go from like 6000k down to like 4000k in a matter of hours. This is why i balance to 3200k, so i'm not chasing the color of the window light. I'm okay with the window light being a little blue, and during sunset, it tends to match the 2800k or 3000k practicals better. Either way, lights are essential for receptions. Even a couple of $50 LED panels will make a ton of diference.

Another thing that helps a TON is using window light and shutting off warmer indoor lights. for things like bridal prep, i go ahead and shut off all the indoor orange lights and just use window light so i KNOW for a fact that the only light that's hitting them is daylight and it stays the same temp.

Ideally, you want to manually white balance each lighting change/scene with a white card. Whenever something looks off or the location changes, i WB again. It's a pain, but you honestly don't have to do it as often as it sounds. The entire ceremony gets its own WB. bridal prep gets its own WB

> do you guys think the AW will go any lower than 849.99 (price on microcenter)?

Watch /r/buildapcsales. This monitor gets posted almost weekly. $849.99 is fairly common, but we've seen a few posts in the last month or so where it's gone a little lower. Here's a few recent but expired examples:

• [$799.99 2 weeks ago via Newegg] (https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapcsales/comments/9thwf2/monitor_dell_alienware_aw3418dw_34_curved_1440p/)
  
• [$799 3 weeks ago via Google Express] (https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapcsales/comments/9rq1uq/monitor_alienware_aw3418dw_799_20_off_with_coupon/)
  
• [$829 about a month ago via Amazon] (https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapcsales/comments/9jjqco/monitor_dell_alienware_aw3418dw_829_25_3440x1440p/)
  
• [$829 about a month ago via Best Buy] (https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapcsales/comments/9jb39z/monitor_aw3418dw_829_bestbuy/)
  
  I personally think that Black Friday through Cyber Monday will see this thing hit $799 again, possibly $779 for a new record low. Here's hoping!
  
  Dell online will also price match most national retailers and etailers. I got Dell to price match Microcenter since there is no MC near me (I think they sold it online too, but Dell's online returns are as easy as Amazon).
  
  > , but wondering if colorimeters usually go on sale— especially with Black friday coming up
  
  Prices fluctuate, but I haven't noticed any big sales recently. As per my other post, here's the 3 to watch out for and their current Amazon prices.
  
  
• [Datacolor Spyder5EXPRESS - $129.00] (https://smile.amazon.com/Datacolor-Spyder5EXPRESS-Designed-Hobbyist-Photographers/dp/B00UBSL2TO)
  
• [X-Rite ColorMunki Display - $151.92] (https://smile.amazon.com/X-Rite-ColorMunki-CMUNDIS-Accuracy-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOM)
  
• [X-Rite i1Display Pro - $244.77] (https://smile.amazon.com/X-Rite-i1Display-Pro-Display-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOW)
  
  Checking CCC for the price history on those, here's what I'm seeing.
  
  
• The Spyder hit $79.99 last black Friday, and again around Christmas. It typically goes for $120-$130. The current price is near the high. I'd wait.
  
• The ColorMunki hit $89.95 around the holidays last year, and typically goes for $150-$170. Aside from those big sales, the current price is fairly decent.
  
• The i1Display Pro hit $159 during the holidays last year. It typically goes for $205-$260, and the current price is near the high end.
  
  If you have to buy today, the ColorMunki is the best value when compared to the other options, and compared to historical prices. If you can wait until the holidays, they all should hit some fairly low prices. I'd still recommend the ColorMunki as I feel it's the best consumer home-use colorimeter, but some like to splurge for the i1DisplayPro as it's a better long term option for multi-device calibration due to the better build quality, durability, and faster sensor.

I've got a few questions about computer hardware for photography.

My father is a paper artist and needs to upgrade his computer monitor.
He has always photographed his work then edited in Photoshop elements. He is constantly struggling with color correction trying to get everything to look the same as in real life. His average size work is about 5'x5'. He shoots with a T5i with a Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM.

What are some recommendations for high color quality monitors. Color is the most important factor. He has been using a dell ultra sharp and was thinking of upgrading to one of Dell's higher quality monitors. I've heard good things about BenQ but not sure what to look for. I know he should be getting one with an IPS display.

We were thinking a 27" but is it worth investing in a 1440p or is 1080p still fine. Are there any recommendations for display calibrations. The best selling on amazon is Datacolor Spyder4Pro S4P100 Colorimeter for Display Calibration Is this really worth it and is worth trying on his current monitor? I heard about them on a B&H youtube video but it sounds like it's an easy fix?

He is willing to spend the money to invest in something that will last him a while. What would give him the best bang for his buck? Is there a 750 BenQ that acts like a $1200 Dell

What is the best option for $500?
750?
1000?
1250?

Thank you for any recommendations.

There is hardware out there, but unless you're doing 100% color accurate work like photoshop, I wouldn't spend the money on it. Something like this

This review is for a different size monitor in the same family, but it gave some calibration data that they used for their review. May be a good starting point at least. You should be able to do 99% of it within the monitor's settings and don't need other software. That IPS should definitely look better than the TN panel.

> Here's what you do. First, turn off Super Energy Saving mode and set Picture Mode to 'Custom'. Then set the brightness to 43 (150 cd/m²) and the colour temperature to User mode with red at 48, green at 58 and blue at 58. That will give you a temperature of 6400 K, an average gamma of 2.2 and a dE of 3.6. The picture will look more natural, although whites will look slightly blown out due to the dip at the end of the gamma correction curve. The contrast will fall slightly to 1280:1, but that's still more than enough. With these settings, any in-the-know amateur should be happy with the picture quality.

To add to what /u/bard108 said - the preview you seen on the back of the camera's LCD screen is a JPG that the camera processes on it's own according to whatever picture style you've got the camera set to.

jpg vs raw

If you are shooting in JPG mode only, then the files coming from the camera should look pretty close to that on screen preview when you pull them off of the memory card, however if you are working in RAW mode you need to actually use a raw converter (Lightroom, Adobe Camera RAW, Capture One, etc) to get the colors where you want them to be.

white balance
In a few of your images on your website, it appears that you are either using the wrong white balance setting, or you are shooting with auto-white balance and the camera is guessing wrong.

Here's an article about setting custom white balance with Nikon cameras: Setting White Balance

If you are shooting RAW, I recommend getting a pocket sized grey card and keeping it in your kit. Take one photo for each different lighting scenario, with the grey card near the center of the frame and then when you bring your photo in to your RAW processor you use the white balance dropper tool on the grey card to get a neutralized white balance.

Neutral white balance might not be where you want to live (some images feel better if they are warmer or cooler) but it's a starting point for your decision making.

color space

If you ARE shooting in JPG mode, pay attention to which color space your camera is using. Generally you'll have the option to use sRGB or Adobe1998.

Adobe1998 is better if you plan to do editing on the JPG once it leaves the camera, but if you want to just upload the images to flickr (or wherever) without doing any edits whatsoever then sRGB is a better choice.

Anything you want to upload to the web needs to be saved in the sRGB color space because most modern web browsers only really understand that colorspace. If you upload something in Adobe1998 or ProPhoto by accident you'll usually get a weird color cast. ie sometimes skin tones look greenish which is no bueno.

(I will say it doesn't look like this is your problem here though)

calibration

Now... lets talk about that iMac, and color calibration.

Most displays are not calibrated out of the box. The ones that are will cost upwards of $1500 (on the low end) just for the monitor... so what i'm saying is you are almost definitely working on a computer that doesn't have a calibrated display.

That means what you see on the screen will almost never be a close representation of what you will get if you make a print of the photos you're working on.

You actually need a device to calibrate your display, called a colorimeter. The process is pretty simple actually.

You need to set your display at the brightness you prefer working at, and make sure your mac is set to not automatically adjust display brightness because otherwise you'll never be able to realy know what the image's exposure looks like.

Once you've done that, you can run the calibration software process (which is 99% automated and not complex) about once every 2 weeks just to keep things in line.


TL;DR The images you posted to flickr just look as though you need to bump the saturation slider in photoshop/ACR just a bit honestly - but tread lightly. A little goes a long way.

You definitely have a lot of work to do in terms of learning post production and managing colors, but I definitely recommend that you do your best to start by having a calibrated display, and managing your camera's white balance setting - otherwise most of your time spent editing will be for naught.

>In your subjective opinion, is a hardware-calibrated monitor significantly more beautiful than a software-tweaked one, and is it worth the $150 or so it'd cost for a colorimeter?

Yes, absolutely. Having spent the money I consider it worth every penny. Once you know calibrated reference color, you can't go back. Our eyes will readjust and compensate for a lot of differences over time. Those who like using f.lux, for example, often comment on not noticing it's effects after a while.

This is because f.lux is basically an automated color profile changer. It goes from a higher color temperature (7K/6500K or so) down to a very low color temperature as it approaches night time. This makes sense, since the human eye tends to view colors a bit cooler under lower lighting conditions.

While f.lux can feel pleasing, it's does result in inaccurate colors. If you wanted an f.lux like experience with accurate color, you would create a profile for each lighting condition your room has. Primarily an 'overhead lights on' profile calibrated for 6500K 2.2 gamma, and a 'lights off' profile that might be something like 5500K 2.2 gamma.

I consider this a bit overkill though, I stick to one daytime profile, and I have a fluorescent bulb in my overhead that is more of a 'daytime' color temperature. Photo studios go to extremes and use high end monitors with hoods to reduce direct light from hitting the screen, and they have accurate color temperature bulbs of a known brightness.

Personally though, I think one of the better advantages to calibration is also setting the luminance level. Lots of LED backlit monitors can get REALLY bright, but brightness is only beneficial under really harsh lighting conditions, and often washes out the color. Monitors also tend to overgain the colors a bit on high lighting conditions, so you lose some accuracy.

The best way to calibrate, imo, is to 120 cd/m2. This is a nice, even brightness, and while somewhat 'dim looking' at first is quickly compensated by your eyes and brain. This also tends to reduce eye strain. In addition, lots of monitors now can go 200 cd/m2 and up, so by having the brightness significantly lower than its maximum, you often reap the benefit of more accurate color.

As far as a tool, I ended up getting the Spyder4Studio, because I knew I was going to need a printer profiler also and it saved me money.

For your purposes I would go with the Spyder4Pro since it's the same hardware as the Spyder4Elite, only limited by software license. You also get to use it on multiple monitors, vs the 1 monitor limitation of the Spyder4Express.

If you end up needing the features of the Spyder4Elite later, you can just upgrade the software package (I'm not sure if it's more expensive that way vs buying the Elite outright, though).

Light meter: just my .02, but eventually get past phone meters and get an incident meter - for portraits, incident has always worked best for me. Sekonic 308 ($200ish) or a used Minolta Autometer III or IV - those were the pro standard for fashion and portraits when new.

If you use a phone meter but want incident readings, try a popup gray card and have the subject hold it in front of their face for a reading. At least you know you're getting an accurate reading vs. thinking what zone you want to put the skin on.

The RZ for portraits - 110 is nice, but get a 180mm as soon as possible - simply a glorious portrait lens. I used it for years as my primary fashion/people lens, lots of handheld with the RB - the RZ lens is very similar in rendering and mojo. The 250mm is also pretty glorious and man - compression, DOF... sexy mojo machine and often really cheap for the ass-kicking it can deliver (RB 250's go as low as $80-$100). You can also use RB lenses on the RZ if you want to get some good glass and find a deal.

I've read those IS build threads on BLF many times but never built one. I've got a light box (basic cardboard box painted matte white inside with two holes and a baffle in between) but its pretty inconsistent. If I were going to build a "real" sphere it would be something like you linked. Looks like a good project.

Throw is much easier. All you need is a basic lux meter. This is the one I have. Its cheap but works well. Notice that it's not an ANSI calibrated meter so its numbers can't 100% be trusted, but calibrated meters are more expensive. Also if you want to eventually get into doing runtime tests having a data logging meter would be really handy. tonyhburns and mcfarlie have one of those. I wish I did. Using it is easy, but you do need a pretty precise measure of how far your light source is from the measuring surface, so a laser ruler is very handy, too. After you've measured the lux of your light at a given distance, then its just a bit of math to convert that into candela and throw.

Less related to the build itself, but in a budget like this, I thought I'd point it out. For photo editing, you're gonna want a monitor with good color gamut. The previously advised PG279Q will work pretty good.

More importantly than having a good monitor is having an accurate monitor. With a $3000 budget, please at the very least spare the $90 for this colorimeter to make sure the colors are accurate. Your wife may or may not already be aware of this, but regardless, make sure this gets done!

If you can spend a few bucks, a light meter will help you get an idea of how much more you need: http://smile.amazon.com/Dr-Meter-Light-LX1010B-display-Luxmeter/dp/B004K0A7I6

My 2'x4' indoor setup has six T8 fluorescents and is pumping out about 12,000 lux. Different plants require different amounts, but I suspect you're not going to get much in the way of results if you are below about 5,000 lux. It's hard to have too much light.

Fluorescents are fine but you sometimes need several of them. Big tube fluorescent bulbs (T12) are the least efficient, T8 is better and T5 is best though initial price goes up with those. Generally, just a few decent T8 warm-white bulbs should be enough.

LED lights are coming down in price while rapidly improving in quality. My next lighting upgrade will probably be something along the lines of these models: http://smile.amazon.com/Apollo-Horticulture-GL100LED-Spectrum-Growing/dp/B00FGG1HDM

You can also wrap some mylar around your growing area to make sure any escaping light gets reflected back in and the plants get as much as possible. This is the cheapest way to increase your light absorption though it obviously is limited by the lights in the first place.

Things get more complicated if you're growing flowering plants (they are more particular about requiring certain wavelengths). But for growing garden herbs, edible greens, things like that, you can keep things pretty simple.

1. I'd be careful cleaning it up too much. Personally, I would get it serviced just enough to get it working reliably, and leave the rest of the grime and wear on it. Those are beautiful cameras with tons of history, and I would hate to see something like that get polished back to perfection erasing that legacy.
   
   
2. They don't have light meters, but you can either learn Sunny 16 which can be fairly reliable when dealing with outdoor natural lighting, or get any number of phone apps that will do metering for you.
   
   If you do go the phone-metering option, I'd try to test the metering provided by your cell phone camera by taking digital photos (or a test roll) using the suggested exposure to be sure that it's accurate. I believe on iPhones it's pretty consistently good, but I found that on my old HTC phone, the metering apps weren't very accurate. You can also get an actual light meter attachment for your phone to improve accuracy.
   
   
3. Get a classy old school meter like a Lunasix

If they still made plasmas, I'd buy one. The newest, highest-end TVs are getting pretty good, but the OLEDs just aren't as amazing as they are claiming they are. Projectors are still the best for image quality, but they cost an absolute fortune for a real 4k projector and still a ton for a 1080p one (don't trust the Amazon listings, the no-brand "1080p" projectors there are usually 800x600 at best; they just have an HDMI input so they are "1080p compatible".)

I have a color reference sheet that a friend in the printing industry gave me a while ago; i have no idea what the official term for it is, but it's a plastic sheet with the reddest, yellowest, greenest, blue-est, etc shades of each of those colors I've ever seen. It's fun to hold it up to the TV and compare TV green to a 'real' green (and green is so often slightly off-color), TV red to 'real' red, etc. The sheet isn't supposed to be used like this, it's supposed to be used against printed material rather than emissive things so it's impossible to actually get the lighting right for the sheet because the light would wash out the TV image. But if you see it outside I daylight you get a good idea of the full color spectrum. Edit: its a lot like this, except it doesn't have exterior borders so it's easier to hold up to things and compare, and some of the blocks are extremes of the shades rather than 'natural' colors. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000JLO31C/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_LZuSDbT4TEZ1R

LOL I feel ya, I live in central Oregon where there's trees and more trees.

If your taking Photos with your drone you only want to use the circled polarizer for the most part. Mavic has limited photo capabilitys compared to the DJI phantom pro 4. Reason for this is because you have no aprature control. Without aprature control your photos will look flat and much darker due to the High apprature.

The aprature on the mavic "not exactly sure exact spec" would be something along the lines of Fs-16 "F-stop" so that you can capture the most amount of in focused video. This bennifits video due to the fact you don't have to worry about uniformaty in depth of field across difffent sets of captured video. Video people will Use ND or nutral density filters In place of an aprature because you can still shoot at that Fs-16 keeping your same depth of field but reduce the amount of light hitting the sensor. ND 2 1 F-stop, ND 4 2 FS, ND 8 etc etc. Of course you can do things like Ajust shutter speed and ISO, but when you do that you loose uniformity between your videos.

I always try to stay below ISO 200 with a 125 shutter speed for slow pans and slow flying or Tripod mode, 500 shutter speed for high speed flying or chasing. Then use the ND filters to further adjust my exposure.

As for photos you will want to get a sharpie and mark an area on your lens, then mark your circular polarizer with different keys so you can sorta get an idea how to put it on your mavic. If you hold the polarizer up to the light and look threw it, you will notice when twisting it you will get different levels of hue and saturation. So this is very much trial and error type thing. But once you get it set up it's pretty easy to remember how you put on your lens with the adjustments marks.

If you want to be a protectionist or just have an easier time adjusting your photos or video in post, get your self a large color checker chart. THis will make your life soooooooooo much easier when trying to adjust your final product. https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-MSCCC-ColorChecker-Classic/dp/B000JLO31C/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1502210162&sr=8-2&keywords=xrite+color+checker

The idea is you take a sample photo or video in the location your going to be filming in direct sunlight or average shooting conditions if possible. Then once you go into post you color correct and make all your adjustments to your sample and copy all adjustments to the rest of your photos or video. You will now have near perfect uniformity across everything.

Anything else feel free to ask!

Here by PM request of OP.

>how I can find the right lights on amazon to boost my efficiency

You lights are pretty efficient but I would spread them out more and use more of them. Read this and get this so you can dial things in without the guess work. Lux meters should only be used with white light sources and can not be used with that 18 watt color LED light.


>Is there a way you can tell the quality of the light just by the stats provided on the listing?

Not really, light quality gets into spectral power distribution. I do not know the SPD of the main light. You need a spectrometer for that and even different UFO lights can have a different SPD. Examples:

"135 watt" UFO

"180 watt" UFO


>Also what is your opinion on LED strips? I assume u must not think much of those? Perhaps I could use them to add some more green light?

I don't use them because there are more efficient options and I don't like dumping extra heat in a bucket but recommend them because they are so simple and safe to use. At least half of everyone are using them wrong due to strip lighting placement.

I would just use white strips lights. The thing with green light is that their benefits are only at higher lighting levels which you will not get with strip lights unless they are very close to the plant. Terashima et al 2009 puts this at 300 uMol/m2/sec and above and my work with chlorophyll fluorescence confirms this.

pdf of Terashima paper that has been cited well over 100 times.

example pic of chlorophyll fluorescence measurements I do (red laser on top of leaf)

UV laser with chlorophyll acetone extract (in vitro and in vivo can give different results)

Another thing with green is that real green LEDs are not as electrically efficient as red/blue LEDs. This is known as the green gap. There is a phosphor based green LED that has hit the market that can hit about 1.9 uMol/Joule. I'd have to go back through some recent trade magazines to find it.

So remember, we can only use lux with pure white light sources which is what can cause a lot of confusion. I have verified this with dozens of different LEDs (that's from about four years ago) and a spectrometer as long as the CRI is about 80 or so which covers most LED light bulbs. CRI makes much more of a difference than correlated color temperature (I can pull up the charts/heavily cited paper on this).

If you have red/blue LEDs then we can not use lux and we must use PAR (photosynthetic active radiation) which is measure in uMol/m2/sec (micro moles per square meter per second) which is our PPFD or "photosynthetic photon flux density" if measuring lighting levels at a certain space or PPF or "photosynthetic photon flux" is measuring the total light output of a light. PAR is generally defined as light between 400-700nm. (BAR is another standard trying to be pushed by a trade organization which stands for "biological active radiation" or light from 280-800nm. I think it is non-sense.)

Is this clearing up some of the questions you have? I can articulate more if needed.

The most important piece of a good calibration is a monitor with even backlighting and great color range, gradation, and accuracy at different luminance levels.

To get a real good calibration you're going to need a colorimeter. They are pretty expensive. Most IPS monitors claiming to be good for design work are factory calibrated, which makes it mostly unnecessary to do it yourself.

Some computer shops will have a service offered to calibrate the colors; quality varies.

The cheapest way is to use the built-in calibration that Windows has. If you have a good eye and some good color swatches, you can get a halfway decent calibration.

I bought the X-Rite i1 device for both TV and monitor calibration on everything at home. Will need a PC that you can connect to use it via HDMI. Even though it's designed for PCs + software use by automatically adjusting the Windows color profile, it will at least let you do a full white image color calibration + backlight + contrast with included software for TVs. You could also grab it and check out return policy if it doesn't meet your needs.

https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-i1Display-Pro-Display-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOW

Old write-up I did with my experience here - bottom line with TVs or anything not permanently using a PC, the included software is limited but it will let you do backlight/contrast/full white color temp:

https://www.reddit.com/r/hometheater/comments/5y7sn9/spyder_color_calibration_for_tv/

If you check it out, also google HCFR and guides, freeware software for calibration. There's some deeper level stuff there that I did not do, but i did test it and it works.

I did all 5 TVs and 5 monitors in my house and they are all nicely consistent on color temp and brightness. Good luck! :)

Here you go

According to CCC, it's actually at a fairly low price point right now. I got mine for $100 on sale from b&h I think? But that was a particularly good price. Prime day is coming up so it's possible to see more of a sale but the current price is pretty good.

You don't need to get the more expensive X-Rite i1Display Pro. It's largely the same as the colormunki but has a few more "pro" features built in that you'll never use and it can calibrate faster. You'll do it only once every 6 months after the initial setup so the extra money isn't worth it unless you do color work and need to calibrate often. I would also avoid datacolor's spyder calibrators in favor of the x-rite's.

It really is just one of those amazing tools that you can buy and just have forever and it will earn its value back over and over.

I haven't calibrated yet, but I did use TFT Central's ICC profile and settings which was an improvement. I have this colorimeter on order and will do a proper calibration once it arrives.

I prefer a slightly brighter screen too and have set a 50% brightness. I'm in a dimly lit room so that's pretty bright relative to ambient light.

I find the Alienware image quality good answer comparable to other Dell monitors I've owned including my current second display, a UP3017.

I'm using the"normal" pixel response setting, but haven't tried anything higher. I've been sensitive to noticing overshoot on previous monitors so I haven't tried any other levels yet.

I use the colormonki by xrite, love it and made a huge difference when I used to print to my decent canon color copier. Also if you send files out for printing (adorama for example) you should get their color profiles and adjust your images as necessary so it will be wysiwyg.

Black and white probably not that big a deal, but for color it's great.
Every monitor is different, I used to go crazy seeing perfect color rendition on my screen, then looking at the same image on someone else's monitor and eeeekkk! I'm over that now, I reckon 90% or more computer users don't have any clue or care about it.

The cheapest probe that starts pushing into pro territory is the X-Rite i1 Display Pro and they get much more expensive from there. Though without a 3D LUT box and the accompanying calibration software, your corrections won't be perfect.

Xrite makes a more budget model called the ColorMunki. There's also a line called Spyder but the xrites tend to be much better quality for about the same price.

dispcalGUI is actually a really solid open source piece of CMS software with very good color math behind it. It may be more fickle than Light Illusions, but it's a great option for those on a budget.

All this, however, is a moot point if your monitor isn't any good as you'll quickly hit the limits of most displays. Additionally, expect to calibrate frequently (once a month or so) as displays do drift - even those ones that come "factory calibrated" (looking at you Dell). Here is a decent introduction on what makes up a decent display.

It is very likely that the default calibration of your monitor was pretty good.

With regards to actually calibrating your display, I have this and the best feature is the ability to dynamically adjust the colors based on ambient light. This makes a much more noticeable difference for me than simply calibrating the display once.

Buy a color calibrator, or do it very crudely (if you are selling prints I would not do this) and hold your phone next to your MacBook and use the basic software adjustments like contrast, gamma, and rgb settings to match it. A proper color calibrator will ensure your photos are accurate and as even as they can be across all screens. Some of the higher end ones even allow camera and printer calibration. Once again, unless you are just shooting for fun, id STRONGLY recommend actually buying a proper calibrator like these:
Datacolor spyder5PRO or the spyder5elite

x-rite colormunki display or the x-rite idisplay PRO

According to the specs you gave your current monitor has a PPI of 90.05 at an aspect ratio of 16:10. The most popular spec is 24" 1920x1080 aspect ratio of 16:9 which has a PPI of 91.79. So not far off to what you have.

If you want to stick to a PPI of around 90-92 you can try to look for 32" 2560x1440p 16:9 monitors. The UI size will be close to what you are used to, though I don't know of any with an IPS panel (which is important in your line of work).

If you want to stick to a 16:10 aspect ratio there's the Dell U2415 at 93.95 PPI.

Lastly, you could look into Ultrawides (21:9 aspect ratio). The Dell U3415W at 109.68 PPI looks good for productivity, but I don't know if you can deal with the curve as some designers can and some can't. Flat ultrawide like the LG 29WK600 is a good option at 95.81 PPI.

Use this PPI Calculator when researching monitors. Higher PPI = sharper image and more work space, but you will need to keep UI size in mind like you mentioned before.

Also don't forget to get a calibration tool like a X-Rite ColorMunki if you're doing professional work.

I would say it is viable, but LED bulbs would be better than CFL. Keep in mind that you can raise the plant closer to the lights. The best way to know for sure is to follow /u/SuperAngryGuy advice, get a Lux meter and read his guides at /r/HandsOnComplexity.

They look underexposed, I am not sure if the Black Magic has histogram readouts but they are super helpful.

I have been resorting to using manual light meters and it has totally changed the way I look at light, I suggest just carrying one around and metering whenever you see something you'd like to film.

Here is one I recommend, the Sekonic Studio Deluxe III - doesn't need any batteries, they are accurate, read in incredibly low light, and last for years.

Ah, yeah, in that case it may help.

If you have the patience you should consider purchasing a colorimeter and calibrating your TV. You can do this pretty cheaply if you buy the Colormunki Display colorimeter ( on sale for $150 on amazon right now - http://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408992805&sr=8-1&keywords=colormunki ) and use the free HCFR calibration software - http://www.avsforum.com/forum/139-display-calibration/1393853-hcfr-open-source-projector-display-calibration-software.html

The difference between a properly calibrated TV and even the best you can do by eye with a calibration dvd is night and day.

ColorMunki Display is my usual recommendation: https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM

It has all the hardware you need at a good price and is well supported by DisplayCal (see elsewhere in this thread). There are cheaper models, but they're lacking some features like ambient light correction, or may support limited types of displays.

Used is often ok, but sometimes the color filters on some models can decay with time and an older one might not measure correctly. If there's a used model you're interested it, you can try googling to research how well it ages.

It will let the camera apply a fine-tuning adjustment to make sure you get accurate focus out of the AF system.

Read your camera manual for exact details on how to do this, but you should find the relevant settings somewhere in one of the AF menus (that's where they are on a 5D3, and I assume the 6D is similar).

The basic idea is that you set the camera up on a tripod and take pictures of a test chart. Make focus adjustments until you are getting accurate AF results. You can buy a test chart like this (http://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-SLC100-SpyderLensCal/dp/B0041L3JS4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1425332338&sr=8-1&keywords=focus+test+chart), which has a nice angled scale so you can easily read off whether focus is off to the front or back. But you can also just take a picture of any target that has plenty of detail, it's just a bit more laborious to get it right.

Edit: for zoom lenses, you'll want to do the separately for the wide and the long ends of the range. The adjustment can vary across the range. Your camera should be able to store a separate adjustment for each end.

I just purchased the ColorMunki from amazon. https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM

Oddly enough I have to say this was the biggest takeaway for me too. And I didn't realize how important having the peace of mind was. It's one less thing to have in the back of my head when editing. I noticed all my screens that I calibrated were much brighter and much bluer than what the color munki adjusted to. I just wish I could have borrowed this thing from a friend.

Yeah, kind of, but it's a specific balance of blue, green and yellow to get a good color correction, every digital camera has a way to do what's called, "white balance", you see it as icons of the sun, cloud and light bulb, some cameras even have the underwater color correction in-camera, but since not every situation is the same, they use a color card with some neutral gray to help the person editing the image.


DGK Color Tools DKK 5" x 7" Set of 2 White Balance and Color Calibration Charts with 12% and 18% Gray - Includes Frame Stand and User Guide

​

You can find a short video promoting this kind of color balance products:
https://www.xrite.com/categories/color-matching-apps/coloreye

I use this with a lux to EV table and an EV chart to expose for my large format stuff. It's not great, but it works. In the future I'm going to build my own - you could try that, it's quite simple. A microprocessor like an arduino and a photoresistor, or for better accuracy a dedicated light meter board (about $10).

Since we're playing around with developing, I'd go with something like that. Your photo is under-exposed by a couple stops. I like the DOF you got on the shot though. What camera/lens did you use? You also should consider getting a grey card if you're going to do this a recurrent thing, they're very helpful for exposure and white balance. You can get cheap ones on amazon that have white/18% grey/black. You can get different sizes, and they're very useful.

I need to get myself a lightbox.

>You might want to pick up a color slate (similar to what comes with the PADI underwater photographer book) that has the spectrum on it. Flash it up in front of your GoPro once a while so you know what colors should look like and you can go correct it later.

I picked up one of these and it works out pretty nice. LightWorks has a nice feature where you can use an eyedropper and select either the white gray or black card and it will color correct.

It's actually fairly simple. You need a calibration device (i've heard good things about this or this , I personally use one of a firm that no longer exists on monitors which probably don't even deserve calibration) and software which can talk to it. Most software is pretty self-explanatory and generates a color profile for your monitor, usually in an .icc file. You can then hand this .icc file to your operating system configuration. If your postprocess stack is color managed, you should then get reproducable colors. There are a lot more subtilities like colorimeter ($) vs spectrometer ($$$) and such.

I thing your best bet would be to change the color temprature, the right one looks to be set to cool and the left one appears warmer(in the picture atleast). Also try messing with color management in windows. Otherwise you need to get something fancy like this (X-Rite CMUNSML ColorMunki Smile https://www.amazon.in/dp/B009APMNB0) which i am assuming you're not gonna.

I'm not suggesting you "recalibrate" for a single episode. I'm suggesting you actually calibrate it right, and everything will look better. (or at least, the way it's supposed to)

I'm guessing you haven't watched a whole lot of very dark content on that TV yet. It looked incredible to me. I thought the cinematography and color grading was excellent in this episode. But of course, I'm very anal about calibrating my displays.

This is what I use to calibrate my displays, but even something like this should help a lot.

Hi all. I have a seagull camera from the 1950s that I bought in a Shanghai flea market. It looks like this:

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Seagull_4BI_front.jpg/220px-Seagull_4BI_front.jpg&imgrefurl=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seagull_Camera&h=293&w=220&tbnid=zM0n2kNpGk6zMM:&tbnh=160&tbnw=120&usg=__eCZJBuzm-4beJ7qWSPmQMnNmz_M=&vet=10ahUKEwjvxaSDs9zVAhVkyoMKHZFTBpIQ_B0InwEwEQ..i&docid=G1_Vg4Td83S4dM&itg=1&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjvxaSDs9zVAhVkyoMKHZFTBpIQ_B0InwEwEQ

I have used it for years successfully by guessing the exposure, or using a digital camera to verify.

I bought a light meter thinking I would simply input my film ISO and then get a reading of the F stop and shutter speed, but the meter I bought produces a number called "lux"

Try as I may I cannot find any way on the internet to translate that number into a way to expose my shots properly. Help!

The meter looks like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Leaton-Digital-Luxmeter-Illuminance-Display/dp/B018QLIVSC/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1502908762&sr=8-3&keywords=light+meter

Thanks!!

X-Rite ColorMunki Display (CMUNDIS) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_9aBIAbKFM74X2

Prolly expensive for most people to justify but I needed it for photography. Maybe you could get a used one to help with the price. It's a great tool and it makes the colors match my ips ultrawide.

Look into a device like the X-Rite i1Display Pro and the free DisplayCAL software. Love mine.

https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-i1Display-Pro-Display-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOW

I've been using a Gossen Digisix for years and have been happy with it. It's tiny, weighs almost nothing, has done a fine job as far as I can tell with giving accurate readings, and has survived a few falls onto concrete. I could have sworn when I bought it I got it for only ~$100, so maybe it's cheaper elsewhere?

I also used this light meter through my school, but I've never owned one. I recall not liking something about the design quite as much (no idea what since it's been years), but it worked well for me.

I have no idea if those are the best on the market for that price range, but those are the ones I've personally used.

https://lg.encompass.com/shop/model_research_docs/?file=/ZEN/sm/OLED55B6PU.pdf

Page 9. Anyone should be able to do this but would have to be very patient and actually understand what they're doing first. For someone to try to understand that procedure, figure out software, and also learn to use a probe, would take some time but once they had it down could keep all monitors in their house calibrated.

You can get probes that would be enough for a novice on amazon for about $250.

I don't have any advice on software. Everything I calibrate is through LabView or an Agilent/Fluke/Tektronix program. But I've been in different calibration jobs without any significant experience and have been able to learn.

Like the guy said, it's better to have an engineer do it, especially if that resource is available, but there's no reason someone couldn't do it themselves. eevblog also has random information on a lot of things like this as well.

> Colormunki Display

Thank you for the amazing reply.

The Colormunki Display came out in 2011, right? It has better sensor even though it came out 4 years earlier?

Is this 2011 one, the one you're talking about:

X-Rite CMUNDIS ColorMunki Display CDN$ 168.99

Datacolor S5P100 Spyder5PRO CDN$ 187.16

The Spyder5 express is the same price as the 2011 Colormunki Display.

Actually I did. I purchased the one that u/Ohseventyfive recommended and got way better results. Hope this helps you as well man!

​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005A0ETXY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I bought a Lumens meter for $20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075DC6X25/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


And I use it more than anything.


I found that PEAK is 20k lumens is max for a full grown plant and 19k for sprouts.


Comfort zone is around 17-18k (peak). Every inch drops by 1000 points.



But, with under powered lights you have a second problem, radiation from the LED output device.


If you have to push the LEDs to close to get the 20k, you'll burn the plants very prematurely from heat from the board and some other radiation source that I am presently on a quest to get the exact physics on.



If you got outside on a partly cloudy day you'll pull 90k lumens from The Great Photon Emitter in the sky.



I have a high powered device, probably like what you ordered as a main flowering LED and its almost 2.5 to 3 ft above the plants and comfortable handles 2 plants. For a 3rd, I am squeezing and rotating a lot.


I dangle a lower powered 80w at a side angle to 'fluff' the top and middle from a different angle with photons. Never exceeding 20k lumens at any point on the plant.


I might still be a little to high and need to back my lights off some.



Remember, LEDs are just laser beams with a borked direction

Something I don't read others doing enough but makes a world of difference is to use a gray scale card (like this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004QXU8VI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ) for each lighting condition. Just snap a picture of your product with this small card beside it and then take the same photo without this small card. In your favorite photo editing program adjust the whites, blacks and mid levels using the photo with the card and then apply the level settings to the photo without the card. It's so easy to do and takes the guess work out of having the right colors, brightness and contrast. I've gotten a number of 5 star reviews with the customer noting how the colors of my products match exactly to my product photos.

This one. It's not cheap but you can share it with your friends as the software seems to have unlimited installs.

You calibrate your colors and after that run flux. Flux will now take the calibrated color profile as base and then do its thing on top of it.

i think i have to retract my "idiot" comment, you're clearly way too smart, but maybe over analyzing bro, the meter sees the light, that's my ONLY point, it's just a matter of how to properly gauge the reading....since you're a light expert, please enlighten me on this subject so i can properly use my cheap ass meter on my full spectrum LED lights, I'd appreciate that

With a QB or other white LED light, you shouldn't need a PAR meter -- you can use a cheap lux meter. I use this one ($23). (I think you only need a PAR meter with purple LEDs.)

First I tried a couple lux meter apps on my phone, and they didn't agree with each other, let alone with the real meter. The white translucent integration shell is important, it apparently compensates for the directionality of light.

Those levels sound good, but if you're growing autos you can get the same DLI (daily light integral -- total daily light) in flower from a lower lux, because you'll probably have 20-24 hours of light rather than 12. Good luck!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B012TI52FS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_y2c2CbJBMVASW

This is what I got. It’s small and fits in my camera case. Mostly comes out in oddly lit dinner scenes where I don’t want my sweetie to look like a lemon from the yellow house lights. :)

You can get a good one for $126 on amazon. But you may as well just have spent the money on a better monitor.

​

https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-ColorMunki-CMUNDIS-Accuracy-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOM

I recommend using a colorimeter to make a custom profile. I wanted better contrast and high saturation so I used one of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0055MBQOM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 with display cal to calibrate for like 2.4 gamma.

I picked up a calibrator for my monitor, the ColorMunki Smile (https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNSML-ColorMunki-Smile/dp/B009APMNB0) and have already calibrated it using the X-rite software, however would like to calibrate using DisplayCAL.

When I load up DisplayCal I cannot get the calibrator itself to show up under the devices tab in DisplayCAL. I know the computer recognizes it because I was able to use the X-rite software but for some reason it's not showing up in DisplayCAL. Any advice or opinions are appreciated!

While not required, I also would purchase a LUX meter like this.

Based on what a typical UVA/UVB reptile light puts out, the target intensity is between 8-9K LUX. I have a meter for other reasons but when I play with my Cham lighting, it's a good tool to have.

Believe it or not, a minimum of between 3 and 120 μW/cm2 for lighting is about all that is needed to prevent MBD. Here is a long read on the subject. Studies are tricky though. It's very difficult to get pure "lab conditions" in a home setting, so take it as you may.

This may be corrected when actually I do the conversion between μW/cm2 and/or μm/cm2 to LUX. I'll do that when I get out of bed this morning. Spitballing 8-9K LUX does seem right though.

Edit: 120 μW/cm2 is about 820 LUX, but you are not going to get ideal heating from that intensity.

I have this one and it works pretty well. The only limitation (which is purely a software limitation) is that since it's the "express" model it only supports a single monitor. The "pro" version supports multiple displays.

I get around that by changing the primary display and re-running the software though.

I have one of these and love it. Easy to carry around and use.

Holla!

I am looking for a gift for my girlfriend. She is just starting out and her biggest bottle neck is a crappy laptop. She has a canon rebel t5 I think so that should be plenty. Her complaint lately is how her edited images colors are way off when she looks on her phone or a print when using her laptop. With this, I see there is monitor color calibrators so I was looking at this: X-Rite CMUNDIS

She is planning on getting a new laptop with her own money and I think the calibrator would be useful for any screen. I also thought about getting a external monitor. Once again she is not professional so I thought something IPS maybe ultrawide? LG UM57 25UM57

And also for a laptop she was asking what she should get so I looked for something portable/sleek, 1080p, ssd, and i5 + and came up with Zenbook-UX305UA

Basically are these good options for someone starting out doing as a side job?

Thanks!

Best way is use a colorimeter like this https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-ColorMunki-CMUNDIS-Accuracy-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOM with calibration software, can get cheap old ones on ebay.

https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503551583&sr=8-1&keywords=colormunki+display

$160. This thing is invaluable imo. Does all the work for you. That said if you want to use my ICC profile on your PC you are more than welcome to. Set your monitor to "Racing" mode and set the brightness to 27.

ICC Profile:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxFMoDVxOkvkYTZEc1lmNDduNW8/view?usp=sharing

How to install ICC Profiles:

http://www.digitalcitizen.life/what-and-how-install-color-profile-your-monitor-windows

(Scroll down to "How to install a color profile in windows")

Nice. Thanks!

Which calibrator do you use? I am considering this one. What do you think?: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=37OHCI4Y1877Y&coliid=I3JRNCS4JIAB1R

I believe the best one is the Sypder4Pro, they're $150 new. You might be able to buy a used one off eBay for around $100.

http://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-Spyder4Pro-S4P100-Colorimeter-Calibration/dp/B006TF37H8/

Do you have an IPS monitor? If not, you should think of investing in one of those as well, especially if you're printing a lot.

I'm looking for a monitor calibration tool. Amazon and B&H Photo both list several devices anywhere from $40 to $400. Any opinions on what makes the more expensive ones better? I'm just going to be using it so that I can soft proof my photos; they've been turning out very badly when I have them printed.

Edit: The one I'm specifically looking at now is the entry level Munki Smile. The reviews are all over the place, from "works perfectly" to "turned my screen green." Anyone used this?

Datacolor Spyder4Express:

http://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-Spyder4Express-S4X100-Display-Calibration/dp/B006TF3746/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342633794&sr=8-1&keywords=spyder4express

The pro is 50$ more but may be worth it as it does a better job (Slightly) and can configure multiple displays:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006TF37H8

I was typing up my list of shit for my second grow. Lets see if I got my Reddit Formatting Correct. :)

The Details

Seeds

• 1 x Fem White Widow
  
• 1 x Fem Hash Plant
  
• 2 x Fem Super Silver Haze - Scrogged
  
• 1 x Reg Cannasol Durban Poison Bag Seed
  
  Gear
  
  Veg/Flowering
  
  
• 48x48x80 Tent
  
• iPower 1000w
  
• iPower Carbon Filter
  
• Duct Fan One
  
• Duct Fan Two
  
• Fan Controller One
  
• Fan Controller Two
  
• Insulated Ducting
  
  Seedlings
  
  
• Power Cord for Seedlings
  
• Light Splitters
  
• Socket Adapters
  
• CFL's - Way, way cheaper at Home Depot
  
  Medium and Nutes
  
  
• Pro-Cal
  
• Growstones
  
• General Hydroponics Nutes - Lucas Formula
  
• Coco Coir
  
  Meters
  
  
• Light Meter
  
• Infrared Thermometer
  
• TDS Meter
  
• PH Meter
  
• PH Contol Kit
  
• PH Buffer Solution
  
  Pots
  
  
• 5 Gallon Smart Pots
  
• 14 inch Plant Saucers
  
• Scrog Screens
  
• Plastic seedling and one gallon pots
  
  Misc
  
  
• Foil Tape
  
• Ossilating Fan
  
• Snippers
  
• Assorted 4 and 6 inch fans
  
• Assorted thermometers
  
• Garden stakes, Twist ties, etc.
  
• Duct Clamps and duct tape
  
• 2 Timers
  
• Ratchets
  
• Distilled Water
  
• Various sizes of water mixing buckets
  
  
  

Dell's UltraSharps tend to be pretty good, especially their 1920x1200 ones; I have two U2410s that I use for Lightroom and even without calibration they're much more accurate than other screens. The Dells would probably be more accurate than a Korean panel, and for that extra $50-60 you could find a monitor calibrator and software (like this ColorMunki calibrator) and make your screens even more accurate.

Pick up one of these. I use it all the time.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075DC6X25/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


Mine is the pretend 2000w version and for me, 1100k lumens (about 3.5 ft) for sprouts and then slowly implement to about 2100k lumens (about 1.75 ft) for full growth flowering. I'm comfortable with 2 plants as long as I rotate a lot.


You're lower powered and might be tempted to lower to much.


LEDs are exact in their spectrum (end abruptly) unlike incandescent which bleed across the board. But that makes them more efficient in the spectrums you want.

LEDs are basically low powered lasers with a borked direction.

Your eye appear to see less light, even though just as much radiation is hitting your eyes (and those sensitive leaves).


Don't trust your eyes, trust the $20 gizmo and the coloring of the leaves.

Well if you are in scenarios with lots of different color temperatures, your white balance is really just a choice for which source you'd like to be nuetral, wouldn't it? I think sometimes if scenes have multiple light sources, perhaps the lights are mixing, which could be giving some weird results.


How about just a normal shot in pure daylight, with daylight white balance, does that look right? You could do a test with shooting the daylight balanced jpeg and then shooting a raw version. Then in lightroom, use the dropper tool on a pure grey area to set a white balance and see if it looks the same. If it doesn't, you might have a defective unit. Maybe use one of these if you'd like to be extra precise! https://www.amazon.com/Calibration-Exposure-Photography-Included-Instruction/dp/B012TI52FS

Never used Recharge before, so can't really speak on that, but yes, the lux meter is fine with the QB. I have the same board and I used this [meter] (https://www.amazon.com/Dr-Meter-LX1330B-Digital-Illuminance-Light/dp/B005A0ETXY/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1538762008&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=lux+meter&psc=1)

All of this is so true it hurts! It's very difficult to find information about the different screens out there. You're right that the info available is just about color space and not other aspects of quality. Also not all reviews out there are reviewing the IGZO model on the laptops that offer it.

Do you happen to know what kind of numbers or specifics I can look for when comparing monitors? Colorspace is easy, because it's a number I can find in the specs. What about display calibration? I've seen some that look like a funky mouse. Is it smart to get something like this?

Accuracy has been something i'm really worried about, but I'm not sure what metrics to look for.

Honestly at this point I'm leaning most heavily toward the XPS 15, but might wait for a new model.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000KZBRG6/ref=mp_s_a_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1506528168&sr=8-11&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=sekonic+light+meter one of these little guys and a lot of luck.

Edit: I'm guessing you're also asking what kind of metering I used. I used incident light up close to the plant, the sand was so bright in the midday sun that the sky came out too.

Edit 2: I mean it when I say I was lucky. This was my first serious outing with the big boxy camera and 60% of the shots were so overexposed as to be unusable.

Okay, basically the 398 and 398m both use a selenium cell for metering. Many older light meters and cameras used these. The problem is that selenium cells degrade over time, and how fast they degrade depends on how often it's used and how it's stored. Basically, the more the cell is exposed to light, the shorter its life. So a selenium cell could still work great after 30 years if it was used sparingly and stored in a dark environment. Or it could be completely inaccurate after just a few years, if it was stored in bright conditions and used constantly.

The problem is, you don't know. There's no telling if the cell has 6 months left, or 20 years. So most people would opt for the newer model (398A) because it doesn't use a selenium cell so they don't have to worry about it.

Edit to add: Check Amazon, they seem to have a pretty good price on brand new ones.

I'd recommend getting a cheap lux meter (like this. You can also get apps for your phone sensors that will give an estimate (usually at least the right order of magnitude) of the light output.

Sounds like that species likes decent shade, but "shade" can still mean a lot brighter than some T5 bulbs, and it heavily depends on their distance from the plant.

It may also be picky about the spectrum that it's getting. Any idea what color temperature your bulbs are? "Full spectrum" or not? Fluorescents have a pretty mediocre spectral distribution, not generally as good as black body radiation or LEDs. Example. Since most tropical understory plants that I've seen are generally very picky about everything, I'm guessing this one isn't much different.

> Once calibrated [the S2716DG] is the best TN panel ever.

Please forgive my inexperience, but how does one calibrate a monitor? Is it the on-board settings display? Do you need external equipment? (If so, $200 for a colorimeter seems a bit much, on-top of the already pricey S2716DG.)

If you care about color accuracy you have to get a calibrator and then you can match all of the displays together while also ensuring they are accurate. Such as this.

Exactly.

http://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNSML-ColorMunki-Smile/dp/B009APMNB0

That's a cheap monitor calibration tool. I ran my ROG Swift through it and have been shocked at how much better the color is on it than my BenQ XL2411z, which also has fairly good colors for TN.

>My questions begin when I look at all the editing options each one gives.

It's a personal preference, though none of your other questions can be properly answered without knowing what software you will use. While they may provide similar results, how you get there changes with the software choice you make.

I can suggest getting a white balance card and/or a color reference card (this is a cheap one) to help ensure more accurate color when doing landscapes. And calibrating your monitor.

Yup, that's why you need to have the camera spot meter the white balance off the focus point, and set the focus point on the center of the rifle. If your camera has the option, have the spot size be as small as possible.

Ideally, you would take an out of focus photo of an 18% grey card with manual white balance, then correct it in post. I'm sure /u/bcphotog can chime in.

i1Display Pro is one of the best, and almost all calibration software will work on it.

Color calibration, bro. Get yourself a cheap calibrator like this one and use dispcalGUI to calibrate and profile your monitors. Works a charm.

I always carry one of these with me in my bag. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HT9MA1W/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Although I usually use the white side to good effect, it does have the grey side as well.

Thanks! Do you know why people seem against the Adobe Standard so much (based on a google search of Adobe Standard vs Camera Standard)?

I can't afford a Macbeth chart at the moment, Do cheap alternatives (such as [This] (http://www.amazon.com/Neewer-Photography-Colors-Colorchecker-Classic/dp/B00OZJ5OJ4/ref=sr_1_12?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1421547835&sr=1-12&keywords=color+calibration) or this or this) to the chart work also? How difficult is it to set up a custom profile with a chart like that?

I've got one and it works great.

https://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-SLC100-SpyderLensCal/dp/B0041L3JS4

This is great: https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-ColorMunki-CMUNDIS-Accuracy-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOM

Use it with displaycal software.

Since your monitors are not the same model, it's going to be very challenging to get them to look the same.

You should probably get a color calibrator if you actually want them to look the same.

If you can't afford that, there are cheaper calibration tools. Just look around. You can also, of course, just tweak the color settings manually until they look the same using Nvidia Control Panel / Catalyst Control Center. You can also try to just use the built in Windows color calibration, which I find very hard to be consistent with. What models are your screens? Somebody may have made color calibration profiles for them. They won't be perfectly tailored to your screens, but they should come pretty close.

Yeah I bought a spyder4 pro off amazon. it's like 150 bucks but you can use it on tons of stuff.

http://smile.amazon.com/Datacolor-Spyder4Pro-S4P100-Colorimeter-Calibration/dp/B006TF37H8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1407881831&sr=8-1&keywords=spyderpro4

I calibrate my:

MBP
Surface Pro 3,
3 desktop monitors.

It's been worth EVERY PENNY.

Well… this little photography project is more complicated than I anticipated. If I lock the exposure on my phone to make the comparison, one photo is either very yellow or very blue, due to the crisp white of the Aurora vs. the warm white of the incandescent bulbs. Also, the shadows are weird from the overhead light vs. the wall-mounted Aurora.

Here’s what I ended up with: yellow one is the incandescent overhead light in the ceiling.

It probably makes more sense to use a light meter across the room from the light source rather than taking photos, but… I don’t have a good light meter. The gizmo on my phone tells me the overhead light is less than half the lux of the Aurora, which can’t be right (maybe it’s the effect of RGB white LEDs vs limited-gamut incandescent warm white?).

Anyway, if anyone has any advice on how to go about it, I’m open to suggestions.

You really need to create your own ICC profile using something like an i1 Display Pro

Use your scopes. A waveform monitor and vectorscope will tell you exactly how bright and how colorful your video is no matter what state your monitor is in.

If you really want to dial it in, check out a product like the DataColor SpyderExpress to calibrate your monitor: http://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-Spyder4Express-S4X100-Display-Calibration/dp/B006TF3746

Amazon, for $20 It reads in lux, but it's an easy conversion to candle power. As noggin-scratcher said, they're called light meters.

This one looks like the updated version of the model I've always used (mine original unit's still working 10 years later).

Cheap, reliable, easy-to-use.

They make budget options that when paired with an open source software do a pretty solid job.

Chances are you are WAY to close and definitely not too far away.

Those sprouts are trying to get their head in the dirt, not reach for the sky like a guppy on its last breath.


https://www.amazon.com/URCERI-Handheld-Digital-Temperature-Measurer/dp/B075DC6X25/ref=pd_rhf_sc_p_img_12?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=N1J50XP6BGAA8515VKWS


Find the point they are reaching for the sky (about 3 to 3.5ft or higher if your lights are stronger). Then lower a little at a time (every 2 days) until they level off a little.

They should always be reaching just a little at the tippy top. about 10 - 15 degrees.


Also, if your leaves turn too dark too quickly, is another sign of roasting your bud (to be) way to early.


LEDs like lasers. are a specific wavelength. Your eyes are uses to many colors coming from the sun and incandescent bulbs. About half the spectrum is missing from LED (so it can be more efficient in the ones you want), so your eyes 'think' its not as bright, but it is. At least in photon impact and heat generated is concerned.

I've got this one here. It was super easy to use and the monitors are very close. My only issue I believe is that one is IPS and the other is a much older LCD panel that has a terrible viewing angle.

Very much so. When you set focus on the target, it was very easy to see front and back focusing with various lenses.

If you are shooting wide aperture, you need to have focus nailed. That is why this adjustment exists on pro bodies for each lens. You can set adjustment for near and far focus. With Sigma zooms, you can set near and far focus for one of 4 focal ranges, using their dock.

This is why it is common for DLSR shooters that are photographing a focus critical shot to use live view (i.e. make their camera a mirrorless and focus on the sensor.) Until dual pixel AF of Canon, this really sucked. Like first generation mirrorless AF.

That isn’t a bad option.

I do recommend budget a little more to also get yourself an X-Rite i1Display Pro.

You’ll need it to keep the display calibrated (no the factory calibration isn’t good enough, and yes this is a thing you need to do routinely). Otherwise all the cash spent on a nice display will mostly be a waste.

http://www.amazon.ca/Datacolor-S4X100-Spyder4Express-Display-Calibration/dp/B006TF3746/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1419623059&sr=8-3&keywords=spyder4pro

I actually have this product and it works fairly well for issues like this.

This little light meter is great if you're new to film. Mine has been so accurate and durable that I haven't bothered to replace it. That said, it's not great for low-light or very unusual lighting conditions.

From SAG over on r/HandsOnComplexity:
>Since your lux meter in your phone is not cosine correct it should not be used as a plant light meter- your results are going to be off. The white plastic dome or white piece of plastic on a light meter is for cosine correction.


While using any type of lux meter, you will have skewed results, as lux measurement is based on a certain spectrum sensitivity that our eyes have. It is very weighted in green. For example it will read a green only 60w light as more lux than the same type of 60w light that is blue or red. However, if you are set and sure of what you are doing, here is the lux meter I use for relative measurements. Leaton Digital Luxmeter for $16

I don't have this set, but I do have a couple of [70 LED units with barndoors] (https://www.amazon.com/LEDwholesalers-LED-Rechargeable-Barndoor-4001/dp/B0040FEWA0//ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20) that I put on light stands (as seen [here] (https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipOHXQ-XTL7wRLEB2F3IJBlRsbjVeu--cobJUuF19Q-nrofp1RG1EntmUywmeXtUDA/photo/AF1QipNW2YO3e8SX9KRBmGqQr535w72JhuOugRICPuf1?key=X0FiM2FuWl94V1Z3UTFYaGVsb1hQZWtrdEVXOFhn)), or on top of my cameras (as seen [here] (https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipOxON4x-wBk5IFnukI2wteBTQ888VUaEAWbPetD15RaGmVlegXdGEaDBZ27KWH_AQ/photo/AF1QipPP_UsTo21emhXwoOhoGnNoFWoBro9lvJvnoc2y?key=Zk5zdWtxOWU5ajk4aHJVdWFNYkJvVVpfb3NCZzVR)).

I don't really trust the color temperature of any LED panel that doesn't have a published CRI, so I use a [color calibration card] (https://www.amazon.com/CameraTrax-24ColorCard-2x3-White-Balance-Guidebook/dp/B004QXU8VI//ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20) to avoid color casts.

Again, hope this is helpful!

You are going to need something like this https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Luxmeter-Illuminance-Display-0-1-50/dp/B00992B29I and to fine tune each one manually.

I've been using a ColorMunki for two years now. Love the little thing. No need to understand how it works, I just put it on my screen once every few months and it does it's thing.
Did my new AOC AG352UCG yesterday :D

Angle from where the picture is taken might have an influence, but I don't think that it matters all that much.

Try looking at the original picture and compare it to the picture shown on the wall screen. Look at the colour of the floor. There is a distinct difference even though if you look at the original picture shown on only one screen there is no such thing.

I don't know how the calibration is done when it is turned on, and I can't see how you can do a proper calibration without an external measuring device to measure what colour each screen is actually producing. Basically measuring the colour which is produced and comparing it against the colour which you are trying to produce.

I only know about the consumer facing products used for this. The tool used is called a colorimeter.

Link to one such device.

The default hotkeys to open display controls is:

Hold "Option" and press "F1"

(You might have to also hold down fn if you have your function keys toggled the other way)

Now click on "color", and then "Calibrate...", then follow the instructions.

If you wanted to be super serious about it, you could buy one of these...

But frankly, I wouldn't bother. As long as you edit entire photo sets on the same screen, it should be ok. If you switch screens halfway through an album, that is really bad. But if you do the whole thing on one screen, your photos should be fine, and any slight tones will just add character to your photos.

this how-to is pretty good

but for the most part i use this device

Well if you aren't using flash and just need ambient, an iphone meter (get an attatchment) or cheap meter (http://www.amazon.com/HDE-LX-1010B-Digital-Luxmeter-Display/dp/B00992B29I/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1416841101&sr=8-14&keywords=light+meter) may work well.

That meter will give you lux. You can print a quick EV conversion chart and tape it to the back.

You could buy a cheap lux meter and just measure the brightness?

​

https://www.amazon.com/URCERI-Illuminance-Handheld-Temperature-Measurer/dp/B075DC6X25/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=lux+meter&qid=1565111950&s=gateway&sr=8-3

Thinking that you might benefit from one of these.

Calibrate, then look at your previous attempts.

Picked up a color meter from Amazon

X-Rite i1Display Pro (EODIS3) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0055MBQOW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_AdSGDbDWHX785

Already completed the rec-709 and imported it onto madvr.. Working my way through BT.2020 now.. Looking forward to see what improvements I get.

Thanks. Very helpful.

Another related question. During slates on our show the PA would often hold up a colour chart.

Should I just compile these and throw them at the end of the sequence? That's what I did for episode 1 but the colourist never mentioned it and is away on vacation while I'm prepping Ep. 2.

You WB is off. Both the temp and the hue look out of whack. Get a gray card like this and be sure to take a shot of it under the lighting conditions before your shoot. Then set the WB from that once you start processing. It will make all you colors be more true.

Yeah I just use this one from Amazon. It's only $7.

https://www.amazon.com/Lightdow-Balance-Reference-Reflector-version/dp/B00HT9MA1W/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1520546885&sr=8-3&keywords=grey+card

Food shoots I'm doing right now for an online delivery service require this setup:

-31" double diffused softbox

-Reflector (I use one with a handle so I can attach it to a weighted tripod and set it on a chair. Not the ideal setup currently, but it works.

-godox speedlight->bowens clamp mount

-white balance mini-reflector

-speedlight

-a7iii + Nikon 55mm 2.8 micro

-2x cloth napkins

-Moleskine notebook

-Extra speedlight

i could attach tripod to my bag and fit everything, though I prefer to just carry it. I use a tripod as a light stand because it folds up smaller.

all fits in my 30L

And light meters are cheap!

I bought this one to check brightness and distance when I use plant lights in my house:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B075DC6X25/

If you don't care about GSync, the best deals currently are Nixeus and Pixio both ~615CAD after shipping+tax from amazon.com. They're both 27" 1440p 144hz IPS panels with Freesync.

If you're going to get a colorimiter I'd go for a ColorMunki Display as it's the same hardware as in the XRite i1DisplayPro with some of the pro software features locked. Spyders are overpriced in Canada imo, as well as slightly worse than the Xrite stuff.

They look healthy, imo. Patience, they're developing.

Check these out


https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/blog-how-to-use-a-lux-meter-to-increase-your-cannabis-yields-n977


Check this out at Amazon.com
URCERI Light Meter Digital Illuminance Meter Handheld Ambient Temperature Measurer with Range up to 200,000 Lux Luxmeter with 4 Digit Color LCD Screen https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075DC6X25/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_4yeUCb8MFS7XF

Yep, I had the same thing happen on my first grow (on my 3rd now). It's stretching due to not enough light. You can basically ignore the recommendations of the grow light manufacturer's as far as distance above the plants -- they seem to always err on the side of caution. I bought this lux meter on Amazon for about $20: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075DC6X25/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_xnYUDbD3MF0DF
I've been keeping the light intensity between 10K - 20K lux for seedlings and that seems to work for me. Then gradually increase.

Here you go!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HT9MA1W/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1520049053&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=white+balance+disc&dpPl=1&dpID=41yOhfVswsL&ref=plSrch

Edit: I use the gray side when shooting V-Log video so I can know the exposure value when using false color on my Atomos recorder.

Another way is to get a Colorimeter to calibrate/measure 8bit or 10bit color to ensure they are accurate. Which is what most graphic designer/print work professionals use:
https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-i1Display-Pro-Display-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOW/

I own this device, works like a charm
https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Luxmeter-Illuminance-Display-0-1-50/dp/B00992B29I/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1527670303&sr=8-13&keywords=lux+meter

You can find them cheaper than is, but this is the first hit that is exactly mine.

Those two lights on the outside are not going to add anything.. use a lux meter to mesure light intensity on your plants
https://www.amazon.com/URCERI-Illuminance-Handheld-Temperature-Measurer/dp/B075DC6X25/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1549323896&sr=8-2-spons&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=lux+meter&psc=1

In seedling stage they should all be getting 5k-10k lux for fastest growth

It sounds like you need to calibrate your monitor. I would read up on it on google. I use this device to calibrate my monitors (there are also cheaper ones):

https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-ColorMunki-CMUNDIS-Accuracy-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=ColorMunki&qid=1567110396&s=electronics&sr=1-3

I would suggest checking out Anandtech's Monitor review section. They're incredibly thorough in their reviews. If you're looking for a deal, they recommend Monoprice's 27" IPS As long as you use a calibration tool like the X-Rite i1Display Pro.

I think to do it properly, you need something like This.

However, that is just what I have been told. Most people who use these and bring them up are professional photographers.

You need a tool to make sure the colors are accurate for sRGB colors. Something like this. Until you've done that, you can't be sure your screen is actually color accurate.

But as others here have mentioned, I think you're likely running in to a white balance issue. This is why it's good to shoot in RAW, then you can adjust white balance after the fact in Lightroom.

I bought this http://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-EODIS3-i1Display-Pro/dp/B0055MBQOW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405474564&sr=8-1&keywords=xrite

It basically hangs on your monitor for 2 minutes and tells you what settings to change. It made my drop my blue channel from 100 to 88 and adjust the brightness a little as well.

The result is a little more yellow, which apparently is normal.

I used one called Chromapure. I bought the pro version which is $199. But with software you also have to have a colorimeter which will also run you about $200. Would probably be cheaper to pay for a calibration. There is a free option for software called HCFR. It's open source and there are some tutorials for using it such as this one but you will still need the colorimeter. The tutorial goes over the needed items and even links to places to purchase them. I got my meter off of eBay because you can find them for less than other sites stores most of the time. Edit: This is the meter I bought.

http://www.amazon.com/DGK-Color-Tools-Balance-Calibration/dp/B00AWT2QCE?ie=UTF8&keywords=color%20reference%20chart&qid=1463878067&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1

Just the first result on amazon. Good camera phone would probably work, software I've got is for NEF files (written by some computational imaging grad students I knew back in undergrad) but should be able to do with a camera phone, especially if you can get higher-bit depth RAWs.

It could be your monitor. I recommend getting one of these if you're serious about digital photography or design of any kind.

If you are going to screw with white balance/color management system you need a meter and software. At minimum HCFR and a a colormunki display/i1display pro

http://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421683481&sr=8-1&keywords=colormunki&pebp=1421683458220&peasin=B0055MBQOM

If you get the colormunki however you cannot use commercial software like calman in the future.

If your tv has a RGB mode in the settings (it should) where it only shows the red green or blue channel. You can use test patterns and set color and tint atleast without any additional equipment.

Well i test for LUX and calculate par based on height, spectrum used and lux to come up with the average par. I'm not the most experienced person for indoor grows since all my other grows have had solar power. With LUX and watt meters while the data i collect might be off its still something to go based on for future grows.

Digital Luxmeter/Digital Illuminance Light Meter with LCD Display 0.1-50,000 Lux Range https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00992B29I/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_uAuEDbEAF4NWN

Here's a good range to look at, in USD:

$2600

$1400

$800 + $170

$400 + $170 The monitor's not in stock yet, but they also have a $500 one available with a few more bells and whistles, but without the new enclosure.

The only one I have experience with is [this one](X-Rite i1Display Pro - Display Calibration (EODIS3) Scanner & Software for Color Accuracy Scanning, Profiling, & Multi Device Calibration https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0055MBQOW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apip_qRmMDOs9LhFSF). It’s very simple to use. There’s a third-party software that is recommended for implementing the color profile, though. I’ll see if I can dig that up.

If you need accurate colours, you should be calibrating your displays (which should be IPS or similar technology panels) with hardware like this.

If you can't afford that, Windows has inbuilt colour calibration but you'll just be doing it by eye so it won't be properly accurate. If you have a decent smartphone (newer iPhone or Samsung high end device in "Basic" picture mode especially) that should be a reasonably accurate comparison point.

Try a white or grey card. Hold it up, in the light you're using and set a manual WB. As far as I understand it's a sure thing if you use it right, but I'm an AC on the holding side not the DoP's side.

I just went with that one because it was the cheapest option. The Display price on Amazon seems to be much cheaper than the B&H price. https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478906924&sr=8-1&keywords=colormunki

If anyone is looking for a monitor calibration device. The colormonki smile is at its lowest price ever on Amazon. Currently $35 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009APMNB0/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

Can't argue with $21.99

https://www.amazon.com/Dr-meter-LX1010B-Digital-Illuminance-Light/dp/B004K0A7I6/ref=sr_1_3?rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1523327833&sr=8-3&keywords=lux+meter&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011%2Cp_72%3A2661618011&dpID=51hOAEYG-BL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

If you want to do it for real:

https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNSML-ColorMunki-Smile/dp/B009APMNB0/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1468959372&sr=8-2&keywords=ColorMunki

http://displaycal.net/

If you don't want to invest, go to http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/black.php and calibrate your black and white levels.

Buying a colorchecker like this can help you a lot, especially when using cheap equipment that is difficult to control.

Learning how to color-grade footage early on will follow you throughout your career.

Get a grey card and learn to use it during your shoots: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HT9MA1W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_9W5XAbJF4KD4F

This will keep your white balance where it should be so you don’t start off your editing already trying to recover the photo back to a neutral.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012TI52FS/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I only use the grey card and for white balance.