Best light meters & accessories according to redditors
We found 306 Reddit comments discussing the best light meters & accessories. We ranked the 56 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
We found 306 Reddit comments discussing the best light meters & accessories. We ranked the 56 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
![Lightdow 12 x 12 Inch (30 x 30 cm) White Balance 18% Gray Reference Reflector Grey Card with Carry Bag [Folded Version]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41yOhfVswsL.jpg)
this how-to is pretty good
but for the most part i use this device
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 is good for taking it to another level:
https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-i1Display-Pro-Display-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOW
Google "HCFR" and "DISPLAYCAL" free software you would want to use with it. Feel free to PM me for tips on how to use with TVs vs PC monitors (it's designed with software out of the box for PC-connected monitors only).
Using this with the bundled software will at least get your backlight brightness and contrast dialed in, and some color tone and color space/white balance stuff. With the HCFR, DISPLAYCAL or other software like CALMAN which costs money, you can dial it in even more.
Good luck :D
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.
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.
There's nothing wrong with your approach but spacing in this context is when people use uncut 5m strips.
A narrow spacing would have a tight ring with the LED strip. As you wrap the strip around the inside of the bucket there would be no space between the strips. The problem with this is that all the light is concentrated to a narrow region of the plant at higher lighting levels.
But, lower lighting levels can actually be more photosynthetically efficient (this is why shade cloths are used in a lot of green houses). The two main reasons why higher lighting levels can be less efficient have to do with non-photochemical quenching and photorespiration.
So it is more efficient for the plant to not blast the plant as hard but also have the lighting more distributed so that more individual leaves receive light. Unlit leaves below a certain lighting intensity, known as the compensation point, start consuming more resources than they produce. This is part of the pressure flow hypothesis and is the basis of why some people might defoliate a plant (remove some leaves- as a beginner I would not do this since it is often over done and haphazard).
So with a 5m strips it's typically better to have an inch or two between the wraps to spread the light out and illuminate more leaves.
Don't fret! You can still use your LEDs. You can do a bit of trial and error or even better buy a cheap cosine correct lux light meter (lux meters should only be used with white light, not color LEDs- you will get very wrong measurements with color LEDs) so that you can dial your spacing for very even lighting. The light sensor in phones tends not to be cosine correct and can therefore give some real bad readings.
It looks like you have some experience soldering so you actually have some more flexibility in how you set up your side lighting instead of just a continuous 5m strip.
If one is working with white light and plants, the best investment one can make is a simple, low cost light meter to set everything up.
https://www.amazon.com/HDE-LX-1010B-Digital-Luxmeter-Display/dp/B00992B29I
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.
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.
Just because you have a decent monitor doesn't mean it is showing anything in the correct colors, saturation, or anything else. If you want it right, you need to calibrate your monitor. People constantly buy these expensive monitors and leave the settings at default, or worse fiddle without knowing what they are doing.
You can use one of these or hire someone.
$3000 computer for a videographer... only spends $180 on a 21" monitor? ಠ_ಠ No. No. Nope.
SLI is pretty much useless for video editing (very hit & miss depending on the software) and only adds unnecessary heat and cost to the rig. Drop one of those 780s and focus that money on a quality 24-27" IPS screen and hardware color calibration! (stay the hell away from those budget 4k TN screens)
Edit: Also, if OP is used to their MBP keyboard, I'd recommend picking up a wired Apple keyboard. Personally, I find them much less fatiguing on my fingers. It makes for a seamless transition (if you're still using the MPB) and goes a long way to make your Hackintosh feel more native.
Edit 2: After some very surface level searching, here are some much better monitors the OP should put their money towards: HP 24" z24x P-IPS ,Dell 27" U2713HM P-IPS and Asus 27" PB278Q P-IPS. If it can't come close to 100% sRGB, it's shit. Oh and the monitor color calibrator.
Here's the wikipedia entry, but basically it's a 'known reference value' (18% gray) sheet of plastic.
They're quite cheap to acquire. I use one similar to this one on Amazon.
> 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:
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.
Checking CCC for the price history on those, here's what I'm seeing.
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.
addes lumen reader to christmas list
http://www.amazon.com/Dr-Meter-Digital-Illuminance-Light-LX1330B/dp/B005A0ETXY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418876959&sr=8-1&keywords=lumen+reader
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.
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'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?
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. :)
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.
The 135 watt QB is great for a 2x2 tent. I've been using a cheap lux meter to dim it down so that it has 30k-ish lux coverage for the whole tent. It actually goes up to 160w, according to my Kill-a-Watt, and I had a plant burn when it grew too close and got more than 60k lux. Also, here's a great post about using a lux meter to get plant lighting dialed in.
I haven't used an HPS light, but in a tent that small, the extra heat may be an issue. The QB doesn't put off that much.
this is the only way you're really going to get it calibrated. I have one of these, used it with the ColorHCFR fork that's being worked on by people on AVSforum. You aren't going to get your greyscale right without a meter.
http://www.amazon.com/Xrite-EODIS3-i1Display-Pro/dp/B0055MBQOW
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
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 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.
Buy a light meter!
Give it 600 to 1,000 foot candles. Water as needed.
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.
Every LCD panel is different. You need to get a calibrator and calibrate the monitors to be accurate and match.
https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1491967748&sr=8-2&keywords=colormunki
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")
Run it through the tests here: http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/?
If you want something more accurate, get a meter such as this one: https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM
You cannot accurately calibrate a display by eye. Your perception of brightness and color varies depending on what you've been looking at. You can try looking through forums for an ICC profile someone else has generated. But remember, that was generated for THEIR display, not yours. Individual displays vary. That profile will probably get your display closer to correct than the defaults, but there is no guarantee of this.
First, budget in a calibration probe because without it, even the best monitor can't be trusted. You really shouldn't get a spyder (they suck) or low end xrite. The cheapest I'd recommend is the x-rite i1 display pro (and you should get the OEM model if you can as it will work with high end calibration software if/when you upgrade). For now, use this with the excellent free and open source displaycal calibration suite. Upgrade to Light Illusion or CalMan when you can afford it/need to. Most consumer and low end pro displays need to be calibrated once a month or so - even those that come "factory calibrated."
Beyond that, 10bit is nice, IPS is a must, and not all displays are created equal. Best bang for your buck in 4K right now is probably the LG 31MU97C-B (4K, DCI-P3 color, 10bit, 31", really pretty) (also I think this is the same monitor but cheaper? Ignore the poor reviews, they don't know what they're talking about). This is the same panel as in the high end Eizo that is finding itself into some color suites, but without the Eizo processing and available for almost a quarter of the price.
Here is an article with some other quality options.
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.
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 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.
you could start by buying one of these http://www.amazon.com/DGK-Color-Tools-Reference-Correction/dp/B001KNP3MQ/ref=lp_3109910011_1_1?s=photo&ie=UTF8&qid=1419966344&sr=1-1
but you get the hang of it after few years
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.
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.
You can adjust white balance to 6500 or rmaybe just buy a ColorMunki and download displaycal to try and calibrate the LG to whatever the Gateway is at.
​
https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-ColorMunki-CMUNDIS-Accuracy-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=colormunki&qid=1561949413&s=gateway&sr=8-1
I assume you mean the ColorMunki Display and not the Smile?
You need a hardware device to properly calibrate a monitor. I use one of these but there are cheaper alternatives.
..and if you put an incan bulb inside a reflector for an LED it would probably not go well. Why would you expect it to work well when you're mixing parts that weren't designed for each other?
A "more focused beam" is generally called throw. Its a measure of how far the flashlight can project its beam of light. There are two things that come into effect:
Incandescents have a filament. Their light comes from a squiggly wire of some sort. No reflector will ever gather all that light properly. LEDs are much closer to the ideal "point source" where all the light comes from a tiny spot.
I think your eyes are lying to you. Incandescents just do not out-throw modern LEDs. They can't make as much light and they can't be focused as cleanly. HID and other arc-lighting can with a big enough reflector, but not incandescent. Maybe what you're seeing is a smaller hot-spot of light. That's possible. But the intensity of that hotspot is very relevant to how much throw a light has. You can buy a $26 light meter and test it yourself. Or you can believe me, because I've got lots of lights including incan maglites, LED maglites, and proper contemporary LED lights. And I own a light meter.
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.
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.
Although older the X-Rite ColorMunki Smile (CMUNSML) is an inexpensive option depending on your region:
If you're in the UK/Europe, the Datacolor Spyder5EXPRESS (S5X100) might be cheaper though:
Note some of those are/might be sale prices due to Cyber Monday!
Failing that, just search your local Amazon and check out reviews of the cheaper options. They all work about the same for non-pro users.
Edit: I just purchased the X-Rite ColorMunki Smile (CMUNSML) as I couldn't pass up the Canadian sale price today. If you want to use newer, open source software with more options look into DisplayCAL, but check the Supported Instruments for colorimeter support.
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.
Color calibration, bro. Get yourself a cheap calibrator like this one and use dispcalGUI to calibrate and profile your monitors. Works a charm.
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.
> 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
I have one of these and love it. Easy to carry around and use.
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
$16 isn't THAT expensive...
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.
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
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/
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!
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.
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.
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.
I'd suggest grabbing one of these to see if the lens is missing focus.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0041L3JS4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_5vMSAb8Y014E8
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 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.
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!
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.
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.
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!
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
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 $150 on amazon right now - http://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408992805&sr=8-1&keywords=colormunki ) and use the free HCFR calibration software - http://www.avsforum.com/forum/139-display-calibration/1393853-hcfr-open-source-projector-display-calibration-software.html
The difference between a properly calibrated TV and even the best you can do by eye with a calibration dvd is night and day.
This is great: https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-ColorMunki-CMUNDIS-Accuracy-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOM
Use it with displaycal software.
> Colormunki Display
Thank you for the amazing reply.
The Colormunki Display came out in 2011, right? It has better sensor even though it came out 4 years earlier?
Is this 2011 one, the one you're talking about:
X-Rite CMUNDIS ColorMunki Display CDN$ 168.99
Datacolor S5P100 Spyder5PRO CDN$ 187.16
The Spyder5 express is the same price as the 2011 Colormunki Display.
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.
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.
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
yes
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.
i1Display Pro is one of the best, and almost all calibration software will work on it.
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.
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.
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.
> 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.)
Some monitors have black crush, i.e. dark gray and black are indistinguishable. People compensate for this by jacking up gamma, which fixes the black crush, but then black is gray and white becomes crushed.
If you're hardcore, get a X-Rite i1Display Pro or cheaper ColorMunki (not tried this one, looks to be the same but slower) and use DisplayCAL to calibrate the monitor. If you're not hardcore, do this black level test. All the low blacks should be visible. But now you probably fail white level test. Hard to get it perfect w/o a sensor.
After I started calibrating I found no need to adjust gamma, because things that were previously uniform black became unique shades of gray. Your eyes might be worse than mine, though.
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).
You'll need a colorimeter for accurate colors across multiple displays. Or you could exchange the monitors for a new pair.
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
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!
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!
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
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
https://smile.amazon.com/Lightdow-Balance-Reference-Reflector-version/dp/B00HT9MA1W/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=gray+card&qid=1566784109&s=gateway&sr=8-3
This lil guy here. I shoot a frame with that in it and then use that color sample for white balance for the rest of the shots. Using natural light will make it a little more difficult because the light will change.
You need to trust your brain in oddball lighting conditions. If there are big spikes of light (streetlights in a night scene, say) you need to meter the area you want to have properly exposed.
Spot and center-weighted meters are just telling you what amount of exposure will make an 18% gray card properly exposed. So you can stick a gray card in the scene where you want proper exposure, move in close enough to fill the metering area with the card, and take a reading. Or meter on someone's face and step back (but for metering from a face, you might want a half stop to a stop more exposure).
Averaging meters and matrix-style meters take all the scene into account (but are likely found on more modern, plastic AF-era bodies).
I'd guess cinestill has pretty good exposure range, so within a stop or so you should be good (cinestill experts might pipe in though).
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.
No problem, in fact as u/mondoman712 says apps exist that use the ambient light sensor for incident metering; but I'm on android and I think the wide variety of hardware give quite inconsistent readings, for what I've tested at least
In any case no thoughts regarding the light meters i mentioned?
Like this one: Lux meter on amazon
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.
A ColorChecker Passport might help. It makes it so you can nail the correct colors every single time. For something a less expensive, a simple gray card will at the very least make sure your white balance is on-point for each shooting environment.
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.
Try the Sekonic L-398A.
http://www.amazon.com/Sekonic-L-398A-Light-Meter-Black/dp/B0010SJYBC/ref=wl_it_dp_o?ie=UTF8&coliid=I3TYFD9WEZ8CND&colid=1X97ZZMJDHTUB
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.
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.
>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.
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.
http://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-SLC100-SpyderLensCal/dp/B0041L3JS4
I've got one and it works great.
https://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-SLC100-SpyderLensCal/dp/B0041L3JS4
Make sure you aren't using any filters at large apertures. I found that this makes a huge difference and can really mess the focus up. Also, get your lens calibrated or do it yourself with one of these
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?
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.
I’ll check it out. It’s this right? X-Rite ColorMunki Display (CMUNDIS) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_T7dqDbT665KKK
Using a Colormunki Display.
http://www.amazon.com/Xrite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1318325216&sr=8-1
I use:
http://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM
Some may think I'm silly for dropping the cash on it, but when your ocd gets out of hand, it's been a life saver. No regrets. It creates a color profile based on your display after some testing that it runs through on their app, and viola, my anxiety is gone.
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.
This is a decent budget one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_0UmnDb3P3TRAG
Should use DisplayCal software anyway, so don't have to deal with the manufacturer software which is what all the bad reviews are complaining about.
>all i need to do is plug the DP cable that comes with the monitor into the 1.2 GPU port right, no special cables?
Yes that is correct.
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.
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
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.
I own this model. Highly recommended for the peace of mind. https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1480961509&sr=8-2&keywords=colormunki
is this it? http://smile.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNDIS-ColorMunki-Display/dp/B0055MBQOM
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.
Thinking that you might benefit from one of these.
Calibrate, then look at your previous attempts.
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
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'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
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.
Any recommendations? I’ve come across this same one
You really need to create your own ICC profile using something like an i1 Display Pro
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 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.
The spider's actually kind of suck. These are much more reliable
https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-i1Display-Pro-Display-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOW
source: 5 years of color work for broadcast
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
no i mean an actual color calibration unit. One of these to be precise
https://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-i1Display-Pro-Display-Calibration/dp/B0055MBQOW
Dr.Meter Digital Light Meter, 0 - 200,000 Lux Light Lux Meter, High Accuracy Illuminance https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B005A0ETXY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_HZUDDbVF50RJY
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)
I was typing up my list of shit for my second grow. Lets see if I got my Reddit Formatting Correct. :)
The Details
Seeds
Gear
Veg/Flowering
Seedlings
Medium and Nutes
Meters
Pots
Misc
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
so in all this, my assumption is that the meter reading is off in the sense that i if i want 70k lux on my canopy, I'll set it LOWER (@50-55k lux on the lux meter), this is where I'm not sure, is the reading weaker or stronger than reality? I'm going on the assumption the light is stronger than indicated on the lux meter ....right??? (forget PAR, don't know anything about that or could afford it anyhow)
My wife is a professional photographer. She, and by extension I, highly suggest you invest in a colorimeter, such as this one. That way, any monitor you use will perform to it's utmost potential.
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.
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.
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.
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.
I calibrate my monitor on regular basis with the Spyder calibrating equipment/software.
It does a decent job adjusting the screen in balance with the ambient lightning. Reduced my symptoms radically.
http://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-Spyder4Pro-S4P100-Colorimeter-Calibration/dp/B006TF37H8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421078233&sr=8-1&keywords=spyder4
I may spend the cash. What are ur feelings on this one? (does multi monitors)
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 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.
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 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 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.
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.
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.
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.
They make budget options that when paired with an open source software do a pretty solid job.
It could be your monitor. I recommend getting one of these if you're serious about digital photography or design of any kind.
>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.
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.
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
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.
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.
I don't know if there is custom white balance available on phone apps, but getting one of these gray cards in combination with the custom white balance has made my photos so much better. I only have to adjust fill light and highlights and shadows.
Sample image
A Color Checker should do the trick.
Have you got a camera that can shoot RAW?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00LPS46TW + lightroom (there's a specific method to these colour checkers to get the colour/light balance you need) will get you as close as you can without using a spectrophotometer.
Invest in a color card, something like: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Datacolor-SpyderCHECKR-24-SCK200-Color/dp/B00LPS46TW/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1551006216&sr=8-5&keywords=color+checker+passport
Resolve can easily correct the captured image using these, then it's a little easier to add your creative grade.
As for a LUT pack? I've never felt the need for one. Admittedly, I'm not a pro nor even a spectacularly prolific amateur, but a decently corrected image is IMHO more than half the battle.
Just buy a chip chart. It is made for this exactly. There is even free software ( Resolve ) that will auto-correct the image from the chip chart.
​
https://www.amazon.com/Datacolor-SCK200-SpyderCHECKR-24/dp/B00LPS46TW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1550376522&sr=8-2&keywords=chip+chart
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.
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.
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!!
You can use anything white, or you can get a specific 18% grey card (will arrive by Thursday with Prime.)
The camera will set the white balance for you. Menu > Camera Settings > White Balance > Custom Setup. Page 36 of the user manual. Point it at a white or grey thing and push set.
Good question. I bought it on Amazon a while ago, so I don't know the specific one, but this looks very similar to what I have.
Follow up question: why wouldn't an exposure gray card work for WB? Are exposure gray cards that non-neutral?
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
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
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.
Yeah, if you've got an unhealthy plant it could be Wrong nutrient solution pH or wrong nutrient intensity (PPM) or too little/too much light
You can hone in on those issues with those devices. Without them you couldn't know of one or more of those are Messing with you
Then there's Humidity/Temperature (https://goo.gl/images/Lf31JV orange is optimal)
Then your medium could be fucked Up, too dense, Bad components (screws with pH), Salt build up
Or your Nutrient composituon could be messed Up (Missing CalMag, Bad Base nutrients)
Those 3 devices together with a Tempreture/Humidity measuring device (godmode would be a Graph with multiple measurements, those things only cost Like 30$) should Cover most your bases.
pH and PPM: https://www.amazon.com/Water-Quality-Meter-Pancellent-Temperature/dp/B06XCMNFVQ/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1542216012&sr=8-1-spons&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=ph+ppm&psc=1
Lux: https://www.amazon.com/URCERI-Handheld-Digital-Temperature-Measurer/dp/B075DC6X25/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1542216067&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=lux+meter&dpPl=1&dpID=41VbfwkdRUL&ref=plSrch
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.
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.
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
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.
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
You people need to calibrate your displays or something. I could see everything just fine.
Get one of these. It's pricey, but it's worth it.
> and the things you could see were tactically awful.
And that is a problem with writing. Which I said is an issue.
That said; the Dothraki thing most people point to isn't actually an issue IMO. They were cavalry, scouting enemy lines and reporting back the way they were supposed to. But yes, there were several other things which were tactically stupid.