Is the iMac display good enough for pro-photo editing?

[londonweb]

Morning all,

I'm doing some consultancy work for a photographic agency and they've asked me whether an iMac will be a good enough machine to cover their needs with regard to photo-editing and image balancing for print. My honest answer is that I don't really know- obviously the ideal solution would be a MacPro with a cinema display but I think budget is a major factor here. I do my own photo editing on a G4 pb with an external display hence I've no doubt the iMac can handle the job power-wise, so the main thing is the display quality. I've never really studied one up-close and I'm wondering if anyone else uses one for this purpose and what their thoughts are.

Many thanks!

 

[Father Jack]

Providing it is calibrated regularly using something like Spyder 2 pro it should be acceptable.

As you say a Mac Pro and ACD would be a better, but more expensive solution.

FJ

 

[TBi]

For a while the ACD and iMac used the same screen. Not sure about that any more.

 

[CaptainHaddock]

I'm pretty sure all iMacs use high-quality S-IPS displays, as do the cinema displays. As far as current technology goes, they're pretty much ideal for design work. In general, too, the larger the iMac, the more expensive the LCD it has. The 24" appears to have a very nice screen.

 

[davegoody]

Absolutely !

Morning all,

I'm doing some consultancy work for a photographic agency and they've asked me whether an iMac will be a good enough machine to cover their needs with regard to photo-editing and image balancing for print. My honest answer is that I don't really know- obviously the ideal solution would be a MacPro with a cinema display but I think budget is a major factor here. I do my own photo editing on a G4 pb with an external display hence I've no doubt the iMac can handle the job power-wise, so the main thing is the display quality. I've never really studied one up-close and I'm wondering if anyone else uses one for this purpose and what their thoughts are.

Many thanks!

I use three different Macs, a PBG4 17", a MBP 17" and a 24" iMac and all are fine, far better than my DELL PC and 19" screen. So long as all the screens are calibrated, they are great. And to be honest, I have only calibrated the iMac once, unlike a CRT, the colour does not drift.

I am a pro Wedding photographer and use the MBP for on-the-job edits and imports and the iMac for the main editing (use Aperture and Photoshop mainly).

Good luck, check out my website - http://www.lifetyme.co.uk or my Flickr Pro pages at http://www.flickr.com/photos/lifetyme/sets

 

[Xeem]

The iMac has a very nice, very accurate screen. It will suffice very well for photo editing.

 

[mkrishnan]

And to be honest, I have only calibrated the iMac once, unlike a CRT, the colour does not drift.

So I'm curious about this... the color of the LCD transistors does not drift, but what about the white output by the backlight? Does that change in frequency distribution over time as the bulb wears out? If so that's an important reason to periodically recalibrate. And I'm probably overdue.

 

[BigPrince]

I couldnt imagine anything better...I am sure there is, but my 20 inch iMac screen is awesome.

 

[mrgreen4242]

I'm pretty sure all iMacs use high-quality S-IPS displays, as do the cinema displays. As far as current technology goes, they're pretty much ideal for design work. In general, too, the larger the iMac, the more expensive the LCD it has. The 24" appears to have a very nice screen.

Is there a 24" S-IPS panel? I thought that there was only a 23", which is why Apple used it, and Dell used a PVA panel for their 24". The 24" LCD is no doubt still very nice, but I'm just unsure if it uses a S-IPS panel.

 

[londonweb]

Thanks everyone, this is all a great help.

 

[skinnylegs]

I've had a number of monitors over the years and my iMac display is as good as any and better than most. Go get some!

 

[iBunny]

As you said, The Performance of the Top End iMac would be more than adequate for Photo Editing. I say get the 24 inch iMac maxed out and dont look back. The Display should do well, they are deffinatly high quality.

 

[CaptainHaddock]

Is there a 24" S-IPS panel? I thought that there was only a 23", which is why Apple used it, and Dell used a PVA panel for their 24". The 24" LCD is no doubt still very nice, but I'm just unsure if it uses a S-IPS panel.

According to some sources, Dell has used both S-PVA and S-IPS panels in their 24" display. If true, that means at least one company manufactures 24" S-IPS panels.

I'm looking at my Dell 24" right now, and I think it's S-PVA judging by the viewing angle, but I'm not 100% certain.

It makes sense to me Apple would keep an S-IPS in their 24" iMac if at all possible, but next time I'm at the Apple store I'll look closely and see if I detect any differences from my own display.

Regarding calibration: LCD backlights can change in brightness and colour over time, I believe.

 

[Father Jack]

All monitors (lcd and crt) need to be calibrated at regular intervals.

FJ