How often do monitors need to be calibrated?
Once you get over the first hurdle in actually calibrating your monitor for the first time (like me when I was a complete newbie), you have to remember how often you need to re-calibrate.
I had no idea how much I needed to do it. I remember a few years ago, I was so upset at how different my images looked once printed, I blamed my cheap monitor and bought a high end one. While it did help, it did not completely solve my problems. I could have just calibrated my older monitor.
And in fact, that’s just what I did recently. I use it as my second monitor and was amazed at the difference. In both monitors, there was a noticeable difference in color and brightness.
So why re-calibrate?
Good question. This is because color temperature and screen brightness will gradually change over time. While many high-end brands calibrate all of their monitors in the factory, this does not mean that stay calibrated, or that they’re calibrated correctly in the first place. Your ambient light may differ greatly from theirs. Who knew?
So how often should you calibrate?
Most calibration software suggests that you calibrate your monitor(s) every 2-6 weeks to ensure that everything is accurate.
As someone who had never done it before, I did it again after eight weeks. Perhaps in future, I will drop that to at least once per month, just to make sure everything is as it should be. I set a reminder in my calendar.
How long does it take?
It really only takes about two minutes per monitor when using the Datacolor SpyderX Pro. Of course, there is the second monitor and now hubby’s monitors as well. But all in all, it should take less than 10 minutes for everything.
Does it really make such a difference?
With the SpyderX Pro, you can be sure that what you see on the screen is the most accurate representation of the image you took. It’s nice to know when you start editing that the color and brightness on your monitor is accurate. And when it’s time to print, you can have the confidence that your printed output will match what you are seeing on screen.
Considering I only calibrated my monitor one month ago, it is surprising that there is still a subtle difference.
