mrtoml
Mancunian
I think this has come up before from time to time...
Dan
Let's Sway
Exactly this, and the un-named RF member I'm thinking of was recalcitrant and stubborn in his refusal to take advice. So it's best to let people do what they do and ignore them.I think this has come up before from time to time...
Coldkennels
Barnack-toting Brit.
If I remember right... it was Flickr's fault.Exactly this, and the un-named RF member I'm thinking of was recalcitrant and stubborn in his refusal to take advice. So it's best to let people do what they do and ignore them.
(it wasn't)
Dan
Let's Sway
Nope, it was the dude behind the keyboardIf I remember right... it was Flickr's fault.
(it wasn't)
Garden Maniac
Newbie
Gamma and brightness are different, it’s possible that you have your monitor perfectly calibrated but with a low or high brightness setting which may alter the way the images look - try using displayCAL with your xrite and check the brightness during the measurement
I don’t know about the relative brightness of your monitor to your viewing situation, much of my critical work on a monitor calibrated to srgb 2.2 / and 120 nits which is not particularly bright and most of the photos on the site look great or have a clear artistic intention regarding brightness
typically when I’m trying to simulate paper for soft proofing I am at 90 nits, but that is what works for me in the relative brightness of my desk
Oh my 4 year old iphone which is automatically adjusting brightness against ambient light I never notice anything on rff forum particularly dark in a way that feels like an accident
I can only share my set up and opinion and this isn’t to say I think the whole world is perfect, i very often notice many washed out, dark and muddy photos on in Facebook photography groups all the time
I don’t know about the relative brightness of your monitor to your viewing situation, much of my critical work on a monitor calibrated to srgb 2.2 / and 120 nits which is not particularly bright and most of the photos on the site look great or have a clear artistic intention regarding brightness
typically when I’m trying to simulate paper for soft proofing I am at 90 nits, but that is what works for me in the relative brightness of my desk
Oh my 4 year old iphone which is automatically adjusting brightness against ambient light I never notice anything on rff forum particularly dark in a way that feels like an accident
I can only share my set up and opinion and this isn’t to say I think the whole world is perfect, i very often notice many washed out, dark and muddy photos on in Facebook photography groups all the time
JoeV
Thin Air, Bright Sun
Not to name names, but some people here on RFF post scans of darkroom prints and to my eyes they certainly look too dark, with drowned shadow detail.Is it my aging eyes or the calibration of my two Macs or why do I find so many pictures here far too dark to see the subject, let alone spot shadow details?
Can anybody give me an explanation?
mrtoml
Mancunian
It is difficult to get DisplayCAL to work with MacOS Sonoma which I believe the OP says he uses.Gamma and brightness are different, it’s possible that you have your monitor perfectly calibrated but with a low or high brightness setting which may alter the way the images look - try using displayCAL with your xrite and check the brightness during the measurement

Sonoma | DisplayCAL
Hello, I have noticed the latest build of DisplayCal won't run on Mac OS Sonoma. Has anyone found a workaround? Any advice highly appreciated.
hub.displaycal.net
I have given up trying to use it.
Freakscene
Obscure member
Gamma and brightness are different, it’s possible that you have your monitor perfectly calibrated but with a low or high brightness setting which may alter the way the images look - try using displayCAL with your xrite and check the brightness during the measurement
I don’t know about the relative brightness of your monitor to your viewing situation, much of my critical work on a monitor calibrated to srgb 2.2 / and 120 nits which is not particularly bright and most of the photos on the site look great or have a clear artistic intention regarding brightness
typically when I’m trying to simulate paper for soft proofing I am at 90 nits, but that is what works for me in the relative brightness of my desk
That’s why I asked. Gamma is very consistent, but some software calibration packages come with odd brightness settings as defaults and in any case you use different brightness for optimal viewing vs editing and profiling for printing.
JeffS7444
Well-known
Histogram will tell you whether the image itself is dark.
A
AndyCapp
Guest
mrtoml
Mancunian
If you are responding about DisplayCAL it was a freeware program that gives a lot of control over calibration settings. If you don't know what it is then forget about it because it won't work on Sonoma.Here's the calibrator and "About This Mac". I don't know what you are talking about, basta!
View attachment 4836056View attachment 4836059
Just use the software that came with your i1 device.
A
AndyCapp
Guest
That's what I did already. Didn't I say so?If you are responding about DisplayCAL it was a freeware program that gives a lot of control over calibration settings. If you don't know what it is then forget about it because it won't work on Sonoma.
Just use the software that came with your i1 device.
mrtoml
Mancunian
Then you should be fine then.That's what I did already. Didn't I say so?
Darthfeeble
But you can call me Steve
I like dark moody shots, I got guff from a few people for that, maybe the photographer wanted that picture dark........
skopar steve
Well-known
If it helps you figure it out I also experience some images on this forum as being too dark. The images the same person posts on flickr are dark as well. My thought is your eyes and monitor are fine.
A
AndyCapp
Guest
If it helps you figure it out I also experience some images on this forum as being too dark. The images the same person posts on flickr are dark as well. My thought is your eyes and monitor are fine.
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CMur12
Veteran
Not to name names, but some people here on RFF post scans of darkroom prints and to my eyes they certainly look too dark, with drowned shadow detail.
If we're thinking about the same posts, I see them as a mass of muddy grays, while other B&W postings have good shading, contrast, and dynamic range. I'm not seeing anything as "dark."
- Murray
Edit: I lied. I just saw a dark one.
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Chriscrawfordphoto
Real Men Shoot Film.
What gamma and brightness are you calibrated to?
If you are calibrated to Mac standard gamma of 1.8, photos adjusted to PC gamma of 2.2 look really off. But usually they are too light and contrasty.
Apple switched to the standard 2.2 monitor gamma more than 20 years ago. Images should display the same on Macs and Windows computers.
Freakscene
Obscure member
Yes, indeed. But the Mac default on a lot of third party calibration device software, including Eye-One and Profiler for the Eye-One device, is still Gamma 1.8. At least it was in December when I reinstalled those software on my new Mac.Apple switched to the standard 2.2 monitor gamma more than 20 years ago. Images should display the same on Macs and Windows computers.
Marty
raydm6
Yay! Cameras! 🙈🙉🙊┌( ಠ_ಠ)┘ [◉"]
I still don’t understand the relationship between a display’s gamma versus nits (or if there is one)?
www.makeuseof.com

What Are Brightness Nits? Why Screen Brightness Matters
All displays have a certain amount of nits, indicating brightness. But what are nits exactly, and why should you care?

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