I calibrate my monitor with the spyder2, and I just got a brand new Macbook Pro. In the opening dialogue for the spyder calibration software, it says to leave the brightness at the factory default setting. But my MBP's default is to adjust the brightness to the ambient light, which isn't constant.

So my question is, do I uncheck the adjust to ambient light button to calibrate with a constant brightness, or just leave it the way it is?

I've found with my imac (which doesn't have the option), that if I calibrate with the brightness turned all the way down, that this is more inline with the prints I get from Pictage. If I leave it all the way up (factory default), then my prints from Pictage were coming back too dark.

Does anyone else have any advice or experience with these issues?

Thanks,
Shawn

Bump, hoping someone might have some advice for me.

Thanks,
Shawn

Does anyone have any ideas?

I'd love to hear what you all who have macbook pros do. I just got mine, so I don't know if its a new feature to adjust brightness automatically, but I'd love to hear what you all with MBP's do.

Thanks,
Shawn

I'm also curious... Oddly enough, we didn't really have this problem with our PC laptops, but going to Macs now, and the prints from PIctage are dark... Trying to figure out a solution...

Hi Nathan,

Here's what I've discovered for myself from researching all over the internet and my experience. For some reason, even when a monitor is calibrated to 2.2 gamma on either machine, PC's are a little darker. So on my macs (I have both a pc and a couple macs), I set the brightness to the darkest it goes on my 23 inch monitor and 20 inch imac, and almost but not quite as dark as it goes on my MBP. I also overexpose from about 1/10 to a 1/4 stop over what is my ideal exposure when processing in Lightroom for my Pictage prints, and they look awesome. When I first started working with Pictage, I was getting dark prints, and since I've done this, they look awesome.

Hope this helps!!

On a side note, I've been insanely busy this last month (which is of course awesome since its my first season shooting weddings), but just this morning I've been filling out that Photographers Office consultation questionnaire you sent me, and I intend on sending it back to you sometime today. I look forward to chatting sometime soon hopefully.

Hope you and Amber are well.

Cheers,
Shawn

trying..... to....... resist........

I had to turn my brightness all the way down to get my prints from Pictage to look right.

lol

Nice.

The reality is that laptops aren't made to be color calibrated for good color correction and I'm simply trying to find a good way around it. We've actually been doing it for years on PC laptops with great success and beautiful prints from Pictage. Oddly enough, it was going to Macs that forced us to rethink what we're doing.

Bring it on!