Buyer’s Guide to Choosing the Best Monitor for Photo Editing

Whether you’re a professional photographer with a business or a beginner in the field looking to get started, your work may involve situations and events where you double as a videographer. You probably use various software suites, such as Photoshop and Lightroom, but in order to make the most out of them you need a factory-calibrated, color-accurate monitor with a resolution of at least 1440p (2K), preferably 4K. A monitor meeting these standards ensures the best photo and video editing results. It eliminates the need to review multiple previews or try various tools to determine the best settings for your printer and paper type.

How do you determine the quality of a monitor? Researching specifications, materials, technology, brands, and prices is an excellent way to find the best monitor for photography and editing. In this article, we will review guidelines to help you determine how to find the best monitor to suit your needs.

• What is th eimportance of Monitor Size?

• What is the Resolution, and How does Monitor Size Affect it? 

• Is a Monitor with an IPS Panel the Right Choice? 

• What is Color Gamut? 

• What is Mionitor Calibration and Why is it Important? 

• What Else Should I Conisder? 

To measure a monitor's size, convert the display area's diagonal length to inches. 

Resolution refers to the number of "pixels" within a display. A 4K display has 3840 pixels in length and 2160 pixels in width, four times the detail of a Full HD.

A common misconception is that larger monitors have a higher resolution. Unfortunately, this is not always correct. Imagine comparing a 25-inch monitor with Full HD (1920×1080) and a 23-inch monitor with 4K resolution (3840×2160). The 23-inch monitor with 4K resolution (eight million pixels displayed on the 23-inch monitor) will offer more details and better imagery. Although the 25-inch monitor is more significant, with a lower resolution (only two million pixels displayed on a 25-inch monitor), its image will be pixelated. A larger monitor requires a higher resolution to meet visual effects and image quality standards.

Pixel per inch (PPI), or the pixel density, represents the number of pixels in 1 square inch of area.

Compared to TN or VA panels used in other products, IPS panels are the right choice for all photographers.

AdobeRGB has a broader color spectrum compared to sRGB by 35%. From a photographer's perspective, a monitor capable of displaying more colors and details is a huge benefit that optimizes their work. However, if AdobeRGB is selected on the camera but the monitor does not support it, the images will not display the color range AdobeRGB helps. Choosing a monitor that supports Adobe RGB is a good option because the color gamut can cover the CMYK color model used in printing and allows users to preview the color of the printed image on the monitor without printing out multiple test images.

AdobeRGB has a wider gamut than sRGB and covers the blue-green color in the CMYK gamut, a range that sRGB cannot accommodate.

The monitor image on the right supports Adobe RGB, which displays richer colors similar to natural ones.

There are two types of calibration: software calibration and hardware calibration. Hardware calibration calibrates the monitor by storing data directly into 3D-LUT (Look Up Table) inside the monitor, while software calibration is limited to adjusting the RGB values in the graphics card with additional processor inside the monitor. Hardware calibration has more advantages as it delivers more accurate colors regardless of the connected computer or graphic card and retains the maximum number of color steps on the monitor to maintain color continuity and prevent contour.

Monitor calibration is necessary because it is the only way to ensure that the colors displayed are always accurate.

If you don’t know anything about monitor calibration, don’t worry, not all photographers have a detailed understanding of it. Monitor calibration is something that needs to be studied. Professional monitors designed for imaging purposes have been color-calibrated before reaching customers, and some of these monitors are delivered with a color calibration report, which is excellent for photographers who know little about color calibration. Additionally, purchasing monitors with Delta E≤2 regarding color accuracy is recommended. The smaller value entails a more faithful reproduction of colors.

BenQ professional monitors have undergone color calibration before leaving the factory and are released with the full-color calibration report to customers.

Utilizing the information presented in this article, you can select a suitable monitor that meets your needs and will benefit your workflow. Finding a monitor for photo and video editing can be difficult, and many monitors also offer accessories to consider. Learning about and understanding these factors to select or upgrade your monitor will help you find the best option to optimize productivity.