i1 Studio vs i1 Pro

[Charles Beasley]

I am wanting to get a new calibration device and it looks like the XRite products are still highly recommended here, so I would appreciate some advice.
I am now doing mostly headshots for clients to use for websites and occasionally rgb prints from a pro lab. I don't do any any inkjet prints to speak of.
Hardware: Windows, montior-Dell 32" Ultrasharp U3219Q
I've been using an old Xrite SpectraSensor Pro colorimeter (which came with an NEC display I had before the Dell,) and using it with Display Cal software.

From the limited reading I have done so far, it looks like the main difference between the Studio and the Pro versions is that with the Pro I would be able to specify a contrast ratio
which would hopefully be close to the contrast ratio of the prints I get from my lab, which if my memory serves, according to what I have read here is about 50:1.

With my current combination of puck and software, I am not able to get that.

So, question is whether I would see benefits of going with the Pro version over the Studio version?

(I am aware that Xrite is going away and that Calibrite is the new parent company, and the product names have changed somewhat.)

TIA, CB

[digitaldog]

Contrast Ratio is indeed useful for soft proofing to prints.
http://blog.xritephoto.com/2011/07/x-rite-i1display-pro-advanced-features-contrast-ratio-with-coloratti-andrew-rodney/

But does the lab provide ICC paper profiles you can fully use (pick Rendering Intent, actually convert to the output color space)? Do you know if they supply a profile that is only used for soft proofing and they indeed use that profile for conversions on their end? If not, I'm not sure soft proofing remotely is going to be effective.

[Charles Beasley]

Thanks for the reply and the link to the article.
I went ahead and ordered the Pro under the new labeling Calibrite ColorChecker Display Pro (at the same price as the older labeling.)
Although your point ("But does the lab provide ICC paper profiles you can fully use ......") is well taken, (and AFAIK mine doesn't) I do think I would find being able to adjust the contrast ration to some point will be useful.

[GWGill]

With my current combination of puck and software, I am not able to get that.

I suspect you can. In Options->Advanced->Set additional command line options...

you could set the dispcal option

    -B black_level

i.e., say your display has a white of 200 cd/m^2, then setting the option

    -B 4.0

should result in a 50:1 contrast ratio.

[Charles Beasley]

Thanks Mr. Gil-
I wanted to do a bit of reading before replying to you.
First, I didn't know about being able to set the command line option.
I had been able to specify black point there.
I recalled writing this >>>" which if my memory serves, according to what I have read here is about 50:1."<<<
so I decided I needed to check out how well my memory was serving. Turns out not all that great!

After reading some search results here last night, it seems the 50:1 would be one extreme, the other between 250/300:1.

I do my editing in a cave pretty much so I have always had my white at 120, black point 0.15. I have been specifying 0.15 because that's what I had always thought that was desirable to have it set as low as possible and still be able to see a difference between RGB 0-0-0 and 1-1-1 as per the old Bruce Fraser test, which I have always been able to do.
So I have been specifying a 800:1 ratio without realizing what I was doing.

Further reading made me realize that the 120 white point may be too low, that is is below the native backlight limit something's being fudged.
FWIW, during the calibrating stage my display settings are gain:R 98, G97, B 94; Brightness 25%, Contrast 75%.

I am going to recalibrate/profile and try white at 140 and black at .5 which should be 280:1 if my math is right.

So thank you and Andrew both for helping me think this thing through!

PS-This also got me to thinking about just what the maximum contrast ration would be for a contone rgb print from a pro lab be?
If I print a test image that ranges from rgb 255-255-255 to rgb 1-1-1, is that a 255:1 contrast ratio ratio?