Datacolor 200

[Florio Bessinger]

Inthe realm of art, photographers use color subjectively as an element of creative interpretation. Color grading is an art form, and certain photographers are recognized by their post-processing. There are some scenarios though where color accuracy needs to be paramount. One example is in product photography for makeup, clothing, or anything where the color needs to match the product exactly. The Spyder Checkr Photo seems like the ideal tool to guarantee objective color accuracy.

In reading the step-by-step instructions, it would be easy to assume that this is a very time-intensive process. I decided to time the color grading from start to finish. Can you guess how long the entire process took?

When I ran my pictures through the software initially, I have to confess I was slightly irked. My work is known for its vibrancy and bold colors is what I am expected to deliver. I had planned that the software would color correct the whites, blacks, and hues of each color, but I did not think that it would change the luminosity or saturation of the colors. Here is an example of the adjustments it made on one of my photos.

I was not a happy camper when I saw that it had pulled the luminosity and saturation down on so many sliders. My initial reaction was that the image looked duller, but I decided to keep going from that point and edit the image as I usually would with the Datacolor calibration. It turned out that it didn't affect me reaching my typical bold and vibrant look. Here is the finished image.

This tool was designed to be a resource to photographers who want a fast, easy way to ensure consistent, accurate color. Datacolor aimed to create a post-production workflow, which helped create consistency across a variety of cameras, lenses, and sensors. I found this to be a simple and useful tool, which took the guessing out of color correction and ensured consistent color accuracy. Although it made some changes in my studio work, I noticed the most helpful change to be in the environmental portrait. Shooting outside or on location leaves your image opened to a myriad of color casts, from the sky to the immediate surroundings. At this low price, and with it being a tool I could easily throw in my pocket at a location shoot, I think this is a helpful tool. I can also see this tool being particularly handy in situations where images originate from different camera brands but require a uniform appearance in the final output. For instance, in a wedding scenario with photographers using Canon and Sony cameras, having this reference shot would streamline the process of achieving uniform and accurate colors across all images.

A user and happy to be. The one thing not mentioned is the datacolor spydercube, requires two shots one with and one without. I use on a Selfie stick, yes comes with a neck strap to dangle in front of camera. There is a need to watch a video on using, it takes a while to get things right. Like doing sunrises in the Grand Canyon, it is deep almost dark deep but the high points are bright and every layer of rocks are different colors. Next the exposure from top to bottom is varied. If you have ever been to one of the shops and looked at the post cards all have a blue hue down at the bottom but your eyes see more colors. It is a place where you want to capture what you see and get the proper exposure

It's a must have for every photographer with clients depending on color reproduction accuracy.. Clothing, product design, etc... Even people shooting Hasselblad and phase one are using it for simple reason ?

As is commonly known, syncing colors in graphics work can be challenging. To the end of wanting as accurate as possible color reproduction, we have tried a few products. Some of which are from datacolor.com.

The SpyderCHECKR creates a HSL based user defined setting in the host application.

Therefore, the host application must offer a very comprehensive HSL slider adjustment and the ability to create such a setting from an external application.

This can be done in Adobe camera RAW (from Photoshop CS3 and higher), in Adobe Lightroom Classic (from Adobe Lightroom 2 and higher) and in Phocus from Hasselblad (version 2.8 and higher - this is a free of charge product).

In addition, the SpyderCHECKR is compatible with Blackmagic Davinci Resolve (version 11 and higher).

Unfortunately Affinity Photo does not offer these abilities here. Therefore, we can not support Affinity Photo by the SpyderCHECKR at this time.

Maybe you can use Phocus from Hasselblad as a step in between as it supports a DNG image workflow.

Might be something you may want to look into; or, if you are aware of other competing products (to datacolor), would really like to know about them. Specifically, it was their Spyder Checkr Photo product I was interested in.

Given the time and exense to try it, I'll pass. There must be other products out there which have already been designed and tested to work with Affinity. Without such certification, one would always be wondering, "does it" or "doesn't it".....

You may need to preprocess the photo e.g. average colors across the color tiles and carefully lens correction incl. vignette removal, and align both images (stacking). if someone can provide a Affinity Photo document containing both images (RAW embedded) I can try it.

Special interest into procedural texture filter, edit alpha channel, RGB/16 and RGB/32 color formats, stacking, finding root causes for misbehaving files, finding creative solutions for unsolvable tasks, finding bugs in Apps.

the test chart has a color with defined RGB values in digital and physical form. You take a photo of the chart. The files shows Other RGB values. You create a LUT derived from both images (the photo of physical test chart, and the digital image with defined color values).

LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J., May 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Datacolor, a global leader in color management solutions, has released significant software portfolio updates, including the integration of Colibri support and enhancements to its color matching and quality control (QC) tools.

"Since the acquisition of matchmycolor and its Colibri software solutions last May, our teams have worked tirelessly to align and enhance our state-of-the-art color formulation and management software and services. Our goal is to provide easy-to-use solutions using the latest technologies that can be fully integrated into the workflows of customers in a wide range of industries. The result is a number of software upgrades and new support services which we are committed to continuously evolve," said Albert Busch, Datacolor president and CEO.

"We've also streamlined the upgrade process so that it requires no additional training and prevents data loss," said Yazid Tohme, CTO at Datacolor. "At the same time, we're expanding the use of cloud capabilities, analytics and integration services to further add value and improve ease of use."

All Datacolor applications will soon benefit from the same maintenance support plan as Colibri. It will provide easy access to software upgrades and dedicated support services, ensuring that customer systems remain up to date with the latest performance enhancements. Customers will be able to take advantage of this new offering starting in June.

About DatacolorDatacolor, a global leader in color management solutions, provides software, instruments and services to assure accurate colors of materials, products and images. The world's leading brands, manufacturers and creative professionals have used Datacolor's innovative solutions to consistently achieve the right colors for more than 50 years. The company provides sales, service and support to over 100 countries throughout Europe, the Americas and Asia. Industries served include textile and apparel, paint and coatings, automotive and plastics, as well as photography, design and videography. For more information, visit: www.datacolor.com.

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