The Elite version of Datacolor's smaller and more stylish third-generation Spyder gets tested
If you're serious about your photography and don't use a monitor that is not only calibrated, but regularly calibrated using a dependable calibration device, like the Spyder3 that is the focus of attention here, you should seriously consider the error of your ways! Not calibrating your screen opens you up to all sorts of problems, some of which are explored in a recent article I wrote on calibration and photos on the Web
The solution we're examining here is the Datacolor Spyder3Elite, which is the premium monitor calibration package from Datacolor. You could also consider the cheaper Spyder3Pro, which features the same calibration sensor but simpler software and is not designed to also calibrate projectors, which the Elite version can. There is also the budget-priced Spyder2Epress, which uses the previous-generation. hardware sensor. The SpyderProElite also forms one half of the Spyder3Studio kit, the other half of which addresses printer/paper profile creation.
Colorimeter
The Spyder3 sensor is a colorimeter. That means that it uses colour filters to measure the different light frequencies transmitted by a monitor or projector. This is a cheaper alternative to the diffraction-grating system used by some rival systems, like X-Rite's i1Pro and ColorMunki devices. Opinion varies on whether colorimeters like the Spyder3 are really at a disadvantage and, indeed, our back to back comparison with the i1Pro Spectrophotometer did see the Spyder3 produce a wider gamut profile. In theory, a spectrophotometer is a more sensitive device and should be able to measure much more subtle variations in gradation, and so produce a more refined profile. The bottom line is that only you will be able to tell if one or the other system is better for your work and for the majority of us a colorimeter like the Spder3 will be adequate.
Product gallery
Here is a small gallery of captioned images that explores the Spyder3 hardware, just click on a thumbnail to see the image full-size:
Software
(Click on the image above to see a larger view in a new window) You need to place the Spyder3 sensor on the screen in the square window, aligned with the picture of the device.
Compared to the Spyder3Pro, the Elite software has more flexible options for setting your choice of gamma and colour temperature, plus you get the choice of custom black and white luminance control, a display history utility, the ability to calibrate front projectors, and some workflow enhancements. The SpyderPro3Elite package also includes a tripod mount for use when calibrating projectors.
(Click on the image above to see a larger view in a new window) Once you have run the calibration process you can use the SpyderProof facility to compare the results before and after calibration using a matrix of reference images in colour and black and white that cover a wide range of photographic style categories.
Performance
The Spyder3Elite software is simple and straightforward to use. You can simply use the defaults or specify your own configuration options. An ambient light measurement is also an option and you will be warned if the ambient light is considered too bright for optimal viewing. The Spyder3 has a 27mm wide sensing area and this is almost double the diameter of the previous generation of sensor. The bigger the sensor the less chance of measurement areas and the more sensitive the device can be.
We found that measurement process took under two and a half minutes, which is about the same as i1Match when using the more expensive i1Pro solution. As the following gamut plots show, Spyder3Elite produced a profile that covered a considerably wider space than that produced by an i1Pro calibrator:
Above is the X-Rite 1Pro profile gamut (the yellow line overlayed on the white line that represents sRGB colour space).
And here is the Spyder3Elite profile gamut. It extends a fair bit further into the green and red/magenta areas of the colour space. When switching between the i1Pro profile and the Spyder3 Elite one, it's clear that the Spyder3 produces a cooler colour balance, but it's probably closer to neutral. The test results produced above were measured from an LCD display. Using a CRT display the i1Pro produced a better result.
Conclusion
Most of us would probably be better off with the cheaper and slightly easier to use Spyder3Pro. But if you are more comfortable tweaking your calibration settings and using custom modes, and/or you also need to calibrate a projector, the Elite version can be recommended. Based on my experiences I wouldn't recommend the Spyder3 for calibrating CRT monitors, not that this will worry Datacolor as CRTs are an almost extinct breed.
Reader feedback:
Discuss this story:
