Building a home photography studio on a budget
As I continue the acquisition of equipment and lighting settings for my home studio the need for better computer display high his head. Until recently, I've been using my home built Intel quad core PC with a Hitachi HD plasma 52 ".
When using a large screen was certainly convenient, there were many problems such as color depth or quality, contrast range and sometimes problems with surprise DPI. So I decided that I needed a better screen on which I can review images immediately using Lightroom and Nikon attachment.
It made me think and explore options available to me. The first online search revealed the benefits of an IPS screen, while subsequent research brought to my attention the Dell 24 "IPS reading different opinions led to conflicting messages display, while a handful of writers according to supply Dell is the best thing since sliced bread., others are not free.
My background is in IT and after working for nearly 22 years in the industry I have a relatively low manufacturing quality Dell opinion. Keeping this in mind, I started looking again and found myself face to face with the details of a LG IPS236V LED display. The survey revealed a high number of positive reviews. The specifications are impressive, and the extra features were attractive but not necessarily beneficial.
So to make a long story short, last week, I bought the LG screen, and brought home as a child with a lollipop over-sized. At home, I excitedly unpacked the monitor, removed the protective film and fed up. First impressions were good, but once I turned on Lightroom 3, the Wow factor really set in. The detail and colors are superb, while the aesthetic design is simple and attractive.
Well finally at the point of my post. There are many IPS monitors out there, with some of them in the $ 1000, but as I'm riding my studio equipment on a budget, I chose to buy the LG IPS.
Here in China many people buy online using the Chinese equivalent of eBay called "Taobao". Taobao is great for many things, but I'm a hands on kind of guy, I need to touch and feel before you buy. Thanks to my wife I also met a very competent and reliable Chinese IT guy who made many repairs, updates etc for us in the past. Not wanting to risk disappointment I hired our Chinese man computer to help us buy the LG screen. The total cost of the screen after a bit of bargaining, which is almost mandatory here in China, RMB 1200, a little shy of $ 188. Really the case in my humble opinion.
