Best laptops for photo editing?

[SergeTheBlerge]

I'm currently using a 17" HP Pavilion with an I5 intel core processor. It's about 2 years old. Was wondering what kind of systems you all are running for photo editing. The color display on this isn't very accurate. Every time I edit a shot and post it up it tends to come out more saturated when i see it on my tablet and other areas but looks more like i want it to on my laptop. This will likely always be a problem because the colors just arent accurate on this thing. They are duller, so I always end up over-saturating and over-sharpening the images. Any other than an Apple macbook? I mean, I could set aside a fund for one but those are mighty expensive.

[Manfred M]

I find that laptops tend to be so-so for photo editing unless they are connected to a decent computer screen. Any serious photo editor I know works using a good quality, reasonably large, wide gamut computer screen.

Laptops screens are designed to maximize battery life (they are the largest power draw on the battery) and minimize weight. The recent Macs have decent screens and some of the higher end Windows machines (I can't name any offhand as I am not in the market for one right now) are also suitable. That being said any screen must be profiled and calibrated to give you good colour performance and that takes a hardware device made by companies like x-Rite (i1 or ColorMunki) or Datacolor (Spyder)

If you find that you are oversharpening, then that is an issue with how you are doing this operation, rather than the screen itself.

The editing should be done in a place where you are not getting glare from ambient light hitting your computer screen, as this tends to give you a flat looking display that can result you making in an inappropriate choice on saturation (hint - I very rarely adjust saturation in any of my edits). Work the contrast instead by choosing the appropriate black point and white point and possible tweak the midpoint.

[Black Pearl]

Following on from Manfred - how about investing in a good monitor to go with your current laptop? The laptop you have should run most PP software at a reasonable speed and at two years old its still a modern machine so a monitor for when you're doing specific photography work may be the ideal and most cost effective solution.

[billtils]

Sergio

An interesting question and excellent replies from Manfred and Robin. I posted some weeks back about it being time to upgrade the MacBook but not happy with the configuration and price of the latest releases. The eventual outcome is that I have ordered a new 2TB SSD, and will replace the current Dell external monitor with an Ezio or BenQ - exact one still to be decided and the selection may (!) be influenced by the prices in the sales.

However, the critical element is to have a "proper" monitor and not depend on the laptop screen (I usually do all the preliminary work/screening on the laptop but go to the external rig for the serious editing).

[Manfred M]

+1 to what Robin and Bill have written.

When I am on the road, I am stuck editing on my laptop (around 4 years old now), but I will fine tune the edits on my desktop when I get back home. While I do have a wide gamut screen, but it is getting quite old and is high on my list in terms of replacement. My desktop has been designed primarily for HD video editing, so it is very much overkill for image editing.

[Shadowman]

I've read on this forum of photographers using Wacom tablets for editing, how does this differ from using a laptop? Are the actual transformations being applied on another screen?

[davidedric]

On another screen, John. It's effectively a mouse replacement. Dave

[Manfred M]

Wacom tablets replace the mouse. The high end Cintiq devices are screen based, but still require a computer. I only know two people who own Cintiq and they are animators.

[Shadowman]

I noticed that most come with an editing software bundle, the more expensive models have NIK and Photoshop Elements. Wonder what version of Elements, is it upgradeable, a generic version, or cloud based?

[Manfred M]

I noticed that most come with an editing software bundle, the more expensive models have NIK and Photoshop Elements. Wonder what version of Elements, is it upgradeable, a generic version, or cloud based?

When I bought the Intuos Pro last year (after years of using the Intuos III), Wacom had a selection of freebies that one could select from and if I remember correctly one of the choices was Elements. I seem to remember it was one of those "limited time" offers suggesting it was not always available. I seem to remember that I picked a 1 month subscription to Lynda.com at the time.

[Tronhard]

At one of the last members' nights at my Victoria Camera Club, Dr. Robert Ito, Professor Emeritus at UBC, Vancouver BC., presented on the topic of the implications of unfaithful image rendering on electronic media. Dr. Ito has been internationally active in professional affairs related to research and development in electrical, computer and software engineering.

Dr Ito is also the CAPA (Canadian Association for Photographic Art) Director of Photographic Imaging and in that capacity he presented on the need for standardization of displays for image post production and evaluation.

Below is the PDF of his paper on the subject, which you may find interesting...
http://vcc.visualpursuits.com/Downlo...0287a04afb?o=y

Below is a PDF of his presentation (shared with permission).
http://vcc.visualpursuits.com/Downlo...99907b85e9?o=y

As one who creates and shares my images solely on the electronic medium I was completely in agreement with his desire for standardization of displays for image PP and presentation. I know that when I have created images on my own system, and then shown them on our club projector, the results have been very disappointing because of the differences in configuration.

I have a Lenovo laptop with an upgraded video card and display produced to provide accurate image presentation, and I have it normally attached to an Asus ProArt PA248Q 24" LED LCD monitor that is factory calibrated to produce faithful images - this is the fore-runner of the Asus PB278Q, recommended by Dr Ito. I show the images at home on a 60" LED-LCD screen that has been configured to match the ASUS, and the results are spectacular.

[Manfred M]

Thanks for posting the article and presentation, Trev. Dr Ito explains the topic very, very well.

Unfortunately, the marketing departments of the equipment makers (computer screens, projectors, etc.) get paid to move product rather than putting decent quality equipment in peoples hands and ensuring that they know how to use them properly. This means it is pretty much a "crap shoot" where people rely on specs that may not truly give useful information regarding product performance when it comes to purchasing decisions.

I remember one of my profs suggesting that the computer display is probably the weakest link in modern photography, followed by the editing room. An with all the money we spend on computers, cameras, editing software, etc, that is really a shame...

[loosecanon]

my editing laptop has a 4k screen - but some software such as Nik cannot, it seems, have other than natve resolution display - so text is very very small. Using win 10.

[Tronhard]

Glad to contribute Manfred. I agree totally with the comment that many manufacturers really leave it up to the sophistication of the purchaser to figure out what they need. My Asus monitor came with a configuration certificate to guarantee its compliance with SRGB standards, and a bit of firmware that returns it to that configuration if necessary. However as was mentioned that all goes to pot if the room has the wrong lighting levels, or worse still if the output screen or display is not correctly configured to match. Such mis-configuration will totally undermine the quality of judging in digitally based competitions. I know where prints and digital images have both been supplied that there are sometimes quite considerable inconsistencies.

When the digital displays are correctly configured the results have amazing punch and are extremely striking, such as I observed on several international exhibitions shown on screens.

As Dr Ito commented, resolution seems to be less significant than the other attributes he mentioned. I use the 1920-x1080 resolution on my 60" screen, and viewed from an appropriate distance, it looks deadly.

[Black Pearl]

my editing laptop has a 4k screen - but some software such as Nik cannot, it seems, have other than natve resolution display - so text is very very small. Using win 10.

Thats a shame as I use a 5k iMac and Nik scales perfectly on macOS - I wonder, are you using the very latest version on the Nik suite?

[chauncey]

IMHO, using a laptop for photoediting is, at best, an oxymoron.

[Tronhard]

OK, I'll bite!

What specific element(s) of the laptops do you have an issue with? Is it the screen, the video chip etc.?

IMHO, using a laptop for photoediting is, at best, an oxymoron.

[chauncey]

Display.

[Tronhard]

OK, so if one had a laptop with a certified SRGB attached, which was along with the driver and software, confirmed to render images faithfully, how would you feel about that?

Display.

[chauncey]

Check this out, https://www.slrlounge.com/best-compu...-computer-par/
The high end gamers are adequate, #7 here...http://www.dell.com/en-us/gaming/ali...-laptops?cs=19
This assumes that you use PS CC