GEAR MINI TESTS
CALIBRITE DISPLAY PLUS HL AND COLORCHECKER PASSPORT VIDEO 2 £279/$339 and £139/$139 calibrite.com
SPECIFICATIONS
Calibrite Display Plus HL Input: USB-C with USB-C to
USB-A adapter Power: USB-C
Operating system: Windows 10 and MacOSX 10.15 and above Minimum resolution: 1024x768 RAM: 2GB minimum Video standards: NTSC, PAL SECAM and ITU-R Rec.709 Max brightness: 10,000 nits Dimensions (wxhxl): 6.6x6.5x3.8cm/2.6x2.6x1.5in Colorchecker Passport Video 2 Targets: 4 Patches: 52 Dimensions (wxhxl): 12.5x9x0.9cm/4.93.5x0.4in
You can spend lots of time in post trying to get your colours natural and accurate, but if you don’t have a reference from when the shot was taken, or your monitor isn’t regularly calibrated, then you are always likely to struggle. It’s incredibly important to get the exposure and white-balance nailed at time of capture, or else when you start to tweak the footage you will definitely lose quality. So for every key shot, it makes complete sense to quickly shoot a reference shot of a colour chart, and the new Calibrite Colorchecker Passport Video 2 is ideal for videographers who also take photos since it works for both. The pocket-sized Colorchecker is a thin plastic case that unfolds to expose various targets. Find video targets which are used for zebras, vectorscope and RGB parade video settings, plus a target for in-camera white-balance and a Colorchecker Classic 24 patch target used to create custom camera profiles for still photographers. The Video Color Target includes six chromatic colour chips specifically
designed to align with the colour axis on a vectorscope, chips for skin tones ranging from light to dark with subtle undertones, a linear greyscale in six steps as well as six black & white patches, including a high-gloss black to capture the full range of highlights and shadows. There’s also an enhanced greyscale, including white, 40 IRE grey and high- gloss black that can act as a black trap when positioned without reflection. usual colour controls. Or if you have DaVinci Resolve or 3D LUT Creator, there is built-in software support to automatically correct everything for you. But once you get used to it, it’s easy and accurate. When inspecting the footage in post, you can use your NLE’s Of course, if your monitor isn’t showing the correct colours then you’ll never be able to get serious about grading. The colours your screen shows change over time, so it’s important to check regularly. That means it’s best to have a quick and simple-to-use device that works for bright monitors such as OLED and mini-OLED, Apple XDR panels, white LED, plasma, RGB LED, PFS phosphor and wide gamut displays. Luckily enough, the new Calibrite Display Plus HL can handle all those types of screens, as well as laptops and monitor-recorders. In fact, the Display Plus HL contains high- luminance sensors measuring displays that reach all the way up to 10,000 nits. This flagship calibration device from Calibrite covers broadcast video standards of NTSC, PAL SECAM and ITU-R
Rec. 709, as well as BT. 1886 tone curve for Rec. 2020 – the standard for HDTV. We tested the Plus HL on a pair of 600- nit 5K Apple Studio Display monitors and a 1600-nit Apple Macbook Pro. It has a USB-C connection, but also comes with a USB-A adapter for legacy devices. To use this, wait around half an hour for your monitor to warm up and then plug the device in. From here, download the latest Calibrite Profiler software then simply follow the on-screen instructions. The Display Plus HL is hung over the screen, held in place with a counterweight on the cable at the rear. The puck is positioned on its target and the software then projects a series of colours and tones. To create a custom preset setting for your own device, select one of the basic presets – such as Video, Photo or Pre-Press – and follow either the basic or advanced settings. Truthfully, the basic mode is more than enough for the majority of users. In just a few minutes, the screen is perfectly calibrated and you are ready to go. It’s a fast and simple solution and, allied to the Passport, creates a consistency in your films. Plus, if you buy a Display Plus HL in the UK by the end of March, you get a free Hobolite Iris LED light thrown in. See Calibrite’s website for all the details. PRO MOVIEMAKER RATING: 9/10 Fast and simple devices to ensure all your colours are accurate
COLOUR SORTED
Using these two devices, you'll have a faster, more consistent workflow
Pros: Small, easy to use Cons: More fiddly with Premiere Pro and Final Cut Pro
60
PRO MOVIEMAKER
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