I need to know what you would recommend for the best setup for a photographer / graphic designer.

1. LCD screen:
Which LCD screen will give the best colour reproduction?

2. Monitor calibration:
Do you need calibration software / hardware? If so which one?

3. The system:
Would i need to upgrade the computers? Currently they are just PC systems. If i do, what system would i need to get, PC or Mac.

4. Sylist:
Which sylist would be good?

5. LCD + Stylist??
Should I get one of those LCD screens where you can use a stylist pen directly on the screen?

6. Budget:
Well lets not go overkill and keep it under $1000-1500? (2000-3000 if you reckon i require to change the computer)

1. Eizo monitors are best, but are big bucks. Get Apple/Dell ones if Eizo are out of your budget. The bigger the better. Nothing shits me more than a small screen when working with photos (23-24" (1920x1200 res) is what I'd recommend)
2. You need a hardware calibrator. They vary in price, but the most popular one is the ColorVision Spyder range. The key is to calibrate all your devices the same (camera, computer, printer).
3. RAM is important. More RAM the better. Macs are always good, but on PC there is Adobe Lightroom, which is a pretty sweet app. So if you're on a tight budget and can't afford new Macs, get more RAM (at least 2GB, 4GB is great).
4. Stylist? I think you mean a graphics tablet? If so, Wacom. Nothing but Wacom.
5. For photography, probably not.

Also think about backups. If these photos are important, off-site backup may be useful (this could be something like uploading to something like Amazon S3 or a server elsewhere via the Internet).

If you've got any more questions, fire away

Any decent iMac + as much ram as you can afford + ColorVision Spyder should do the trick.

I wouldn't bother with the tablet unless the photographer / designer wants it (I've been retouching for years and don't really like them).

And yes, if you're using PCs for design then I'd definitely give them the flick!

thanks for that,

how about the video out? should it be digital? or it doesn't matter?

I find DVI much sharper and clearer

thanks for that, i think i'll go with this:
-apple or dell LCD screen (DVI input)
-spyder 2 pro
-i'll stick with the PC machines but upgrade the graphics card with a DVI output + ram

apple or dell? i find the dell ones cheaper and they have the same brightness as the apple ones and better contrast.

how about all this stuff about colour reproduction and how much of the 'spectrum' you get. samsung any good? http://www.samsung.com/au/products/m...mance/931c.asp

Samsung are excellent

Brightness and contrast don't really mean that much these days, they're all good enough. It's more about colour reproduction and accuracy. Try and get a 10-bit panel if possible (I'm pretty sure Apple's are 10-bit).

what do bits mean in terms of screen?

i don't know to much about picking good screens for graphic designers.

i only know about brightness, contrast, response time and thats about it...

how do you 'measure and compare' the 'colour reproduction and accuracy' of different screens?

It refers to the colour range each pixel has on the screen. i.e. how many colours can fit into a 10bits vs 6bits etc.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_depth

i think the samsung is 6bit, and the dell and apple are 8bit, i think only eizo have 10 bits?

lets leave money out of the equation because the three screens are pretty much in the same ball park figure. lets also leave out the size of the screen.

in terms of colour reproduction and accuracy which one would you go for:

Samsung High Performance Range:
http://www.samsung.com/au/products/monitors/index.asp

Apple

Or

Dell2007WFP 20"

btw, what graphics card would you recommend i upgrade to (PC machines btw).

For PC Machines I would recommend getting a GeForce 8800 Ultra or GeForce
8800 GTX, the Dell monitors are great so I'd give them the thumbs up and for me, more important than a calibrated screen, is a print accurate printer.

If you go the PC route, don't scrimp on items or you're going to find working in Photoshop and High Quality display in InDesign to go slow as hell, I speak from experience being a graphic designer working inhouse for a company who insisted on PCs. I'm able to take coffee breaks while I wait for the PC to catch up with me.

I'm getting them to upgrade at the moment and the machine is coming in at around $3000 (I already have the monitor)

8800 Ultra and GTX? They aren't playing 3D games
The 8500GT for ~$100 will be more than enough for everything besides 3D gaming.

I was thinking the same thing.

The top of the range NEC monitors are also 10 bit I think but I don't think they're available in Australia any more...

Personally a video card with less that 512MB just doesn't cut it, especially with the dell 24" monitor, I have a late 6 series with 512 and will only run the monitor at it's correct res over VGA, not DVI.

Need .. more .. power!!!!!!