Computer Overview
The computer, monitor and printer have replaced the analog darkroom. On this page, we look at the components and how to set up a reliable and cost effective digital darkroom.
The Digital Darkroom
Desktop
Laptop
The best combination for photography
Workstation performance
Monitors
Data storage
Optical media
Digital tape
Ergonomics
The Digital Darkroom
After the digital revolution, the computer, monitor and printer replaced film, chemistry and paper. The analog darkroom became the digital darkroom. The next few pages will provide an overview of the various types of computers, how computer components work together and are most effectively set up for efficient workflow and how to keep your work safe from accidental erasure or corruption.
Desktop computers
Desktop workstations are still the best computer choice in a production environment. They are the most powerful, modular, expandable and upgradeable processing machines available. Although laptop computers can be attached to external drives and high quality monitors, they still do not have the ultimate processing power or support as much RAM or internal hard drive space. Desktop computers come in two basic configurations: the tower with a separate monitor and the all-in-one configuration such as the i-mac for the Apple operating system and the Dell Studio One series for the Windows operating system. While all-in-one models do save some space and are generally less expensive, they are not as powerful, expandable or upgradable as tower workstations, nor as portable as laptops.
Laptop computers
Laptop computers are increasingly powerful and modular and have the advantage of being portable. If a laptop is connected to a high quality monitor and external hard drives, they can come very close to the performance of a desktop machine. The Achilles heel of the laptop has been its screen quality. Laptop screens can be calibrated and profiled, but until recently, they had a much smaller gamut than stand-alone high quality graphics monitors. The newest LED backlit laptop screens have made great strides in closing this gap.
The best combination for photography
If budget permits, the best combination for photography is to have a laptop for location work and a desktop for processing, post production, and printing. If forced to have only one computer, we recommend that a laptop with a good screen might be the best solution since an external monitor and external drives can always be attached to the laptop.
Workstation performance
Workstation performance depends on several factors that include the CPU (Central Processing Unit), the amount of RAM (Random Access Memory), The hard drive configuration, especially Scratch Disk set-up, and the GPU, (Graphics Processing Unit)
Read more in Computer Performance
Monitor
One of the most critical components, in-depth discussion of monitor types and set-up in color
Read more in Monitor Calibration and Profiling
Data storage
The primary data storage on any computer is provided by the hard drive. Computers can have a single internal drive, multiple internal drives and any combination of external drives.
Read more in Storage Hardware Overview
Optical storage media
We suggest using hard drives as your primary storage media, but best practices in data storage require the use of some other kind of backup media as well. Hard drives are subject to a number of hazards that don’t affect other media, particularly write-once media. These hazards include viruses, hacker destruction, voltage surges and accidental damage or deletion. Optical media can provide a cost-effective backup solution that protects your image collection against these hazards.
Read more in Optical Media
Digital tape
The fail-safe backup of choice for institutions is digital tape, in one of its many forms. Digital tape is expensive to set up, but the cost of adding more storage once it's been implemented is small. The best digital tape to use is LTO-4.
Read more in Digital Tape
Ergonomics
Consider Ergonomics as a fundamental element in your workflow. The goal should be to determine and establish a working environment that promotes safety and increases productivity.
Read more in Ergonomics
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