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The lower level ColorChecker Classic is around $59 USD, Datacolor Spyder comparable one is also around $50... meanwhile there's some DKG Tools for only $25.

Current on B&H:

So the X-Rite and Spyder low levels are both 24 while the DKG is 18. But from a quality and color accuracy point of view is there a difference between the 3? Do any of them last longer in terms of color degradation? The one I hear about the most is the X-Rite ColorChecker Passport which isn't terrible at $100, but then I'm not sure if the additional colors and name recognition are valuable or just marketing ploy.

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The more samples / swatches you have the more accurate your device characterisation will be, as a matter of fact X-Rite has the ColorChecker DC for that: http://www.rmimaging.com/information/colorchecker_dc.html

  • X-Rite samples / swatches pigments are fairly stable although their lifespan is usually 2 years, it can be shorter or longer depending how heavily you use the chart and under which illumination conditions.
  • Last time I checked Spyder 24 has some reversed samples / swatches compared to X-Rite ColorChecker Classic (likely a patenting issue), be aware of that if you intend to use one of them in place of a X-Rite ColorChecker Classic. I cannot comment on its samples / swatches durability though, I have only used one of it once.
  • The DKG Color will not be very useful for accurate colour calibration because having not enough samples.

In the VFX industry, we pretty much only work with X-Rite colour rendition charts as their spectral power distribution don't vary too much between batches. Here is a great link with further reading: http://www.babelcolor.com/colorchecker.htm

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Hmm thanks, this seems to answer my questions though that link adds all new questions. I use CaptureOne Pro, for the color portion so sounds like I might be better off just getting a Gray Card. \$\endgroup\$
    – RyanFromGDSE
    May 3, 2016 at 1:34
  • \$\begingroup\$ A gray card just give you a basic calibration, a Color checker makes more adjustments to the profile. \$\endgroup\$
    – Rafael
    May 3, 2016 at 14:17
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    \$\begingroup\$ Take a look at this: photo.stackexchange.com/questions/61491/… to see the diference between white balance and color calibration. \$\endgroup\$
    – Rafael
    May 3, 2016 at 14:30
  • \$\begingroup\$ @Rafael thanks and upvoted your answer there. But CaptureOne uses ICC Profiles and the X-Rite uses DNG Profiles so it sounds like its very complicated to use together. \$\endgroup\$
    – RyanFromGDSE
    May 3, 2016 at 14:38
  • \$\begingroup\$ Good point. This probably is a matter for a new question. But basicly a ICC profile is a "real" profile, "conected" to the hardware. A "dng profile" is more like a "flavor", in this case a more acurate "flavor", and the dng flavor is related to the lighting conditions, not to the camera. \$\endgroup\$
    – Rafael
    May 3, 2016 at 14:42

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