Truth be told, I’ve been coveting an EIZO screen for a good couple of years now. I was first introduced to the brand whilst working on the Wacom stand at Focus On Imaging back in 2011, where EIZO had provided a number of screens to accompany the Intuos 4 demo units on the stand. I’d only been experimenting with photography for about 18 months at this point and had excitedly brought some of my new burlesque images on a USB stick down to the exhibition to demo with. They were an absolute dream to work on, and I’ve had one permanently on my studio wish list ever since.

As probably most of you know by now, I relocated a couple of months ago to a new studio in Hertfordshire. Due to the layout of the studio, I have to work right next to the window and catching up with my editing work was proving to be a real mission with the reflections on my glossy iMac screen. No matter how hard I tried, there was no way around it. Quite honestly, it was giving me headaches trying to focus on detailed retouching jobs.

It was exactly two weeks after the studio move that salvation came in the form of a tweet from Colin at EIZO asking if I had got round to buying the coveted monitor yet – and if not, would I be interested in testing out the new EIZO ColorEdge CG277 27″ LCD monitor for a few weeks in the studio. The offer could genuinely not have come at a better time! A few days later, Colin came over to install the monitor in the studio, complete with monitor hood to completely shelter the screen from the nearby window. Set up as a second screen, I’ve been using the EIZO as my main screen in the studio whilst the iMac screen hosts my Light Blue software, emails and Creative Live for a bit of midweek inspiration.

So, what do I love about the EIZO Monitor? Well, the most obvious and important improvement for me is the matte screen, which makes it so much easier to see what I’m doing on intricate photo retouching jobs. Thanks to the non-glare IPS Panel, no longer am I battling with my own reflection (or the weird purple screen coating) which means I can see greater detail and, consequently, do my job better and more efficiently. Also, on the subject of being more efficient, the warm up time of the EIZO monitor is just 7 minutes, rather than the average half hour that most monitors take. By the time I’ve gone and made a glass of orange squash (much preferable to coffee) in the morning and peeked through my fingers at the never ending ‘to do’ list, the I’m ready to get going with my editing.

The EIZO ColorEdge CG277 also had a built in calibrator, which is super nifty at making sure all my colours are showing true. I’ve not caught it in the act so far, but it automatically self calibrates first thing in the morning so it’s all set up ready to go for the working day. Perhaps it’s a sign I’m not much of an early bird, but it’s pretty cool that it’s already done before I sit down to get started.

Another less geeky but certainly desirable feature is that the EIZO monitor’s height and tilt are completely adjustable. Although perhaps not something I’d have on my ‘must have features’ list, it has already had a positive effect on my posture in the studio because for the first time since I started university all those years ago, I am no longer hunching my neck to be at the right angle for the screen.

As for dislikes? I tried my hardest to find something to give as constructive feedback during testing, but I found nothing. All in all,  I loved the EIZO monitor so much I couldn’t bear to give it back. So I bought it. It has pride of place on my desk in the studio and its not going anywhere!

PS. in the interest of full disclosure, my desk is not this tidy in real life. I cleared it just for this photograph…

Want to know more? Click here to for full specs of the EIZO ColorEdge CG277.