Question Help me adjust my monitor settings (Darks are too dark)

[Countess_C]

I think photos look good, with details in the clouds and good contrast, but often in games and films I can't see details in the dark. Like in a game yesterday, in a maze and it was pitch black, and I could only see a few contours here and there. I had to take screenshots and manipulate them in Photoshop to see the details.

What's wrong with my settings?

Nvidia Control Panel:

Desktop colour depth: Highest (32-bit)
Output colour depth: 8 bpc
Output colour format: RGB
Output dunamic range: Full

Desktop colour settings:
All channels:
Brightness: 50%
Contrast: 50%
Gamma: 1.00

BenQ Monitor settings:

Picture mode: Standard
Brightness 36
Contrast 56
Gamma 2.2

If I change Gamma in the Nvidia control panel then I can see more details in the dark, but then the contrast in photos look weird with too light midtones. It doesn't help that there are settings both in the Nividia control panel and on the monitor. It's confusing.

Thankful for any help!

 

[kerberos_20]

run display calibration in windows settings

 

[Countess_C]

run display calibration in windows settings

I have tried that with the calibration in Windows and Nvidia Control Panel, but don't like it. Now I tried it again: First, the gamma looks fine with the test dots almost invisible. Then to see the black shirt's contours and the dark X almost invisible, I increased brightness to 57. Then the contrast, to see all the wrinkles in the white shirt I'll have to lower the contrast to 2, but then photos look horrible, with very low contrast. 😕

 

[Countess_C]

Now I tried to calibrate the monitor with the help of the test images at http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/ and I set the monitor to sRGB to match (?) the output colour format, adjusted the contrast and brightness so I could see all the steps in the gray scale, and adjusted the gamma so that test pic looked like it should at gamma 2.2. When I was happy I looked at websites and photos, and they looked horribly bright and with low contrast.

My monitor is a BenQ of the PD series, that should be good for photo editing, so I thought I would be able to see both dark and light details well, but maybe not.

Now I have put the monitor settings to Rec.709 because it's easier on my eyes. The "calibrated" settings really hurt my eyes. Too ¤#%#¤ bright! I think I will have to change the settings every time I want to play games to see what's going on in the dark, and then change the settings back for normal browsing and picture editing.

 

[kerberos_20]

do you have installed monitor drivers?

 

[Countess_C]

do you have installed monitor drivers?

I have. The colours are great and all. I guess I will have to increase the gamma for certain games to see more details in the dark, and change it back for normal use. It's annoying, but I can't find another solution. 😑

 

[scout_03]

most of the game have a video settings for screen check it .

 

[kerberos_20]

what monitor model you have? what you describe sounds like VA panel