Monitor vs print (sharpness)

[Spinners]

i have read numerous posts that state your monitor is sharper than your prints and vice versa. At this point i don't know whether or not i can trust any of my monitors or LCD's because they make my prints look soft, and sometimes out of focus.

So can someone please explain this in plain english and actually give a correct answer, as im sure there's only 1.





Spinners "who cant figure out why his pictures look out of focus even though he bought a new 10D and a new lense to boot"

[Cordell]

Spinners,

I'm no techie when it comes to photography, but in my limited experience is if your monitor is a decent one and you get prints from a lab, you can get the same or at least close to what is on the monitor. HOWEVER, you must look at the image at a 100% setting to be sure. Looking at an image at full screen can be extremely inaccurate to what the print will look like. Screen views are much more forgiving in what a sharp photo is compared to prints.

Also, how much different a monitor view looks compared to an actual print depends on many different things if you are printing on an inkjet. You have to consider the paper, ink, printer itself, etc. But a good reliable lab print "should" give you what you see if you are viewing at 100%.

Is one softer than the other? I've never experienced that.

[Motorsports Photo]

The 100% thing isnt always accurate either. Some viewers are better than others to display images sharply.

-Pete