Imaging Science Foundation (ISF)

The Imaging Science Foundation (ISF) is an organisation dedicated to improving the quality of electronic imaging. Amongst other things, ISF trains professionals to calibrate displays, with ISF certification for those who pass the exam at the end of the course.

All film and video material is made to industry standards, which specify what colour and white balance should be produced.
ISF certified professionals (usually retail dealers) are qualified to, using specialised equipment, calibrate a TV or projector so that it achieves industry standard picture quality given the specific sources being used (Blu-ray player, satellite receiver etc.) and lighting conditions of the room.
Consumer displays are made by manufacturers to look good in a showroom and they never look accurate out of the box. But it is important that consumer TVs are capable of reproducing colour and white balance correctly.

All AVForums.com hardware reviewers are ISF certified because when we test a display, we want to know its capabilities both out of the box and after calibration. Can the given TV reach industry standards due to its design? ISF training gives our reviewers an additional insight into display technology which facilities more authoritative and accurate reviews. Plus it allows them to comment with technical knowledge how well a consumer display performs against the standards laid down, and how accurate the image is.
Despite most people considering that their display picture is fine, the post-calibration improvement in image quality is often profound.

For more information on the subject of ISF calibration, visit our ISF forum here.