Camera Calibration

I recently picked up an X-Rite ColorChecker chart and used it to create a custom Lightroom develop preset for my Canon 30D using the Chromoholics ACR Calibrator script. It was really simple:

1. Download and install the script (download and directions at the link above).
2. Take a photo of the ColorChecker.
3. Download the photo to your computer and open it in Photoshop.
4. Run the script, then use the output values to tweak Lightroom's Camera Calibration settings in the Develop module and save a preset. Done!
   

Previously, I'd created a develop preset by eye, using landscape images I'd taken and averaged/optimized the camera calibration settings. The new preset created with the ColorChecker and ACR Calibrator script is slightly better.

I use this preset as my baseline develop settings and apply it to all images on import. This gets a vast majority of my images 90% of the way to a finished state - a big time saver!

I recommend trying this method if you have, or can temporarily get your hands on a ColorChecker chart.