View on the X-rite Colorchecker Passport

I was very hesitant to buy the X-rite Colorchecker Passport. It did seem like an expensive buy to spend $100 on a product to correct (profile) color. However, after using this product in various color temperatures, I must say that it is worth every penny and a must have item in your camera bag. I now get more accurate colors with my custom profile than with the default camera profile or adobe profile (I use Photoshop and Lightroom). Best of all, it's a real quick and simple process!

Here's an example with Auto White Balance and Adobe Standard Profile:

        Fluorescent Cool White 4100K              Metal Halide HID 4000K            High Press. Sodium HID 2100K

Pass mouse over image to see with custom WB and Profile using X-rite Colorchecker Passport 

The first step is I make sure my camera settings are correct:
 1. Set the quality to RAW. You won't be able to create a profile with JPEG.
 2. The lowest default ISO on my camera is 200. I'll make sure auto-ISO is off and set ISO to 200. What I'm trying to do is prevent chroma noise (at higher ISO) from affecting the profile I'm about to create.
 3. Finally, I'll set the white balance using the "White Balance Target". The reason why I set my white balance now, eventhough I shoot raw, is because I want the most accurate information possible on my camera's lcd, whether it's to preview a photo or check the histogram.

Next, I'll take a picture of the "Creative Enhancement Target" and "Classic Target". The most important thing in this step is that you will want a properly exposed image. You don't want to clip the highlights. If you do, the software will not be able to create a custom profile

The last step is using the software to create a custom profile. There are three choices, that I know of, to create a custom profile:
 1. X-rite's Camera Calibration Software (desktop application)
 2. X-rite's plugin for Adobe Lightroom
 3. Adobe's DNG Profile Editor
The easiest process is to use the plugin for Lightroom. In Lightroom, you just have to right click on the picture of the "targets" and select EXPORT -> COLORCHECKER PASSPORT. Once it says it finished, just relaunch Lightroom and your custom profile should in the "Camera Calibration" pull down list. However, I prefer to use Adobe's DNG Profile Editor. Adobe's reds look more accurate and less saturated than X-rite's.