This study investigated the shade recording abilities of dental students using the traditional methods and that incorporating a colour correcting device to that of a digital shade recording device. Shade matching ability was evaluated between different groups of students at Malmö and Cardiff. The use of the colour correcting device improved a student's ability to match shades when compared to the traditional method under normal lighting conditions. There was no gender difference to match shade amongst the participants. We observed that at one of the test sites the ability to take the correct shade improved as clinical experience was gained.