Posted by Andy Brehm on September 25, 2008 at 7:38 PM
I had a quick question about color management and soft proofing in Photoshop. To start out I have both a profiled monitor and profiled paper/printer on which I print. I have never really used the soft proofing function in Photoshop because my colors have pretty much come out spot on with what I see on my monitor. Recently though I have noticed some pretty crazy colors coming out on my prints. Re-profiling didnt seem to help so I started to mess around with the soft proofing function in Photoshop. When I went to View>Proof Setup>Custom then selected my printer profile I noticed that what I saw on screen matches my print much better.....I would assume this is the purpose of this function.
Anyway, my question is, should I leave this Proof as my working proof in the future. Generally speaking I only print on one type of paper. In the past I always thought that you only soft proofed just before printing, but should I have this proof setting activated when I am working on my images? Or are there other color settings I should be using that would help me get more consistent color? Maybe I should have been doing this all along, but until recently there hasn't been much of a problem.
Oh, I use Qimage to print.
Thanks,
andy
Posted by Nat Coalson on September 25, 2008 at 10:44 PM
Right, the purpose of soft proofing is to simulate the printed output on-screen. Keep in mind that a print and a display are vastly different in contrast, brightness and color gamut.
For the most accurate proof you can get on-screen, make sure "Simulate Black Ink" and "Simulate Paper White" are enabled. This will likely make your image look much "worse" on screen. This is because of the differences in transmissive output (the display) vs. reflected (the print). With time, you can train your eye to be able to discern almost exactly how the print will look.
Make sure to use the correct printer/paper (or rip/paper) profile. Try both Perceptual and Relative Colorimetric rendering intents and see which you like better for each image. Save proof presets for the various options, using descriptive names.
Most RIPs process images in CMYK color; most printer drivers process images in RGB color. You will need different color profiles and different proofing setups for each.
After you've enabled a proof setup, you can make adjustments to the file to get it to look the way you want. The best way is to duplicate the file first, and use the non-soft-proofed copy as a reference while adjusting the proofed file. With practice, you will be able to get the working file to look as close as possible to the reference as the selected profile will allow.
If you're finding colors in some images don't translate well between color spaces that's just life. Usually most images will require both a boost in saturation and a curves tweak to get the closest match to the reference image.
Posted by Andy Brehm on September 25, 2008 at 11:37 PM
Awesome Nat, thanks for your comments. I had a few additional questions for you if you have the time.
1. Since I don't use a RIP (I just use Qimage) should I change my color settings to RGB instead of CMYK? I noticed that Photoshop was set to "Working CMYK" by default.
2. Since I only print on one paper should I change my Working Proof to the one defined by my printer profile? Then if I change the media I can duplicate the image and try to get the image to be printed to match the original I created. I guess my main question is, should my reference images be edited using the PS default of "Working CMYK" or the Custom one I set up using my printer profile?
I have never messed with proofing before, but recently I have noticed fairly large shifts in color and luminosity. I just want to make sure I am editing the images with the right color settings.
Thanks,
Andy
Posted by Nat Coalson on September 26, 2008 at 9:35 PM
Andy -
1. You should soft-proof using the appropriate printer/paper profile that you will be printing with.
2. Don't use anything CMYK (soft-proofing or working color space) if you're using Qimage and your files are RGB.
And to clarify, the "reference" image does not get edited; the master image does. You're only using the reference image to make a visual comparison on-screen. When you're done soft-proofing and making adjustments to the master you can close the reference image without saving it.
Discussion
3 repliesAnyway, my question is, should I leave this Proof as my working proof in the future. Generally speaking I only print on one type of paper. In the past I always thought that you only soft proofed just before printing, but should I have this proof setting activated when I am working on my images? Or are there other color settings I should be using that would help me get more consistent color? Maybe I should have been doing this all along, but until recently there hasn't been much of a problem.
Oh, I use Qimage to print.
Thanks,
andy
For the most accurate proof you can get on-screen, make sure "Simulate Black Ink" and "Simulate Paper White" are enabled. This will likely make your image look much "worse" on screen. This is because of the differences in transmissive output (the display) vs. reflected (the print). With time, you can train your eye to be able to discern almost exactly how the print will look.
Make sure to use the correct printer/paper (or rip/paper) profile. Try both Perceptual and Relative Colorimetric rendering intents and see which you like better for each image. Save proof presets for the various options, using descriptive names.
Most RIPs process images in CMYK color; most printer drivers process images in RGB color. You will need different color profiles and different proofing setups for each.
After you've enabled a proof setup, you can make adjustments to the file to get it to look the way you want. The best way is to duplicate the file first, and use the non-soft-proofed copy as a reference while adjusting the proofed file. With practice, you will be able to get the working file to look as close as possible to the reference as the selected profile will allow.
If you're finding colors in some images don't translate well between color spaces that's just life. Usually most images will require both a boost in saturation and a curves tweak to get the closest match to the reference image.
1. Since I don't use a RIP (I just use Qimage) should I change my color settings to RGB instead of CMYK? I noticed that Photoshop was set to "Working CMYK" by default.
2. Since I only print on one paper should I change my Working Proof to the one defined by my printer profile? Then if I change the media I can duplicate the image and try to get the image to be printed to match the original I created. I guess my main question is, should my reference images be edited using the PS default of "Working CMYK" or the Custom one I set up using my printer profile?
I have never messed with proofing before, but recently I have noticed fairly large shifts in color and luminosity. I just want to make sure I am editing the images with the right color settings.
Thanks,
Andy
1. You should soft-proof using the appropriate printer/paper profile that you will be printing with.
2. Don't use anything CMYK (soft-proofing or working color space) if you're using Qimage and your files are RGB.
And to clarify, the "reference" image does not get edited; the master image does. You're only using the reference image to make a visual comparison on-screen. When you're done soft-proofing and making adjustments to the master you can close the reference image without saving it.