Posted by Sandi Winton on February 7, 2009 at 8:30 AM
Which do you all use? Isn't it RBG that I should be concerned with when dealing with photographs? I am learning PS from a friend who is in the graphics business (signs, shirts, logos etc.) and he uses CMYK, so now I'm wondering if I should be, but I thought we worked with RBG in photography. Thanks for clearing up my confusion!
Sandi Winton
Posted by Robert Fisher on February 7, 2009 at 9:07 AM
RGB. CMYK is (primarily) for graphics and press work.
As far as which RGB colour space, I personally use ProPhotoRGB. Either ProPhoto or AdobeRGB are generally recommended since these are both broader (i.e., more possible colours) than sRGB.
Posted by Sandi Winton on February 7, 2009 at 9:39 AM
Great! Thanks! So where do I find ProPhotoRGB? or AdobeRGB? Where are those choices located?
Thanks again!
Posted by Steve Foss on February 7, 2009 at 10:05 AM
Sandi, you can set Adobe RGB vs sRGB using the menu in the camera. Later models may allow ProPhotoRGB to be selected in camera, but I'm not sure about that. On my 30D bodies I just scroll down the main menu to "color space" and set it there. Pretty sure the 5D is the same way, but not sure what you're shooting except that it is Canon.
When I do the conversion in Photoshop from RAW to TIFF, it's at that point I select ProPhotoRGB if I want to. I don't believe you'll notice a difference in color quality/subtlety between the three color spaces mentioned at smaller/standard print sizes. I shoot in Adobe RGB simply because it is the broader color space with more ultimate potential than sRGB, and that can have an impact with big enlargements.
For any printing you do yourself or have a print lab do, you'll leave the image in RGB (red-green-blue), and your print lab will take it from there. In my experience, if it's going in a magazine, newspaper, book, or other printing media that requires CMYK (cyan-magenta-yellow-black), the designer or the print shop generally would rather do the RGB/CMYK conversion themselves, because it can be a bit sticky and requires some real tweaking to get the best results in print. They'll generally have profiles and settings unique to their particular press/paper. When my wife and I did color toning for photographs in newspapers, we always wanted to get the image in RGB so we could do the conversion ourselves.
CMYK is standard for your friend's uses, as Robert describes. That's because most presses are set up for it, while photo printers such as you are likely to be using are set up for RGB. AdobeRGB is one of the color space options within Photoshop, and some cameras even shoot in it. I'm not sure about the ProPhoto version, having never used or run across it.
For quick background, your little warning bells should go off if someone suggests you work in CMYK. It's very effective, but it can get complicated because the CMYK color spectrum is not continuous, and some of the gaps can be challenging to work around without experience. You have to get into the nitty gritty of the print process you'll be using, right down to specifying which ink and paper will be used in the printing process. I find it much better to do the work in RGB and either convert to sRGB at the request of some clients, or let the graphics people running the presses do the CMYK conversion. If color is critical (as in having your own book printed), it's a very good idea to proof check the colors after CMYK conversion, just to make the press folks got them right. I've seen some serious problems occur when distant people are trying to make CMYK color conversions to your work.
Posted by Steve Foss on February 7, 2009 at 10:15 AM
Hank, looks like we did it again. Hey, at least we weren't contradicting each other.
If you use 'soft proofing', be sure to set the color space to the color space you're using for your images. For example, if you do your editing in Adobe RGB and use (say) Moab Entrada paper, you can create a custom soft proofing setup by choosing View> Proof Setup...>Custom. There is more on this topic in PS help.
-P
Posted by Tony Winton on February 9, 2009 at 1:24 PM
A note to all who freely give their advice and talents to this forum THANKS SO MUCH. Sandi and I could never do this without all of you and we appreciate you very much. I have to laugh at myself when I realize I am so far over my head in this, thankfully I have Sandi to explain the basics and then I sort of kind-a, maybe have a clue, at least that is what I tell myself. Thanks again for all your help.
tw
Posted by Rod Barbee on February 9, 2009 at 5:55 PM
Also, besides setting up your camera to capture in Adobe RGB, be sure to set yor color preferences in Photoshop (Edit>Color Settings). Under Working Spaces you'll see RGB, CMYK, etc. RGB is the only one you really need to worry about. If you're capturing in Adobe RGB, set the RGB setting in Color Settings to Adobe RGB. (unless you want to try playing in the wider ProPhoto RGB--but I'd only do that if you have a wide gamut monitor)
Posted by Robert Fisher on February 9, 2009 at 6:14 PM
Just another note that the in camera colour space choice is irrelevant if you shoot RAW. With RAW, nothing is locked in so your in camera colour space isn't applied to the photo. If you shoot JPEG, on the other hand, then the in camera colour space setting makes a difference.
Discussion
11 repliesSandi Winton
As far as which RGB colour space, I personally use ProPhotoRGB. Either ProPhoto or AdobeRGB are generally recommended since these are both broader (i.e., more possible colours) than sRGB.
Thanks again!
When I do the conversion in Photoshop from RAW to TIFF, it's at that point I select ProPhotoRGB if I want to. I don't believe you'll notice a difference in color quality/subtlety between the three color spaces mentioned at smaller/standard print sizes. I shoot in Adobe RGB simply because it is the broader color space with more ultimate potential than sRGB, and that can have an impact with big enlargements.
For any printing you do yourself or have a print lab do, you'll leave the image in RGB (red-green-blue), and your print lab will take it from there. In my experience, if it's going in a magazine, newspaper, book, or other printing media that requires CMYK (cyan-magenta-yellow-black), the designer or the print shop generally would rather do the RGB/CMYK conversion themselves, because it can be a bit sticky and requires some real tweaking to get the best results in print. They'll generally have profiles and settings unique to their particular press/paper. When my wife and I did color toning for photographs in newspapers, we always wanted to get the image in RGB so we could do the conversion ourselves.
For quick background, your little warning bells should go off if someone suggests you work in CMYK. It's very effective, but it can get complicated because the CMYK color spectrum is not continuous, and some of the gaps can be challenging to work around without experience. You have to get into the nitty gritty of the print process you'll be using, right down to specifying which ink and paper will be used in the printing process. I find it much better to do the work in RGB and either convert to sRGB at the request of some clients, or let the graphics people running the presses do the CMYK conversion. If color is critical (as in having your own book printed), it's a very good idea to proof check the colors after CMYK conversion, just to make the press folks got them right. I've seen some serious problems occur when distant people are trying to make CMYK color conversions to your work.
If you use 'soft proofing', be sure to set the color space to the color space you're using for your images. For example, if you do your editing in Adobe RGB and use (say) Moab Entrada paper, you can create a custom soft proofing setup by choosing View> Proof Setup...>Custom. There is more on this topic in PS help.
-P
tw