I have heard good & bad things about both but I cannot decide which I should use for serious assignments. What do you think? I'd hate to get a slew of fantastic shots and have them unsellable or unusable. I've heard harshly contrasting viewpoints on each of them.
I think it depends upon what you will do with the images. If you are making fine prints, Adobe RGB will be the best choice (assuming your printer supports it). If you plan to use the images for web viewing, sRGB will serve you better.
You can also shoot in Adobe RGB and convert the color space to sRGB before doing any additional processing.
The key is to create the highest quality RAW file you can. From that point you can convert to DNG or TIFF.
I shoot RAW so I can choose the color space in postprocess.
I always choose the largest gamut and then save the digital 'negative'. Someday printers and/or monitors may be able to use the entire gamut of the larger color space (AdobeRGB). Some printers already do, in fact.
You can always choose a lesser color gamut (sRGB) via conversion later, but you can't ever choose a larger one if you choke it down from the get go.
The conventional wisdom is to shoot and post-process using Adobe RGB (or even ProPhoto RGB) because larger color spaces allow for greater manipulation in post-processing without undesirable issues such as posterization (banding in skies or other areas of solid color). You can then convert the final image to sRGB if needed--any photo editing program can perform the conversion. I don't think it's really any more complicated than that. Using the largest color space you can for capture/post-processing is a "no regrets" approach.
Your post above, and John's comment; "You can always choose a lesser color gamut (sRGB) via conversion later, but you can't ever choose a larger one if you choke it down from the get go.", pretty much sums it up, in my opinion.
If you are working withing a very narrow band of colors in pastel, skin or earth tones, the numerical values of sRGB are packed much closer together, so in theory, you should be provided with a finer scale of adjustment.
If you're working with the brilliant tones of a sunrise or sunset, or a vibrant blend of jungle greens, then maybe aRGB isn't big enough and you might need to work in one of the wider color spaces.
If you shoot raw on digital, it doesn't matter. The RAW file doesn't have a color space, only the embedded image is tagged with it.
Websites almost universally use sRGB. If you use a larger gamut, and if you are going to post pictures online, don't forget to convert them to sRGB or they may not look right. In fact, they could look awful.
Everybody's right actually, nothing to add except to reinforce what Buck said, that if you are going to display your images in a web browser, browsers understand sRGB so you can count on it looking somewhat accurate. If you display an image with an Adobe RGB color space, it's a gamble... your reds could look red in Safari, purple in IE, magenta in FireFox, etc... that sort of thing.
FWIW, the "Save for Web" option in Photoshop converts your image to sRGB regardless of what the original has for a working color space, and it knocks the resolution down for web display. Handy function. So it seems like you should just work in Adobe RGB and then convert to sRGB for web, like everybody above me said!
Well...I have a little different take but will certainly admit I am not an expert on color space. Bottom line is, for me, it depends on how the images will be used. Yes, if you are making fine art prints yourself, on your own high quality printer, Adobe RGB is best. However, many photogs who sell prints, like myself, use online pro printing services. These usually want the files in sRGB. Plus, if you are using a website to showcase and sell your prints, they will all be displayed in sRGB, so, theoretically, when a client orders a print, it's WYSIWYG. For me, converting color spaces is just an unnessary step, and if you don't overprocess your images, you will get beautiful, pro fine art prints from online pro labs using your sRGB images.
Brandon, this discussion certainly sums up the issues. The one thing I will add is that the auto conversion from Adobe RGB to sRGB is not perfect. Colors will still change. Print from Adobe RGB, but when you convert the image to sRGB for the web, look at the colors carefully with the original Adobe RGB file open in a separate window for reference. You will often have to go back to do minor tweaking of the magentas and oranges in a 'Selective color' layer mask, and then post it. Be sure to save it as separate sRGB file so you don't accidentally lose the Adobe RGB gamut you need for your prints.
This is a very good summary. I'd add one point: if you rely on the Save for Web" command to convert the color space, you can't review the photo for color accuracy before you convert to JPEG. As several folks have noted, you sometimes have to tweak colors because the conversion process is imperfect (although greatly improved in PS CS5). Once you have saved to JPEG, you can't adjust colors and re-save without amplifying the lossy effects of JPEG.
Out of long habit, if I'm posting a photo to the Web, I convert to sRGB as my very first step, so that I can deal with color changes from the start. When you are dealing with photos with lots of greens and blues, the color space differences are bigger and the opportunity for bad mapping is much greater, in my experience. It can be tough to get those back to the right colors after changing the profile, in my experience. You can save a lot of time by taking that step first...
Discussion
11 repliesYou can also shoot in Adobe RGB and convert the color space to sRGB before doing any additional processing.
The key is to create the highest quality RAW file you can. From that point you can convert to DNG or TIFF.
--P
I always choose the largest gamut and then save the digital 'negative'. Someday printers and/or monitors may be able to use the entire gamut of the larger color space (AdobeRGB). Some printers already do, in fact.
You can always choose a lesser color gamut (sRGB) via conversion later, but you can't ever choose a larger one if you choke it down from the get go.
Adobe RGB is a much larger color space than sRGB. I would use Adobe RGB and then convert to sRGB if necessary.
Your post above, and John's comment; "You can always choose a lesser color gamut (sRGB) via conversion later, but you can't ever choose a larger one if you choke it down from the get go.", pretty much sums it up, in my opinion.
--P
If you're working with the brilliant tones of a sunrise or sunset, or a vibrant blend of jungle greens, then maybe aRGB isn't big enough and you might need to work in one of the wider color spaces.
If you shoot raw on digital, it doesn't matter. The RAW file doesn't have a color space, only the embedded image is tagged with it.
FWIW, the "Save for Web" option in Photoshop converts your image to sRGB regardless of what the original has for a working color space, and it knocks the resolution down for web display. Handy function. So it seems like you should just work in Adobe RGB and then convert to sRGB for web, like everybody above me said!
Out of long habit, if I'm posting a photo to the Web, I convert to sRGB as my very first step, so that I can deal with color changes from the start. When you are dealing with photos with lots of greens and blues, the color space differences are bigger and the opportunity for bad mapping is much greater, in my experience. It can be tough to get those back to the right colors after changing the profile, in my experience. You can save a lot of time by taking that step first...