Re: profiling monitors & workflow
Re: profiling monitors & workflow
- Subject: Re: profiling monitors & workflow
- From: email@hidden
- Date: Fri, 8 Dec 2000 08:25:25 EST
In a message dated 12/7/00 1:47:34 PM, email@hidden writes:
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Stupid Question, part One:
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I was wondering about the differences between 'profiling' and
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'calibrating' monitors. For example, I use a Gretag Spectrolino and
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ColorBlind to create a monitor profile, but at no point do I adjust the
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RGB guns in my monitor (me, personally--maybe the software does by
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magic, somehow). Have I calibrated my monitor, or has it merely been
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profiled?
Ah, Fred Bunting's favorite question... what you have done is to not
"precalibrate" your hardware guns (the way that OptiCal, for instance, would
allow you to precalibrate them), but by setting the gamma and whitepoint you
have still calibrated your monitor, just with less control. Then you built a
profile for that calibration. There are suprisingly few packages on the
market at the moment with that feature, even when the whole bundle costs
thousands... if a customer is paying that kind of price it would make sense
to expect current generation features in all components, plus conveneience,
extra controls and a bug free interface. Not so...
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I also have Gretag's ICSync, which is similar to Adobe Gamma & the old
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Monitors calibrator. It uses 'sliders' to adjust red, green, & blue
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patches (no Spectrolino required), then builds a profile & loads into
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ColorSync. Is my monitor now calibrated?
Roughly calibrated, and profiled to that rough calibration.
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I also have X-Rite's monitor optimizer, for good measure. Same question.
Ah, well if you drive it with OptiCal, then you have a utility called PreCal
that will balance the guns before the further steps of calibration,
characterization, and profiling.
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Stupid Question, part Two:
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Then, in my Photoshop color-retouching workflow, I need to open and
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adjust an image I scanned earlier. Do I open the image, convert from the
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scanner's profile (RGB) to my monitor profile (RGB), then from my
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monitor profile to a working space (RGB) and set my color settings to
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the appropriate output CMYK profile and monitor profile?
Nope, straight from ScannerRGB ot WorkingSapceRGB, the monitor conversion
happens on the fly in Photoshop for monitor display only.
Because I need
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to have some clue as to the CMYK values while retouching, should I now
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convert and retouch in RGB, while previewing CMYK values (using the
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option-Y command), or should I just convert to CMYK up-front and retouch
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in CMYK?
You should retouch in AdobeRGB ( or ColorMatchRGB if you have to), with the
CMYK space set to SWOP or whatever press standard you are aiming for. Then
the numbers in the info pallette under CMYK will have an accurate basis. In
Photoshop 6 you should also open a proofing window and set it to proof your
CMYK space (the default proofing choice anyhow) and check the final CMYK view
while working on the RGB file. There may still be some odds and ends you
choose to correct in CMYK after conversion, but only if you are really
exacting and doing specialized work.
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And, in this scenario, do I need an RGB working space at all?
Unless you want to play CMYK SuperMan (a difficult and disadvantaged method)
then yes, you need an RGB workingspace. It is the place where you can trust
the monitor well enough to make corrections, and make those corrections
before seperating, so your UCR, UCA, GCR, ink limiits etc are correct.
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Sorry in advance if I've been unclear or made this confusing--I suppose
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I'm venting profile frustrations as well as trying solve problems (not
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a
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good mix).
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You just don't have a clear grasp of the methods used in an RGB workingspace
workflow. Once you understand it, many of the frustrations will disappear.
C. David Tobie
Design Cooperative
email@hidden