Calibrated Monitors and Digital Printing

[swhyge]

I have calibrated my monitors (on different PCs).

Have done some touchup on the photos and colors looks almost similar when same photos are shown my the 3 PCs with cal monitors - with PS and NC/NV.

So I sent for printing (try both kodak and fujifilm)

BUT why the prints are still very different from the monitor views?

(Fuji - less contrast and lighter)
(Kodak - the nice 'rich' skin tone takes on a duller brown tone')

(only tried two photos each, all different also.)

Any tips where I could have done wrong.

(Was trying to follow the other thread on profiling - got lost in the maze.)

 

[2hwang]

Different photo papers and printers will have different color tones...
Unless u print using yr own printer and with the ICC profiles specific for the paper and printer used.. hope this clear..ha ha.
Calibrating monitor only for the viewing but not for the prints.

 

[ckiang]

1. Calibrating of monitors alone do not guarantee that what you see on the monitor will match your print. The printer (be it your home printer or professional lab printer) needs to be calibrated and profiled too.

2. Just as Kodak and Fuji film has vastly different colour characteristics, the prints have different looks too, so it will not match anyway.

Regards
CK

 

[swhyge]

So how to get the print to match closer to What I see.

Spent so much time getting the right tone and still cannot get the result!!!


Thanks

 

[2hwang]

So how to get the print to match closer to What I see.

Spent so much time getting the right tone and still cannot get the result!!!


Thanks

Get your own printer and with the ICC profile of the paper (for the printer).

 

[Jer]

One other thing that you have to consider is that when viewing from CRT/LCD, the lights are projected to you while it is reflective for printout ie most of the time, when it looks just right on screen, the printout will look slightly underexpo. To overcome this, the files that you sent for printing should be slightly overexpo in order to compsenate.

 

[swhyge]

One other thing that you have to consider is that when viewing from CRT/LCD, the lights are projected to you while it is reflective for printout ie most of the time, when it looks just right on screen, the printout will look slightly underexpo. To overcome this, the files that you sent for printing should be slightly overexpo in order to compsenate.

At least there is one file where on screen, it looks ok, but when printed, it was overexposed.

Talked to the shop owner, his advice is to print small print (3R), then tell them what to compensate and they will try to do it. - still 'touch and go' method.

All the while, I thought if my files are correct to certain std such as Adobe1998, etc, then when all the equipment are properly calibrated, then I should get the correct color - right. Of course, I can understand diff. will exist because of 'active' and reflective issue. What I have is that the color/tone were also out?? Why? Does that mean that without a own 'correlated' printer, I cannot get a good print for my photos - and all those color mgt skills/techniques/effort in PS and related programs are meant only for on-screen viewing if ones does not have a printer?

 

[espn]

You should be using sRGB instead.

I've just sent a few hundred prints to KT and told them no colour correction, the images came out exactly what I see on my screen which is calibrated with Eye-One.

 

[swhyge]

You should be using sRGB instead.

I've just sent a few hundred prints to KT and told them no colour correction, the images came out exactly what I see on my screen which is calibrated with Eye-One.

Will try this tomorrow!

 

[Zerstorer]

For the closest match to what you intended, what you need to get is a printer profile from the shop and convert your image to the printer profile before send them in. As far as I know, KT, Digipro and Beautiful Memories will provide you with the profile if you ask.

 

[nemesis32]

Will try this tomorrow!

YOu can try but dun try with few hundred shots like ESPN as he knew how's the output is like. Try do a test print and soft proof ?

 

[swhyge]

For the closest match to what you intended, what you need to get is a printer profile from the shop and convert your image to the printer profile before send them in. As far as I know, KT, Digipro and Beautiful Memories will provide you with the profile if you ask.

Thanks. Any ideas whether they can email their profile?

 

[Jer]

I thought if my files are correct to certain std such as Adobe1998, etc, then when all the equipment are properly calibrated, then I should get the correct color - right.

No wonder.....sRGB is the way to go for printing by labs

 

[espn]

KT does email their profile out if you want them, I never got around to using them though.

Everytime I pass KT shots that I processed on my display that's calibrated, without fail, they never call me to ask me if there's a need to color correct like last time (when it's not calibrated).

Images come out exactly as the way I sent in. So I'm confident to push them by hundreds, if you're still not confident, you can send in a few for test.

 

[tim]

So how to get the print to match closer to What I see.

Spent so much time getting the right tone and still cannot get the result!!!


Thanks

IMO, most mini/color labs use sRGB so use this as your working color space. Ask your mini/color lab (be it Kodak, Fuji, Konica....... ) for their printer/machine color profile.

With your LCD/CRT calibrated/profiled with either Eye-One, SpyderPro or others. Edit your photos with Photoshop till you are happy then Soft-proof with the provided mini/color lab's profile..... do some adjustment till it's almost match then finally convert to the provided profile and save it in CD-Rom or any accepted formats required.

Upon printing with your mini/color lab...... very IMPORTANT, tell them "No Color Correction" at all.

Hope this help
Tim

 

[canturn]

IMO, most mini/color labs use sRGB so use this as your working color space. Ask your mini/color lab (be it Kodak, Fuji, Konica....... ) for their printer/machine color profile.

With your LCD/CRT calibrated/profiled with either Eye-One, SpyderPro or others. Edit your photos with Photoshop till you are happy then Soft-proof with the provided mini/color lab's profile..... do some adjustment till it's almost match then finally convert to the provided profile and save it in CD-Rom or any accepted formats required.

Upon printing with your mini/color lab...... very IMPORTANT, tell them "No Color Correction" at all.

Hope this help
Tim

Seems like most photo labs can't handle the wider gamut in Adobe 1998.

Just to add on.... No color correction is one thing, tell them don't SHARPEN. Once they try to do that, your highlight area might go haywire.

Lab sharpening feature is more for consumer users who do not do their own post-processing...

 

[tim]

Yup, just a bit more to add: ask them don't do anything except printing

 

[Madman]

Edit your photos with Photoshop till you are happy then Soft-proof with the provided mini/color lab's profile..... do some adjustment till it's almost match then finally convert to the provided profile


Tim, you sound like you know what you are doing...
If I have a whole batch of photos that appears to be nice after going through PS and saving a copy... what then? Could you care to explain soft proofing and the further adjustment part? Do you mean that we have to go through another round of ps for the whole batch if the colours are not what we expect when the printer profile is loaded?

Hope you or anyone can help, cos I am quite lost when it comes to colour correction...

Thanks!

 

[tim]

Could you care to explain soft proofing and the further adjustment part? Do you mean that we have to go through another round of ps for the whole batch if the colours are not what we expect when the printer profile is loaded?
Thanks!

I am using PS 7, I think it's should be the same for CS...... In the 'View' tab checked 'Proof Color' go to 'Proof Setup - Custom - unchecked Preserve Color Numbers - In Profile, select the provided profile' You will see the exact color the mini/color lab sees, then do minor color correction and not any other adjustment in PS to match the profile provided.

 

[tim]

If you are lazy , want a fastest way and ONLY go to that mini/color lab (no any others): just after you opened your photo in PS, convert to that profile and work/edit from there till you save it and print.

I would NOT recommend cos now nobody can see your photos properly (only washed-out color, over exposed and etc....). If you want print it with your inkjet printer or another mini/color lab, you have re-do from scratch agin.

P.S. Always save a copy of your work before you do soft-proofing and convert. This is part of the workflow anyone uses PS properly