Colour Calibration Nightmare

[calebk]

This is one problem I am facing. I really cannot stand it anymore, and am trying to look for a solution, but am getting more lost as I try.

Calibration of monitors for web, for print, and for general distribution to friends, has become a major nightmare for me.

I am using a Powerbook G4 1.5GHz, and I've done three (all dissimilar) calibrations for my monitor using the in-built colour calibrator found under system preferences. I've tried the sRGB monitor profile, but everything looks bluish. Because I am shooting RAW, I really worry that after processing (in Adobe Camera RAW), my JPGs that come out will be

1) of wrong colour tone
2) of wrong WB
3) of less saturation than is actually desirable.

Does anyone have any experience in this?

I really hope to rectify my colours so that when I send a photo in for print (on Wednesday afternoon), it will turn out pretty alright, yet the colours will be suitable for web and personal distribution. I am aware that most labs and home monitors run on sRGB, but this whole issue is just confusing me.

 

[wesley]

This is one problem I am facing. I really cannot stand it anymore, and am trying to look for a solution, but am getting more lost as I try.

Calibration of monitors for web, for print, and for general distribution to friends, has become a major nightmare for me.

I am using a Powerbook G4 1.5GHz, and I've done three (all dissimilar) calibrations for my monitor using the in-built colour calibrator found under system preferences. I've tried the sRGB monitor profile, but everything looks bluish. Because I am shooting RAW, I really worry that after processing (in Adobe Camera RAW), my JPGs that come out will be

1) of wrong colour tone
2) of wrong WB
3) of less saturation than is actually desirable.

Does anyone have any experience in this?

I really hope to rectify my colours so that when I send a photo in for print (on Wednesday afternoon), it will turn out pretty alright, yet the colours will be suitable for web and personal distribution. I am aware that most labs and home monitors run on sRGB, but this whole issue is just confusing me.

Hi,

The built in calibration will work only if your LCD is factory new. Your powerbook has been in use for about a year or so? If you try profiling your monitor with the built in software, it will give you a false reading. It might be better to borrow a EyeOne Display (or something similar) to profile your monitor. Be sure to set your gamma to 2.2 as photolabs are likely to be using PCs.

Best
Wesley

 

[ortega]

profiling the monitor is only 1 small part that you need to do.
you still need to profile your camera and printing device

after you do these 3 main, you are only slightly safe
as everything during the profiling must remain contant

if anything changes (eg. new lightbulb, change chemicals, new batch of paper ... ...)
you will nedd to recalibrate

 

[ortega]

best bet is to find a good printing lab that you can trust
and leave the colour adjustments to them

 

[yehosaphat]

Yea... Had that headache since dunno when. Then finally decided to leave the prints to my trusted color lab TripleD. He will do the recalibration for me if necessary and most of the time it turns out well

 

[lsisaxon]

I am using a Powerbook G4 1.5GHz, and I've done three (all dissimilar) calibrations for my monitor using the in-built colour calibrator found under system preferences. I've tried the sRGB monitor profile, but everything looks bluish. Because I am shooting RAW, I really worry that after processing (in Adobe Camera RAW), my JPGs that come out will be

Forget about software profilers. They do not work well at all. Invest in a hardware profiler.

 

[lightbrush]

This is one problem I am facing. I really cannot stand it anymore, and am trying to look for a solution, but am getting more lost as I try.

Calibration of monitors for web, for print, and for general distribution to friends, has become a major nightmare for me.

I am using a Powerbook G4 1.5GHz, and I've done three (all dissimilar) calibrations for my monitor using the in-built colour calibrator found under system preferences. I've tried the sRGB monitor profile, but everything looks bluish. Because I am shooting RAW, I really worry that after processing (in Adobe Camera RAW), my JPGs that come out will be

1) of wrong colour tone
2) of wrong WB
3) of less saturation than is actually desirable.

Does anyone have any experience in this?

I really hope to rectify my colours so that when I send a photo in for print (on Wednesday afternoon), it will turn out pretty alright, yet the colours will be suitable for web and personal distribution. I am aware that most labs and home monitors run on sRGB, but this whole issue is just confusing me.

It is really worth the money to invest in a colorimeter to calibrate your monitor. If you print your own prints, buy a printer that provides icc profiles for their papers so you can avoid the headache of profiling the paper.

If your camera can take a wider color gamut than sRGB, then take the wider one which I assume to be RGB1998. If you use photoshop, make sure the color space is also set to the same as the camera's. If you print using outside lab, tell them you are using RGB1998 and not to do any color adj. Good luck!