Identifying the Problems August 30, 2006
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David Harradine is a photographer, trainer and Adobe Certified Photoshop expert, whose background is in traditional photography. Harradine initially taught Photoshop and Colour Management at RMIT in
Melbourne, and quickly became a sought after trainer in the industry.
Harradine identifies the two problems when it comes to colour management are that…
1. “No two scanners, digital cameras, monitors or printers are ever going to produce the same result out of the box.” You could have two identical cameras for instance and take the same photo from the same position at the same moment but the result of the two will differ. The images colour, contrast and tone are dependent on the device displaying it. “…they have their own unique colour behaviour or fingerprint.” The same can be said for the same device under different conditions. Here is an example: A printer will render the same image file differently depending on the paper, ink and the selected printer driver settings used.
2. “RGB values don’t really mean a great deal to a device other than the one that produced them. They are known as device specific values and describe how a particular device produces certain colours not what the colours actually look like.”
In his book Mastering digital Printing, Harald Johnson identifies another issue explaining that monitors can display more colours than can be printed, and printers can produce colours that cannot be seen on a monitor.
Both experts explain that to resolve these problems what you have to do is measure the unique behavior of the various devices in your workflow so you can interpret the RGB values they produce, and then convert them to make sense to the next device in the workflow. They go on to explain that this is the role of a profile.
Harradine, D, Understanding Colour Management, part 1, electronic version, http://www.whack.com.au/pdf/ColourMangement_Part1.pdf
Early and Late Binding Workflow August 27, 2006
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Early binding is where each image and graphic component is converted from RGB to CMYK before the elements are placed into a design or layout. Where Late Binding Converts the colour space at the end of the design process.
Harradine explains that it is more beneficial to work in a late binding workflow because you have a superior master file. The master files large gamut means that you can make finer adjustments. The master RGB file can then be outputted for print or web, he says that his clients are even beginning to realise the benefits of having a master file.
So, in learning that, from now on I will be working in a late binding workflow. To see if that helps my printing problems.
Soft Proofing August 21, 2006
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Soft Proofing allows you to see on-screen how your image will print out. After all it’s the printer that will determine the final product, so your monitor should be able to reflet that. Essentially, proofing allows you work in RGB, taking advantage of the larger colour spectrum thus allowing you to make finer adjustments, as well as giving you the ability to see the CMYK output, whilst preserving your RGB file.
For ’how to’ and more detailed infomation on soft proofing check out the following link
http://www.imagescience.com.au/ColourControl/usingOutputProfiles.html
What is Colour Management? August 16, 2006
Posted by kendallmpi305 in MPI305-2006.1 comment so far
“Colour Management is the process of controlling colour as it moves between devices…colour management is not a panacea for all colour problems…good colour management will give you the tools to anticipate and solve those problems.”[1]
A colour management system (CMS) manages the conversion of colour from one device (i.e. scanner, monitor, printer etc) to another. Basically achieving colour consistency across a range of different devices and platforms.
[1]http://www.imagescience.com.au/ColourControl/colourManagement.html
Topic/discussion – Colour Management August 8, 2006
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For my topic this semester I have decided to do colour management. I find I am too often disappointed with the print quality of my work especially when it comes to printing work at the Jack Cross. So I am going to be testing different monitor calibration software like Adobe Gamma and other colour management tools to try and determine right recipe for the perfect print.
At the moment I have NO colour management system/workflow. The only thing that I take into account is wether or not I am working for print. If i am i use a CMYK work Space otherwise I use RGB.
