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Calibrate colours PS-6 on PC (cmyk)
- Thread starter Goran96868
- Start date
Goran96868
Member
Is it stupid question?
Willie G.
Veteran Member
... about which books have been written. Can you state your needs more specifically?
For example, what exactly are you trying to calibrate? A scanner? A printer? Are sending work to a commercial printer? What tools do you have available? Why are you asking in the first place?
Have you searched the internet for some answers? Have you found any? Can you share what knowledge you do have with the rest of us?
Try google.com and just search "color calibration" and see what you come up with.
Just a few thoughts,
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
For example, what exactly are you trying to calibrate? A scanner? A printer? Are sending work to a commercial printer? What tools do you have available? Why are you asking in the first place?
Have you searched the internet for some answers? Have you found any? Can you share what knowledge you do have with the rest of us?
Try google.com and just search "color calibration" and see what you come up with.
Just a few thoughts,
--
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
Janeen Sanders
Well-known member
It' s a HUGE question!
Criminy, we just covered that in the PS6 class I'm taking at college, and I'm more confused now than ever!
If no one's answering here it's probably becuase most folks here are RGBer's.
I'd suggest asking in Pro Digital Talk forum...
Best of luck to you!!
Criminy, we just covered that in the PS6 class I'm taking at college, and I'm more confused now than ever!
If no one's answering here it's probably becuase most folks here are RGBer's.
I'd suggest asking in Pro Digital Talk forum...
Best of luck to you!!
Willie G.
Veteran Member
I can probably help a bit with any cmyk questions, but first I have to know what the question is. Matching cmyk output to monitor display can be relatively easy in Photoshop. It's all about Dot Gain...
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
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Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
R
Ranjan
Guest
Hi Effzee, I would like to know about the dot gain, how mutch to set it while calibrating it for cmyk.
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Ranjan
Professional photographer.
http://www.geocities.com/ranjan2001
Willie G.
Veteran Member
Well, the first thing you need are color proofs from your printer. And if your printer can you provide you with information about which icc profile will get you closest to his ouput, that's good. A good printing house should have profiles made already and be willing (or even enthusiastic) to give them to you. Next you need, or should have, a good quality light source to view the proofs under. Probably a 5000k or 6500k overhead light is the most common in use.
Now you're ready for Photoshop. And here a couple links on the subject:
http://www.techcolor.com/help/dotgain.html
http://www.prepress.pps.com/ColorTips/ColorTips4.htm
What I've done on my own setup is get a good icc profile generated from special profile hardware/software and then visually tweaked the curves in the Photoshop cmyk setup dialog till my monitor looked spot on like what I saw on the printed page.
It's important to do this with re-world photographs that show you a wide spectrum of colors. I used a series of about 5 photos. One of a woman in a bikini, one of a blue-tinged modern art sculpture, another of a bowl of fruit, and a couple others. All of them high-quality, press-ready images. I spent about 2 hours getting it done and it was time well-spent.
But this was for my monitor at work and we had own presses and Iris printers (I don't work there anymore). So, my situation was one of the easiest to deal with.
Lol, were you expecting me to say "click this button and your cmyk separations would all be perfect"?
Do you have a specific question? Why are you messing with this stuff in the first place? If you're printing at home to your inkjet, none of this should be interesting to you.
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
Now you're ready for Photoshop. And here a couple links on the subject:
http://www.techcolor.com/help/dotgain.html
http://www.prepress.pps.com/ColorTips/ColorTips4.htm
What I've done on my own setup is get a good icc profile generated from special profile hardware/software and then visually tweaked the curves in the Photoshop cmyk setup dialog till my monitor looked spot on like what I saw on the printed page.
It's important to do this with re-world photographs that show you a wide spectrum of colors. I used a series of about 5 photos. One of a woman in a bikini, one of a blue-tinged modern art sculpture, another of a bowl of fruit, and a couple others. All of them high-quality, press-ready images. I spent about 2 hours getting it done and it was time well-spent.
But this was for my monitor at work and we had own presses and Iris printers (I don't work there anymore). So, my situation was one of the easiest to deal with.
Lol, were you expecting me to say "click this button and your cmyk separations would all be perfect"?
Do you have a specific question? Why are you messing with this stuff in the first place? If you're printing at home to your inkjet, none of this should be interesting to you.
--
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
R
Ranjan
Guest
Thanks for the links & info, no I was not expecting click this button answers.
Part of my digital RGB file go for printing & at times get messed up while conversion, so I am thinking if I myself can convert the files to cmyk & then give it to the prepress houses.
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Ranjan
Professional photographer.
http://www.geocities.com/ranjan2001
Willie G.
Veteran Member
Then you should definitely talk to them and ask if they have a good profile for you. BUT, if they're like 80% of pre-press places, they're probably just separating to SWOP coated or EURO coated or one of the standard canned cmyk profiles. If the pre-press people are uncooperative (because you want to save costs for yourself), try to talk to people running the presses.
--
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
Goran96868
Member
Thanks for your efort,but still ..What to do go to preference and ..?
Willie G.
Veteran Member
Make sure you have a good image open and that you can see your info palette (F8)
Your monitor HAS to warmed-up thoroughly. Even if you think you have a great monitor, don't start doing this till it's been on at least half an hour.
Ok...
In Photoshop 6, go to Edit> Color Settings
Under Working Spaces/CMYK select "Custom CMYK" (the very top of the list).
In the CMYK dialog, under Ink Options, you should select the cmyk profile that makes the best sense to you. If you're doing this "blind'" and have no idea which profile is best, then stop and educate yourself some more.
Now, under Dot Gain, select "Curves" and study the dialog a few minutes.
Over on the right you'll see where you can individually select C, M, Y, or K.
Look at your print and look at the image on your screen. Click and hold on an area that doesn't look correct on screen. While holding, look at your info palette.
Let's say it displays C32. That means you'll have to change the curve for cyan in the 30% box till what you see on screen matches your print.
Wherever you see incorrect colors on your screen, you can fine-tune the cmyk curve of your profile to match things up.
Neutral areas are very, very useful here. If there's a white shirt in your photo and it looks slightly magenta, click on it, note the reading in your info palette and drop magenta down in that zone SLIGHTLY.
Spend a few hours getting used to the process and after you're done, come back again tomorrow and look at your results with an unbiased eye.
When you're done, give the profile a sensible name and save it.
DO NOT make drastic adjustments in this dialog. You can easily introduce new problems that may not appear till later. If the color is WAY off, go back and do a basic monitor calibration with Adobe Gamma or another tool and be sure you have an already decent cmyk profile before you try fine-tuning it.
BE SURE and compare a good assortment of digital images/color proofs with your profile.
LEARN a as much about color theory as you can before starting. CMYK is the most complex color space we've got because you can make the same color with more than one combination of the available inks. So, for example, if you have a green cast, you might be able to correct it by adjusting cyan and yellow in varying ways. One adjustment might work for one image, but cause problems in another.
UCR and GCR are very important, but beyond my ability to explain (without adding confusion to the matter). Which is why you need to:
TALK to the people who are printing your work to get the best advice. I suspevt they may tell you I'm nuts and you should leave your fingers away from the Dot Gain curves (but they're wrong
)
Have fun,
Willie
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
Your monitor HAS to warmed-up thoroughly. Even if you think you have a great monitor, don't start doing this till it's been on at least half an hour.
Ok...
In Photoshop 6, go to Edit> Color Settings
Under Working Spaces/CMYK select "Custom CMYK" (the very top of the list).
In the CMYK dialog, under Ink Options, you should select the cmyk profile that makes the best sense to you. If you're doing this "blind'" and have no idea which profile is best, then stop and educate yourself some more.
Now, under Dot Gain, select "Curves" and study the dialog a few minutes.
Over on the right you'll see where you can individually select C, M, Y, or K.
Look at your print and look at the image on your screen. Click and hold on an area that doesn't look correct on screen. While holding, look at your info palette.
Let's say it displays C32. That means you'll have to change the curve for cyan in the 30% box till what you see on screen matches your print.
Wherever you see incorrect colors on your screen, you can fine-tune the cmyk curve of your profile to match things up.
Neutral areas are very, very useful here. If there's a white shirt in your photo and it looks slightly magenta, click on it, note the reading in your info palette and drop magenta down in that zone SLIGHTLY.
Spend a few hours getting used to the process and after you're done, come back again tomorrow and look at your results with an unbiased eye.
When you're done, give the profile a sensible name and save it.
DO NOT make drastic adjustments in this dialog. You can easily introduce new problems that may not appear till later. If the color is WAY off, go back and do a basic monitor calibration with Adobe Gamma or another tool and be sure you have an already decent cmyk profile before you try fine-tuning it.
BE SURE and compare a good assortment of digital images/color proofs with your profile.
LEARN a as much about color theory as you can before starting. CMYK is the most complex color space we've got because you can make the same color with more than one combination of the available inks. So, for example, if you have a green cast, you might be able to correct it by adjusting cyan and yellow in varying ways. One adjustment might work for one image, but cause problems in another.
UCR and GCR are very important, but beyond my ability to explain (without adding confusion to the matter). Which is why you need to:
TALK to the people who are printing your work to get the best advice. I suspevt they may tell you I'm nuts and you should leave your fingers away from the Dot Gain curves (but they're wrong
)Have fun,
Willie
--
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
Goran96868
Member
that is what I needed
must confess your foto "A view into the Celtic otherworld "
realy hipnotised me,very good one
http://www.pbase.com/goran
must confess your foto "A view into the Celtic otherworld "
realy hipnotised me,very good one
http://www.pbase.com/goran
Goran96868
Member
Effzee , I owe you apology,forget to tale why I need info for calibration.
Some people in print studio have problem with my work (for printing) in a colour sense,and they said I need to fix CMYK colour (calibrate).
They show me on MAC ,but on PC is different.
So thank you one´s more for your effort and help
Some people in print studio have problem with my work (for printing) in a colour sense,and they said I need to fix CMYK colour (calibrate).
They show me on MAC ,but on PC is different.
So thank you one´s more for your effort and help
Willie G.
Veteran Member
The print people should be helping you get calibrated to THEIR equipment. Tell them to claibrate first, and then you'll improve on their work ;-)
Reallly, ask if they have put any effort into creating icc profiles for their machines and ask them to provide you with some good quality proofs you can use as reference for your monitor calibration.
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
Reallly, ask if they have put any effort into creating icc profiles for their machines and ask them to provide you with some good quality proofs you can use as reference for your monitor calibration.
--
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
Krymedogg
Forum Enthusiast
Here you go..everything you wanted to know about color calibration and then some........happy reading...
http://www.computer-darkroom.co.uk/
http://www.computer-darkroom.co.uk/
Willie G.
Veteran Member
If there's any info on that website about cmyk workflow and calibration, please post a more specific link. I couldn't find anything :-(
W
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
W
--
Willie G.
http://www.pbase.com/effzee
Goran96868
Member
Thanks a lot
There is more
Guys try this site it´s rely something.
http://www.normankoren.com/makingfineprints1A.html#Blacklvl
Goran
http://www.pbase.com/goran/natural_world
Barry14748
Leading Member
Well stated effzee. Most prepress folks I've talked to can put a page together in Quark, rip it and output a proof but can't tell me a thing about color management! Like you said most just use SWOP (even for the rotogravure presses at the printing plant where I work).
To expand a little on UCR/GCR.....at least where I work it's just a way for the printer to save money on ink and if done correctly the customer should'nt be able to see the difference. Areas of the printed page that have a lot of all 4 colors (blacks mostly) will have portions of the C,M,Y removed and K will be pumped up to compensate. You'll save money on your primary colors and use a little more Key (cheapest color of ink to buy). Where you run into trouble is if the prep house has already applied UCR/GCR and then the printer does it again....that's when you get grey in areas that are suppose to be black.
--
Regards!
Barry
To expand a little on UCR/GCR.....at least where I work it's just a way for the printer to save money on ink and if done correctly the customer should'nt be able to see the difference. Areas of the printed page that have a lot of all 4 colors (blacks mostly) will have portions of the C,M,Y removed and K will be pumped up to compensate. You'll save money on your primary colors and use a little more Key (cheapest color of ink to buy). Where you run into trouble is if the prep house has already applied UCR/GCR and then the printer does it again....that's when you get grey in areas that are suppose to be black.
--
Regards!
Barry
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