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Author Topic: prints dont match....  (Read 14387 times)

RHPS

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Re: prints dont match....
« Reply #40 on: March 27, 2011, 03:36:24 pm »

Have you tried doing all this with a standard test image yet? The PDI test image has accurate skin tones so you could see how it looks on your monitor and (without editing it) see how it prints at your Walmart.
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kerriann85

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Re: prints dont match....
« Reply #41 on: March 27, 2011, 06:10:35 pm »

Have you tried doing all this with a standard test image yet? The PDI test image has accurate skin tones so you could see how it looks on your monitor and (without editing it) see how it prints at your Walmart.

Wow, I totally forgot about this. I DID send the PDI file (with the four kid faces on the bottom) to my pro lab for a test print. No corrections. (not to Walmart)
The skin tones are just a bit pinkier and warmer on the print.   
When I look at the PDI print I can say the skin tone looks good.  When I look at the file in Photoshop I can say the skin tone looks good.  When I compare them side by side I can say
the kids look a little warmer and pinker.

When I look at Susan in photoshop I can say she looks good.  When I first saw Susan's print and always since then, I say she looks sunburned.

So, now what?
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Coloreason

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Re: prints dont match....
« Reply #42 on: March 27, 2011, 07:25:26 pm »

It would be good if you can upload your monitor profile for evaluation...
What are you going to evaluate?
AFAIK, so far there are no means available to check if a monitor profile describes correctly how the monitor displays colors.
The only way that I can think of is trial and error comparisons. For example comparing 2 different brand monitors calibrated/profiled with different devices and software using the same target settings and the monitors are next to each other in the same lighting environment, displaying the same image having colors that are contained in the color spaces of both monitors. If the image is not the same on both monitors that means that at least one of them has inaccurate profile. To find out which, a third or more monitors and calibrating/profiling devices/software are needed until the image looks the same across two or more monitors which indicates that these monitors have accurate monitor profiles.
If someone knows a better and more elegant way to check monitor profile accuracy let me know. Because, I don't know how else one can proof that a profile is accurate and a calibration device is working properly.
« Last Edit: March 27, 2011, 08:20:03 pm by Coloreason »
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Luca Ragogna

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Re: prints dont match....
« Reply #43 on: March 27, 2011, 08:36:57 pm »

Assuming the borrowed spectro makes no difference in what you see on screen then you need to look at your software settings. I'm a stickler for process and would advise you to rule out each possibility working from the easy to fix to the more esoteric problems but I'll bet the borrowed spectro won't make any difference. You didn't mention how the file looks in Lightroom. If LR matches PS then I'd look at your system settings, if LR matches the print and the windows preview then I'd look at your PS settings.
**YES, LR MATCHES PS   WHAT SETTINGS SHOULD I LOOK AT?   

Since the windows preview matches your print and the photoshop one does not I'd wager that the monitor profile is applied properly in your system settings and you have a setting improperly applied in photoshop.
**THIS MAKES SENSE,  HOW DO I FIX THIS?

Ok, I assumed that LR would match windows and not PS. That makes me think your PS settings are fine and that puts me back into thinking that the issue is a wonky spectro or windows colour setting. The reason I think that it's not a PS setting is that your PS settings wouldn't make any difference to how stuff looks in LR. Since they match, the problem is elsewhere. Honestly, my first move would be to try to calibrate with a new spectro. At this point, don't be picky about brand. If you can get your hands on a Spyder or Colormunki install the software and calibrate. If that fixes it you'll know the issue is in the spectro or the software for the spectro. If there's a camera store with a good return policy near you go buy a spectro and hang on to the receipt. It's a bit scummy to borrow product from a retail store but desperate times... besides if it turns out to be the spectro you'll probably keep the new one.

I'm not a windows guy so I don't know where to tell you to look for your system settings. But if it turns out to not be the spectro, look to see if there's a way that you possibly have 2 profiles applied. One that only windows sees and another that is also seen by PS. It was possible to do this on a Mac back a few years ago if you had a profile in Colorsync and another in Adobe Gamma. I'm grabbing at straws with the windows stuff and only making suggestions as to how I would go about eliminating possible issues until I found the culprit. Hopefully, someone else here can give you more specific windows settings advice.

One more thing to keep in mind, if you have installed any third party color management or color control apps (on the Mac we have stuff like 'Shades' to dim our monitors - don't know what you guys have but I'm talking about those types of utilities) disable or uninstall those to rule out those utilities as the root of your issues.
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