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Author Topic: Wide Gamut and OS X  (Read 4293 times)

KirbyKrieger

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Wide Gamut and OS X
« on: July 28, 2011, 06:27:39 pm »

Is anyone able to get consistent color with a wide gamut monitor on OS X?

I am not -- at least using Aperture.  I use Aperture (3.1.3) and PS-CS5.  A few months ago I purchased a NEC PA271W.  After some initial hardware problems which were solved by NEC techs, I was able to establish a color-calibrated, consistent workflow for RAW images.  I have had to recently process some JPGs, and cannot get any consistent results.  The problem is the oft-mentioned "red-shift" or "lobstering" of skin tones, which happens along with an increase in saturation.

I calibrate my monitors with a ColorMunki Photo and NEC's SpectraView II software.

Prior to purchasing the PA, I used a NEC2490WUXi2.  I never had this problem with that monitor (which I still use).

NEC technicians have recommended trying a target setting using the sRGB gamut.  This is not desirable, and did not work in the long run.

As far as I can tell, OS X (I'm on 10.6.8, and am holding off on upgrading to Lion) is a minefield for color-calibration.  Some or all of the following seem to effect what I see on the screens:
 . what the target gamut is
 . whether it was set before Aperture was launched
 . something in the images themselves (I still can't predict which images will be affected)
 . whether the external monitor has been power-cycled since the SpectraView II setting was changed
 . whether the external monitor has been changed (PA271W to 2490WUXi2)
 . which external monitor was attached when the SpectraView II setting was changed
 . whether the computer has "slept"
 . whether the external monitor is the Primary Monitor or not (this is an OS X distinction: the Primary Monitor holds the menu-bar)
 . whether or not ColorMunki is turned on in System Preferences

At this point, the PA271W seems to have been a poor choice.  I thought I would gain additional fidelity and control over the output.  As it is, I've lost almost all control:  I don't know whether I am working in a red-space, or a green-space, or whether and when the color space will change.

Suggestions, wisdom, whiskey & beer are all appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

howardm

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Re: Wide Gamut and OS X
« Reply #1 on: July 28, 2011, 07:37:50 pm »

maybe a questionable PA271?

I have a 241 on a recent iMac w/ 10.6.6 and it's great combination.  No lobsters or other oddities.

Ellis Vener

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Re: Wide Gamut and OS X
« Reply #2 on: July 28, 2011, 08:14:29 pm »

what color spaces are you working in?
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digitaldog

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Re: Wide Gamut and OS X
« Reply #3 on: July 28, 2011, 08:30:21 pm »

I have a 241 on a recent iMac w/ 10.6.6 and it's great combination.  No lobsters or other oddities.

Ditto, no issues with either a NEC 3090 and PA271W.

Not sure what the OP is asking in terms of Is anyone able to get consistent color with a wide gamut monitor on OS X?. Is there some mismatch in app’s? Odd previews? Once set, both displays when regularly calibrated are consistent.
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sandymc

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Re: Wide Gamut and OS X
« Reply #4 on: July 29, 2011, 03:54:44 am »

I have a dual monitor setup - HP LP4275 (wide gamut) and Samsung BX2450 (approximately sRGB) , both calibrated - on 10.6.7 without any problems.

Sandy
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KirbyKrieger

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Re: Wide Gamut and OS X
« Reply #5 on: July 29, 2011, 04:51:12 pm »

Thanks to all who replied!

I have narrowed things down quite a bit, and am pretty certain I have isolated the problem though I have no idea the mechanism behind it.

I can force the problem to recur, and I can eliminate it.

Aperture has nothing to do with the problem -- it happens in Preview (the OS image viewing program).

The problem with consistency is that when the problem occurs, I don't know on which images it will occur, or why, and until today I had no reliable way of knowing if I was seeing images with the lobsterization, or not.  (I can see the lobsterization -- I can't tell whether it is a correctly rendered "bad" image or a badly rendered "correct" image.)

The color space is program-specific (I think) -- the problem is not program-specific.

No screen-proofing profile in Aperture changes the problem.

It is triggered by running a dual-monitor set-up from my MacBook Pro when the following conditions are met:
 - the external monitor must be a wide gamut monitor, and
 - that monitor must be the primary monitor, as set in Displays Preferences (in OS X, the location of the menubar determines which is the primary monitor in a dual monitor set-up).

IOW, when the primary monitor is a wide gamut monitor (on my set-up) I get lobsterization of many JPG files (as well as over-saturation of system colors).

If, running Aperture, I change to full screen and run the "Swap Displays" command, the problem instantly occurs.  I surmise that the command does the same thing that moving the menubar in "System Preferences→Displays→Arrangement" does.

Can anyone try this out and see if it affects their system as well.  I'm running 10.6.8.  The lobsterization does not show in Quick View, but does show (for most Web JPGs) when those files are opened in Preview.

The workaround is only slightly awkward -- and infinitely better than not being able to rely on the screen colors.

One thing which I noticed which puzzles me: when I drag the Preview window from one monitor to the other, it flashes reddish or greenish then settles to the correct color.  This is the change I get permanently when I run with the menubar on the external monitor.
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