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Author Topic: 9900 Printer Profiles  (Read 2820 times)

Alan Davis

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9900 Printer Profiles
« on: August 18, 2009, 07:32:34 am »

I have been using my new Epson now for about 2 months with great results. I have been quite pleased with the Epson provided profiles but of course I wonder if I could get even better results with custom profiles.

My question, can I expect noticeable improvement in image quality (I mostly print portraits) if I get a ColorMunki and make my own profiles?


Thanks,
Alan

P.S. Anyone using Qimage with the new Epsons (7900 or 9900 )?
« Last Edit: August 18, 2009, 07:34:23 am by Alan Davis »
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Alan Davis Photography
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digitaldog

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« Reply #1 on: August 18, 2009, 09:32:22 am »

Quote from: Alan Davis
I have been using my new Epson now for about 2 months with great results. I have been quite pleased with the Epson provided profiles but of course I wonder if I could get even better results with custom profiles.

My question, can I expect noticeable improvement in image quality (I mostly print portraits) if I get a ColorMunki and make my own profiles?

Noticeable? To a slight degree. My experience with the canned Epson profiles which are very good. What one person may say is close, another might feel is worth the exercise.
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GeoffM

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« Reply #2 on: August 18, 2009, 12:06:32 pm »

Quote from: Alan Davis
My question, can I expect noticeable improvement in image quality (I mostly print portraits) if I get a ColorMunki and make my own profiles?

P.S. Anyone using Qimage with the new Epsons (7900 or 9900 )?

Alan, I just got my 7900 and one of the first things I did was build a profile in PMP 5.08 for Epson Premium Lustre 260. I did a quick gamut compare to the canned Epson profile and they were almost identical. I've done some printing since, and I can tell you what Andrew says is right - you would be hard-pressed to see a difference. For skin tones I like my profile better, but unless you compared prints side by side, I doubt you'd notice.

Looks like manufacturing tolerances on paper, ink, printers, etc. are getting really tight, and the generic profiles hold up well.

Geoff
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Brian Gilkes

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« Reply #3 on: August 19, 2009, 08:27:36 am »

The ColorMunki is a great low cost instrument. It is ,however, unlikely to match the results from the higher end specrophotometers. used to make the custom profiles. The variation between printers and papers is now small but does exist. Everything is manufactured to certain tolerances, so tolerance means some differences. Therefore there is advantage in custom profiles using advanced instrumentation. With portraits there is advantage with perceptual renderings as our eye/brain combination is particularly sensitive to these tone, and does not interpret them in a technical manner. The luminosity experienced with these tones may not match relative colourimetric rendering. The problem is that there is no standard for producing perceptual  renderings. The skill of the profile builder makes heaps of difference. Most custom profiles are pretty ordinary because of this. If you can find an expert to build you  profiles for the papers you use , you will definitely notice a difference. The prints can glow. Otherwise you may be safer to stick to provided profiles. If you are using non-Epson media find that elusive profile maker. For some reason I cannot understand , paper manufacturers seem not to provide good profiles. i hope I'm wrong. it's a while since I have analyzed these profiles and I have not examined all of them , so things may have improved.
Cheers,
Brian
www.pharosediotions.com.au

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BobDavid

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« Reply #4 on: August 19, 2009, 09:12:36 pm »

The canned 79/9900 profiles for Epson media are very, very good. I've compared my profiles to Epson's and they are virtually identical. This wasn't the case with the 9800. I made a custom profile of Hahn Photo Gloss Baryita a couple days ago and compared it to Hahnemuhle's. The results were virtually identical. I use an Eye One and Match 3 software.
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Alan Davis

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« Reply #5 on: August 21, 2009, 06:52:16 am »

Thanks everyone for your opinions and advise. I appreciate the time you have taken to answer my question.

Let's say I want to have someone create for me a custom profile for my 9900 and considering I do mostly portraiture and skin tones are of the utmost importance, who would you recommend  to make these profiles for me?

Thanks,
Alan
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Schewe

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« Reply #6 on: August 21, 2009, 11:40:16 am »

Quote from: Alan Davis
Let's say I want to have someone create for me a custom profile for my 9900 and considering I do mostly portraiture and skin tones are of the utmost importance, who would you recommend  to make these profiles for me?


Uh, see the guy that answered your question first? He would be the first person I would ask (literally).
http://digitaldog.net/


Andrew could also do "light" profile editing although most people who try to force image edits into an ICC profile are doomed to failure. Image edits are best done in an image editor...not an output profile. The bigger question would be is where are the images coming from: digital capture or scans of film? Ig capture, the odds are you could improve the initial color rendering and learn to use soft proofing in Photoshop to gain even further control over the final image.
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Alan Davis

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« Reply #7 on: August 24, 2009, 08:42:50 am »

Quote from: Schewe
Uh, see the guy that answered your question first? He would be the first person I would ask (literally).
http://digitaldog.net/


Andrew could also do "light" profile editing although most people who try to force image edits into an ICC profile are doomed to failure. Image edits are best done in an image editor...not an output profile. The bigger question would be is where are the images coming from: digital capture or scans of film? Ig capture, the odds are you could improve the initial color rendering and learn to use soft proofing in Photoshop to gain even further control over the final image.

Thanks everyone for your replies. I will be contacting Andrew for my custom profile. All my images are digital capture from my Canon 1Ds MkIII or 5D MkII and I always use soft proofing.

Jeff, when you mention "light" profile editing, are you talking about the type of light the image will be viewed/displayed under?
Thanks,
Alan
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Schewe

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« Reply #8 on: August 24, 2009, 12:15:14 pm »

Quote from: Alan Davis
Jeff, when you mention "light" profile editing, are you talking about the type of light the image will be viewed/displayed under?


I wasn't but he could do that (depending on the needs of the customer). I was talking about doing gentle profile edits say for example tuning a specific color (a client color). But if you know the exact white balance that a print will by hung under, Andrew could create a profile for that white balance.
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