I sure hope someone here can help identify this problem…
I’m getting a heavy magenta cast when using Epson profiles to print to the 2200. It acts exactly as though I had double managed by leaving color management on in the Epson driver, but it is off. I’ve cleaned the heads and run nozzle checks. I’ve replaced the Epson drivers, the Epson profiles, reinstalled Photoshop 7 (OS X 10.3), and spent an hour on the phone with Epson tech support. It looks just like the classic double color management problem. If I select same as source (Adobe RGB source) as the destination in PS and turn on the Epson driver it looks correct. If I convert from Adobe RGB to the Epson profile to create a targeted printer file it turns magenta in the desktop icon but doesn’t show up magenta in the Photoshop image on the monitorand it prints magenta. I’ve been using this same printer and computer and software to make great prints for a long time. Something has changed and I’ve spent two days trying to figure it out. Something must be wrong in the complex interaction between system, drivers, application and profiles.
Any help anyone can provide will be greatly appreciated.
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G. Ballard, You have a very nice how-to page there. A year or two ago that would have been just the ticket for me. I’ve been printing with excellent results for quite awhile using the settings you recommend. Something is broken and I cannot figure it out. I’ll start fresh tomorrow and try one of your test files. But I’ve already printed the eagle sample that comes in PS and it’s way too magenta. And since I’ve already replaced the app, drivers and profiles, the system is probably the next suspect. Maybe something as simple as throwing away a .plist file but unless somebody can tell me what to look for I’ll never know. It really seems as though the Epson driver is applying correction even though color management is off. Any specific ideas? John
That’s a big clue your settings are off…remember it’s normal for the Print With Preview preview to be red because that preview is not colormanaged (the fact that the red is on your print is the clue).
Any specific ideas
Get back to the basics:
PDI_Target_AdobeRGB.jpg
US PREPRESS DEFAULTS Source Space: Adobe RGB Print Space: Specific OEM Paper/Ink/Printer profile (a matte surface) No Color Adjustment
Check my outline very carefully (and confirm the chain in every detail). These are the settings we’ve slugged out here over hundreds of these posts…
If the preview image is RED then something is badly screwed in Photoshop – magenta (fluorescent) would be normal. However, since John wrote "magenta" we can discount Photoshop as the problem area; that leaves the Epson driver.
John,
A magenta cast to your prints means that the driver is using one of Epsons automatic color management modes rather than the REQUIRED No Color Adjustment mode. There are a number of possibilities for this and the following are only an example:
1. You aren’t selecting Non Color Adjustment in the drivers Color Management window 2. You are making the correct selection as per 1 above but it is NOT sticking – usually this happens because the sequence we use to configure the driver is out of order and so it overwrites an earlier step. 3. You are somehow using the Gimp driver for the Epson printer (Apple need to get their act together).
The following page shows the SEQUENCE of steps needed to get the driver set up correctly:
I suggest that you follow the steps in the order I show AND when you confirm that it works you should save the settings (I also show how this can be done).
I really do appreciate all the excellent input all of you have given here. This morning I am going through a methotical process with the info you all have provided.
I used my laptop to convert to the printer profile and the image looks magenta just like on the desktop computer I am printing from. Since the printer’s natural bias is green, it makes sense that it needs the magenta bias to print neutral. I think that eliminates the conversion as the problem area.
Right now I’m thinking it’s a simple case of double management because settings are not sticking when I turn off the Epson driver. I do know that the button in the color management window in the Epson driver stays off visually.
Buko- Can you give me a little more detail on the procedure for the new user/archive and install? Would I then move my email and other user specific files and delete the original user or keep both and use the new user for photoshop work?
I used my laptop to convert to the printer profile and the image looks magenta just like on the desktop computer I am printing from. Since the printer’s natural bias is green, it makes sense that it needs the magenta bias to print neutral. I think that eliminates the conversion as the problem area.
What do you mean Converted to your printer profile? Where do you see it looking magenta (i.e. the main Photoshop window or Print Preview?). If converting the image before printing then when and how – do you use the Convert to Profile command and how do you configure the Photoshop Print with Preview dialog (specifically the Print Space: Profile popup)?
There are two ways to print using the printer profile as I understand it: 1) the conventional way which is to leave the image in the working space and set the printer profile in the Print Space pop-up 2) make a targeted printer file by converting the image file to the printer profile, then using "same as source" in the Print Space pop-up. Either way the Epson driver color management is turned off.
Using either 1 or 2 above the print turns out magenta, but looks correct in the Print with Preview dialog and the main PS display. The converted file looks magenta in it’s desktop icon, but normal in the photoshop display because photoshop color manages between the tagged printer file and monitor profile.
If I converted first and then set the printer profile in the Print Space that would explain everything. But I’m not doing that. I’m still thinking that it’s the Epson driver applying the second round of color correction even though it appears to be turned off. I’m suspecting this is due to a corrupted file in the system because I’ve reinstalled PS, drivers and profiles and nothing changed.
I might be belaboring the obvious here, but in order to "turn off" Epson’s color management, you have to actually choose "No Color Adjustment" in the Epson print dialog box ("Color Management" pop-up).
In post #7, you mentioned that you turned it off by not clicking a button. In the current Epson driver, I don’t see any button for color mgmt. (Perhaps you are refering to the NCA button.)
The magenta cast you talk about is definitely an indication of double management.
I printed some good prints, but not quite there yet with the source of the problem.
I deleted ALL the SP2200 profiles and planned to reload just the newest ones. I checked the Print Space dialog in PS to make sure they were gone. The older ones (ending in .icc) were gone but more recent ones with names ending in _PK were still there in the dialog. I opened the test image and printed from one of the profiles that wasn’t supposed to be there anymore. The print looked great. Then I intentionally printed a double managed print to make sure it was identical to the previous magenta prints and it is, so I’m satisfied that double management is the problem. Why is still a question though.
I got good prints from several different profiles that were previously used when it was making magenta prints. Apparently something to do with the Epson driver and one (or more) of the profiles that I deleted.
But here’s the puzzler… those profiles that I just used are not to be found. I tried everywhere I know of that a profile could live and also did Finds and I cannot locate them. Does anyone know where these files could be, or why they’re showing up in PS when they are apparently not installed on the machine? They are not in Library/Colorsysc/Profiles or Library/Application Support/Color/Profiles.
I loaded one new one and made a good print from it. So at least I can print, but something is not right with the driver/system/profile relationship and I’d like to find out what. Any ideas?
John
BTW, the green case is probably no management at all2200 naturally has a green bias.
I had tried that before. Yes, the PDI Target image will turn green if you assign any of the Epson 2200 profiles with the exception of "SP2200 Standard_PK."
It shouldn’t turn any colour because it’s NOT a media profile. That profile is the default used by the printer driver in the Auto modes. You should find that it’s the profile associated with the printer in ColorSync (you’ll need to open the ColorSync Utility and check out the devices).
It shouldn’t turn any colour because it’s NOT a media profile.
Well, it sure washes the image out, for sure. Sucking a lot of the reds/magentas out. That’s why I can’t decide on faded blue or faded green, but it has a mighty noticeable effect on the image.
SP2200 Standard_PK." It shouldn’t turn any colour because it’s NOT a media profile.
So, are the profiles with names ending in _PK some special type? Those are the ones that would not disappear from the list when I cleaned out the Profiles folder. Are they part of the driver itself?
The older ones (ending in .icc) were gone but more recent ones with names ending in _PK were still there in the dialog.
Those profiles are embedded within the printer driver package. You’ll need to open it by using Ctrl+Show Package Contents.
The procedure is as follows):
Open the Library folder, choose the Printers folder and open it. Now look for the Epson folder and open it. You should see a Plugin named SP2200.plugin. This is were the Ctrl+Show Package Contents comes into play. You should now have a folder named Contents – open it and inside you’ll find a bunch of files and folders – look for a folder named Resources and open it. As if by magic you should now be looking at a folder named ICCProfiles – I’ll let you guess what’s inside.
Well, it sure washes the image out, for sure. Sucking a lot of the reds/magentas out. That’s why I can’t decide on faded blue or faded green, but it has a mighty noticeable effect on the image.
The profile is using primaries that are not a million miles from sRGB, a White Point of D50 and a gamma (actually TRC’s) with a response similar to G1.8.
Now if you go back to what Bruce told you about Assign you should KNOW that what you’re doing to the Adobe RGB (1998) PDI test image (with WP D65 and G2.2) is telling it that it’s really D50 with a gamma 1.8. The net effect of telling that pork-pie is to make it go lighter. The primaries and WP will have minimal visual effect. You should be able to replicate near enough the same response by going to the View menu and choosing Proof Setup>Macintosh RGB.
Actually, I was using the untagged PDI Target image. But I get your meaning; it is in fact Adobe RGB,
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John,
are the profiles with names ending in _PK some special type?
The profiles for the Epson 2200 will have some sort of PK, pk, mp or MP somewhere in their names. PK is a profile to use when you are using the Photo Black ink; MK for the Matte Black ink.
If John (or anyone else with the urge) goes to the folder I identified above he will see ALL of the Epson profiles associated with his printer – that includes the ones he can’t yet see.
Epson hide them for good reason – no guesses what that might be 😉
If they’re part of the driver package then I’m not worried. I thought they may be in the wrong place, reeking havoc. Apparently (isn’t deductive reasoning wonderful) one of the deleted profiles was causing the driver to double manage. I’ve now made several good prints with various profiles. Can’t believe it took that long to figure out. BTW, Epson tech support doesn’t know half what you guys do about this stuff.
