On Thu, 27 Nov 2003 19:09:51 -0500, "Bobby77501" wrote:
I have been doing a lot of reading on how to do this – but I’m very confused. I have an Epson 3200 Perfection scanner, a LaCie Monitor with a Blue Vision colorimeter and an Epson Stylus Photo printer. I also have Monaco EZ Color. I have a monitor profile set up using the Blue Vision colorimeter and profiles for my scanner and printer set up using Monaco. Could someone tell me exactly how to use these profiles (where to specify them) so that I see on the monitor what I scan – and print what I see on the monitor. I’m fairly new to this. I wish there was a manual for the three pieces of hardware to tell me exactly how to do this – but, of course, there isn’t. Perhaps someone who reads this posting will have a setup similar to mine and can help. Thanks………..
Bobby
Well, that’s a pretty good question, how DO you use the profiles? I have a Pantone ColorVision "spyder" unit and the OptiCal software that comes with it provides a monitor profile that (if selected) becomes the "default profile" used by Photoshop when setting up. If you bring up Photshop and go to Edit/Color Settings, set "Custom" and select the profile created by your calibration device.
Often (especially with LCD monitors) this will result in colors dulling down and shifting in hue somewhat. The theory is that by setting your monitor to match the computer’s color delivery to the printer, you’ll achieve better prints when creating images that have been adjusted in PS to an optimum appearance. It certainly beats the guesswork of adding in color amounts, contrast etc. to achieve reasonable-looking prints in an uncalibrated situation.
All of this assumes that the printer delivers prints that accurately represent the hues and values sent to it, and this can also pose a problem. Most modern printers, when used with recommended inks and papers, do a fair job "barefoot" but for critical applications, the additional step of creating a printer/paper profile is needed. This usually requires printing of a scanned reference target that is then scanned into the cal program to create the printer/paper profile. Several profiles may be created to provide adjustment for the various papers (and/or inks) used.
My experience was that calibration of the monitor alone provided a significant immediate improvement in print quality.
