Bobby Dogg wrote:
I aim to produce mainly for print on an Epson 890.
Does it pay me to edit in Proof>Custom>890 or will I get more accurate results editing for colour, sharpness etc in normal screen mode and then sof proofing?
Opinions differ, but I consider soft proofing to be a professional feature, and don’t recommend it for normal use. Edit in normal screen mode, setting a good highlight, shadow, and neutral, and then simply print your output. If you find that your output does not reflect what you see on the screen reasonably well, attempt to set up your printer correctly before resorting to soft proofing. Because a printer typically has a wider gamut in the darker range than a CRT, shadow detail in particular will tend to show up on a print that is not visible on a CRT, whether or not you use soft proofing.
If you wish to persue soft proofing, there are several factors to keep in mind. The printer profile must reflect an accurate paper color – many do not, including the ones shipped by Epson. An accurate proof will look rather drab, lacking contrast and appearing yellow compared to a normal screen image. For these reasons, when soft proofing an image, use full screen mode in Photoshop, to avoid showing the image along with other window elements that are not proofed.
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Mike Russell
www.curvemeister.com
www.geigy.2y.net
