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How should I go about Colour Management

We often get calls from people looking at getting into colour management and wondering how to start and what it really costs. Keith writes here, some observations on where to start. There are lots of related resources on this site which we have collected together at the end of the article.

Where do I start?

There are several misconceptions about colour management. These include it being expensive and it being difficult to understand. Hopefully, by the time you've had a look through this article you will have a better idea of why you should look at colour management as an essential part of producing better pictures.

There is really only one place to start - your monitor. If it doesn't actually display accurate colour, it's difficult to get prints right and even more so getting anyone else to produce them accurately. At it's simplest you should adjust your monitor by eye to get good brightness and contrast. There are various software tools that can help you in this (see the Viewing Tips in the Info and Resources feature)

Good as these tools are, they all rely on your own eyesight, which might not be as accurate as you think. There is a wide variety of hardware now available that will automate the process. You install the software, plug in the calibrator and follow the instructions.

The Spyder calibrator from Colorvision. The three pads stick to your screen and hold the sensor in place while the screen colours are checked.

See Keith's reviews of the -- Spyder 2 Pro -- Eye One Display 2 -- Pantone Huey -- Spyder2express -- Spyder3Elite

There is one area that is often overlooked by people after they have calibrated their monitor -- to do it again later. Monitors drift in colour as they age and regular checks are worthwhile (some organisations where colour accuracy is vital, do it every day)

So, does calibrating your monitor give you better prints? It helps, but there are lots of other factors it helps to consider. I've written a short article -Why don't my prints match my screen?- that covers the issues.

It is also important that the software you are using supports colour management. If you are not sure, open the same image in several different applications at the same time and see if you can see a difference. Applications like Photoshop will manage colour correctly, while the free imaging application you got with your digital camera or scanner may not.

As colour management becomes more widely known, look for reviews and articles in popular Photography and Computer Magazines. -BUT- don't assume that they always know what they are talking about! I was recently sent a copy of a review of monitor calibration in MacWorld UK, where the reviewer mentioned comparing profiled monitors to a 'reference' print -- printed on an unprofiled inkjet printer. Talk about missing the point ... fortunately the review is only available to subscribers, so a wider audience is spared.

The basics

I've got links to some very well written articles and books at the end of this article, but since a lot of people ask for the really quick version of what it is all about, I've put a very short description of colour management on a page of its own.

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What about printing?

Now the picture on your screen is a bit more reliable, you may find that those colour casts and defects in prints are much improved. If you are using manufacturers inks and paper, then the printer profiles supplied are often very good. If printing from an application like Photoshop then the suggested way is to use 'no colour adjustment' in the printer driver and use the appropriate printer profile in the Photoshop 'Print with Preview' window (site with good tutorial on this).

Several professional photographers we have helped out, have commented that just by calibrating their monitors and using manufacturers profiles, their consistency and quality of work has improved noticeably.

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3rd Party printing

If you are going to send your images to a third party for printing, then it helps if you can send consistent data. Using standard colour spaces (such as Adobe98 or sRGB) you can be more sure of what you are sending. If your contact at the lab is not able to answer basic questions about their colour management policy and preferred formats, then maybe consistent results are unlikely? Keith has reviewed a set of test images that you can use if sending pictures off for printing.

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Other Papers and Inks

Manufacturers inks and papers may be more expensive, but until third party ink manufacturers offer printer profiles for various printer/paper/ink combinations you are just going to have to experiment. There is also the question of how long your choice of ink/paper is going to last.

Unless replacement inks were actually made by the same company as produces the printer manufacturers inks, then treat any claims that they are 'the same as originals' with suitable scepticism.

Of course you can produce your own printer/ink/paper profiles...

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This sounds expensive

Well it can be... The equipment to produce top quality profiles - and the expertise to do it - does not come cheap. If you are just going to be using a few paper types then consider getting custom profiles made. You print a standard pattern, send it off, and a profile gets mailed back to you. The complexity and expense of this process varies, but it is pretty straightforward. You might wish to experiment with doing profiles yourself (see Keith's review of the PrintFIX PRO and Review of printer profiling with the Eye One) but be prepared for plenty of experimenting. There are several reviews of colour management devices in our reviews section, including a colour management check-up kit which can help you with getting more accurate colour.

At Northlight we produce most of our prints on a large format Epson 9600 printer. The Epson supplied profiles are good, but could be improved upon - especially for Black and White. We use the ImagePrint RIP for driving the printer. It's not cheap for large printers, but they support smaller printers with the same software for a lot less money. There is even a free demo you can download to try.

If some of these solutions sound too expensive, then consider the real costs of getting it wrong. Factor in the time and resources lost in not getting things right first time.

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Where next

Take time to learn the principles behind colour management, it's well worth it. The better you understand what is going on, the easier it is to spot something that is not right, and fix it. Remember that the end result is what counts -- for me that's excellent prints and satisfied clients.

I've put references to well written and informative articles on the web in our colour management links section. These are ones I've personally found useful.

One particular article I've found that has helped a lot of people is the latest Photoshop CS2 colour management chapter from Martin's Evenings excellent book http://www.photoshopforphotographers.com/pscs2/download/ PSCS2_colmanage.pdf -- useful even if you are not using CS2

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Other areas of our site that may be of interest...

NEW -- Create your own customised A3 size wall calendar from a choice of 90 of Keith's images. Choose your own images for your own custom printed calendar - 12 months starting any month of the year - many all new images not yet in our main gallery.

Digital Black and White. Keith was recently interviewed about digital black and white photography for a magazine article. We have an expanded version here covering some of his thoughts, techniques and tips for those thinking of trying black and white.

As well as our Commercial Photography services and Training there is a growing collection of photography Articles and Reviews on the site aimed at helping you get the best out of your own photography. We also have a growing collection of Photography related information and links that we hope you find useful.

New site features and some of Keith Cooper's latest work are always covered in the What's New page.

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