Hi again Viken....
Once upon a time there was a LawnMower....
No, this thread is about harwareprobe and software
Not so long ago
when it was an extremely bad weather here I was writing my fingers off
in a thread where false_dimitri asked very much the same question as
you are now. Search for it if you like. A bit confusing explanation
maybe, but a lot of facts in it about different monitorcalibration
solutions.
Like Hecate I would leave the Spyder stuff out today. The Sequelbased
probe is so much better. When the Spyder arrived at the market a few
years back it was the real pioneer in affordable monitorcalibration.
All the credit to Horses and Colorvison. Horses was the company
creating those scannerbased printer profilers Colorvison sells today.
It was bought by Colorvison. The Spyder was making way for the
understanding and spread a lot of knowledge about how important the
"objective" monitorcalibration is. But today the lowcost probes have
developed so much. The tech in the Sequel probe is different and very
exact. It's also one of the very best colorimeters for LCD screens.
The best package today for avarage use is without doubt the EyeOne
Display with EyeOne Match2 software. For those who has special demands
for cocalibration or full auto DDC calibrations for CRTs etc. may look
deeper at other solutions too, as there are packages which are holding
special features. The Optical in itself is good and also one of the
first pioneers for everyones monitorcalibration solution. They were
very much into the hardwarecalibration of a monitor to max out the
best base for a profiling. I've been using this software (and still is
in some places) so much during the years it has existed. The bad thing
is that it doesn't support the new Sequel probe. I use it in combo
with X-rite DTP42 which is an extremely good probe even though it is
getting old now. It's been a "referenceprobe" in the past. But it
doesn't support LCDs.
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As for the old scanproblem and the disconnected CMS in PS........If
that works use it, but it will probably create problems later on as
you're not using an independent workingspace. Your files will be
untagged and if you're going for a colormanagmented printing flow in
the future or anything else that needs source and destination with a
clear specification for it the halfcooked CMS flow will probably add
confusement and moving colors. Even if the Minolta scanningsoftware
would tagg on an ICC profile that says Adobe RGB it would NOT be what
you saw on your monitor while the CMS was OFF. You simply doesn't get
a REAL conversion into your new and perfect monitorprofile that you
payed hard earned cash for. So any output or editing elsewhere would
be off as well where they use an accurate colormanagmentflow. They
will have that conversion into their monitorspaces that you didn't
have when edited the file. It doesn't matter how prefect YOUR monitor
was calibrated and profiled with your new probe. They will see
different colors and think that your editing was lousy.
I won't push you on this, but personally I would start in the other
direction. Choosing an independent workingspace in Photoshop (like
Adobe RGB) and then build the flow outwards from that *known* center
point. I guess that it will not take much time after been buying that
Monitorprobe, when you add an IT8 slide and download the free
LittleCMS calibration application. Then you would have the same
"objective" neutrality for the scanner that would fit in the scanned
picture perfectly into Adobe RGB in Photoshop....that's what I mean
with building the flow from the center and outwards towards the
devices like scanner and printer. It's the same philosophy as you now
are going for while thinking of getting the monitorcalibration tool.
That's also why I bother to wright about it again. Because I know that
the probe itself doesn't solve much more than calibrating your
monitor. The use of that view has to be taken further to be usable and
of any real value.
As for sending the good stuff to a photolab for a printing on a lambda
or a minilab, it may happen that the lab asks for an Adobe RGB or a
Colormatch RGB sent to them. Then they will make a conversion to their
customprofile for their printer. If they don't get a icctagged file
from you they would assume that the file is in that space ( and then
convert to their printerproifle ASSUMING that the source space is
Adobe RGB ). While it actually sits in your own *monitorspace* thanks
to the fact that the CMS was off while you created that flow
earlier....as it was OFF it won't even tagg the file with your
monitorprofile!! So they think the colors are large Adobe RGB while
it's smaller custom Monitor. The ASSUMING of the wrong Sourcespace
will MOVE the colors in a way that YOU neither THEY can controll or
know what will happen until you get the print home with the bill.
Trust me, it will be a problem later on. The only thing that would
solve the problem with a situation like the one above (sending to a
lab) would be if YOU got a profile from them that described their
Lambda printer. The you could Convert from your MONITOR profile into
their printerprofile/space home at you place where YOU have access to
the monitorprofile. That would give the same view at paper as you had
on your profiled monitor. BUT you would have been editing in a smaller
space than Adobe RGB, the montorspace wouldent be perceptually
uniformed and greyballanced as a real workingspace space is. THAT is
one further reason for EDITING in any of the known workingspaces.
Another thing is that You will always create a NEW monitorprofile with
your new probe as your monitor is aging......so you tell me, WHAT
profile was in use when you EDITED THAT particular picture 14 months
ago? Your lost in the wood at that point.
So, as you see, the factors are so many that will make it fall while
using a homecooked flow. Mostly will be solved by using a KNOWN
WORKINGSPACE and controll the devices colors by profiling them.
Again, I don't want to push you
I just want to spare you those
sleepless nights.
My simple advice would be to buy a EyeOne Display AND at the same time
buy a Wolf Faust IT8 slide. Then download LittleCMS scanner profiler
for the PC.
Calibrate/profile both the monitor and the scanner. Use Adobe RGB in
Photoshop for the Archive files. Then you've locked in the INPUT, the
MONITORVIEW and the ARCHIVEFILES ( indenpendent of devices). That's
the most important base. Now you can take it easy with the rest. As
long as you have it this way you don't need to redo anything later
like rescanning or re-editing when you get even more controll later.
From that point you only need to get further DESTINATIONS controlled
when that day comes;
- Convert a duplicate to s-RGB and downsample for the web or screen
view.
- Convert to a profile for a printing situation.
- Convert to profile built for a digital projector for a show on the
wall.
- Convert to other workingspaces which are not the same as the
archivefiles
- Convert to any new device that can come up in your sight.
The DESTINATIONS will vary in the future but the fundamental base is
KNOWN and the view is according to neutral standards that is also
known. You can create within controlled frames.
The sun is shining and I'm getting the hell out of here now!! There
YOU are sitting and reading all this crap.......
nikita
http://www.chromix.com/ColorGear/Sh...&-session=tx:F8E023E939DFC96F0B85C92FB951BF8D
http://www.littlecms.com/profilers.htm
http://www.targets.coloraid.de/