Wordman:
Have you used hardware calibration (Spyder, eyeOne, etc.) to profile the monitor? Do you have that profile assigned as the default in your video properties?
Picture and Fax Viewer is not color-managed so you aren’t going to see good color there. If you convert your file to sRGB and save a special version of it with that profile then you’ll probably get better color in that app and Windows Explorer, as well as other non-color managed apps.
If the image is RGB make sure you select RGB in your PDF when creating the file. Make sure your PDF Color settings are set to Leave Color Unchanged and Document Rendering Intent to Preserved when creating the PDF file. When you print is when you tell it which printer profile to use.
With Quark I always turn color management off and set the printer driver to handle color. Remember that both the image and color look bad in the Quark layout.
For InDesign I just set it up the same as Photoshop and Illustrator and it always prints great. I’m not sure why it wouldn’t print correctly for you. Check and make sure your color settings in PS and ID are the same.
Sid,
thank you so much for the tips. No, I have yet to get off my arse in regards to color-managing my monitor, but I certainly will now. Any software you recommend most? Any thoughts about the Pantone Huey?
The dilemma which prompted my post is a short deadline on the delivery of a portrait. Looks perfect on Pshop, and the customer will use it in Illustrator, so my worries about the ‘picture and fax viewer’ (which I know is not the best) ought to be set aside then.
Many thanks to you for your help!
Sincerely,
Wordman
PS – Now how about this…what do we do as web developers to ensure our images look consistant on the vast sea of monitors out there? Can we do anything or is there some ‘middle ground’ we can aim for?
The middle ground is sRGB profiles. I believe that is the default color space that Windows assumes for all apps (or that’s what I have read). Safari (on the Mac) is color-managed so it should give good color with any profile.
The main reason to calibrate your monitor with hardware is to give you confidence that what you are really seeing is what’s in the file. That way, when you print something you have a frame of reference, because without calibration, even if an image looks right in Photoshop on-screen that doesn’t mean that’s what is *really* in the file. But with a properly calibrated monitor and good profile you can be (fairly) certain that you have a good file.
As for calibration packages, I’ve been using ColorVision products for many years (even before the Spyder was introduced). But I’ve heard good things about all the packages. I think any of them will do a good job of calibrating your monitor and creating a profile. If you have any problems I’m sure tech support will be good (I know it is for certain with ColorVision). Good luck!
