a bit of assistance, please

[David Monkhouse]

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I seem unable to get prints which match the image on my screen and I am seriously confused by the number of setting available. The equipment used is a M9P, the raw processed with Capture One and sent to Adobe Photoshop 7 for cropping, dust removal etc. The monitor is a Samsung 940N and the printer an Epson R2400. When proccessing to jpg should I use the embedded camera profile or the monitor profile or that of the printer since all are listed on Capture One. I print very rarely (normally boring people with a large screen hi def television) but am frustrated by the print being darker that the monitor.

 

I currently use sRGB IEC 61966-2.1

 

Or am I missing something else.

 

Comments please...

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[martha]

Hi David:

 

I had the same problem with my Epson 2400. (I now use a 2880.) Here are three suggestions that worked for me:

 

1. Calibrate your monitor frequently. ( I use Spyder system, but there are others available as well.)

2. In the printing module, set your color control to "Off."

3. Download the paper profile of the paper you are using from the manufacturer and make sure that profile is incorporated in your printing. In PS Elements 10 (which is what I use) go to More Options then Color Management and pop in the correct profile. Also, make sure all of your paper settings are correct (size, paper quality, etc.)

 

Hopefully, you will see an improvement.

 

Good luck.

 

--martha

[wda]

A regularly recalibrated monitor plus use of generic or bespoke paper profiles are essential. I recalibrate mine every 200 operating hours. It reminds me!

[Jeff S]

A web search will reveal many discussions on this matter; here is one article for your review.

 

One of the most common reasons prints are darker than on the screen is that the screen is too bright. Default settings from manufacturers are usually so. I routinely recalibrate my screen to 85 cd/m2 for printing. In fact, I keep it there even when not printing; it's darker but easier on my eyes. Everyone's system of course is different and needs to be individually calibrated at each step in the chain.

 

Even then, however, it will never be perfect. A screen is not a print; illumination is different. The idea is to get close so that refinements are kept to a minimum. But print refinements of one sort or another were common in darkroom days and digital is no different in this regard. The more one prints, the better one can predict and achieve desired results.

 

Jeff

[pico]

Thanks for those observations and help, Jeff. Those particular points are oft overlooked.

 

I intend no schadenfreude, not at all, however I appreciate the fact that digital color printing is not yet plug-and-play. In almost all respects, digital has liberated the rest of us to do color printing which used to be so expensive, tedious and difficult. Now it is just difficult enough to remind us (or me) that color can be accepted arbitrarily or appreciated for its truly complex nature.

--

Pico - yet to make a color print he likes

[Jeff S]

I appreciate the fact that digital color printing is not yet plug-and-play.

 

Anyone who thinks printing (color or b/w) is, or could ever be, plug and play has never done printing, has low standards and/or lacks an artistic eye...IMHO.

 

Jeff

[algrove]

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David- do all of the above and then Soft Proof before wasting paper and ink. Since monitors are back lit and prints are front lit you can get differences between the two which often means that your prints come out darker than you saw on your screen.

 

Maybe 6 months ago I gave my Soft Proofing workflow in PS. Look it up.

 

PS: I never use sRGB unless sending or proofing for the web. I process in ProPhoto RGB and at 16 bit. Did you eat the lovely looking cake?

[Jeff S]

Soft proofing is a step that some find useful; experience provides similar benefits. Results will still never be perfectly aligned between screen and print given the illumination differences noted. Each pic is unique.

 

Jeff