Color management is the science of managing color reproduction between input, display, and output devices to ensure that your onscreen display and proofs accurately represent your final published images. For detailed information on this complex topic, please refer to a book such as Apple Pro Training Series: Color Management in Mac OS X (Peachpit Press). In this tutorial, we will look at some of the basic principles of color management as they relate to Aperture, and we'll learn where device profiles are stored and how to soft proof your images. Managing Your ICC ProfilesThe key to color management is accurate device profiles. A profile is a mathematical description of how that particular devicecamera, scanner, display, printer, or pressrepresents a known color gamut, or range of colors. The industry-standard format for profiles is ICC (International Color Consortium). Most devices today ship with a generic ICC profile, which does a good job of describing the device's approximate color gamut. The generic profile is automatically loaded into your computer when you install the device driver. For more exact color management, some professionals prefer to calibrate and profile their own devices, a complex task outside the scope of this tutorial. Note Before custom-profiling any device, it is essential to calibrate it. Follow the calibration instructions from the device's manufacturer. Aperture supports both generic and custom device profiles. Like all other Mac OS X applications, Aperture takes full advantage of the Mac OS X built-in ColorSync technology, which manages device profiles at the system level. In this exercise, we will use the ColorSync Utility to check which profiles are installed on your computer, and review how to add a new ICC profile for your display.
Now let's take a look at how to install new ICC profiles. Remember, you probably loaded generic ICC profiles when you installed your device drivers. Many devices, such as newer displays, proofing printers, and cameras, update their profiles automatically each time you calibrate them. However, you can also manually add profiles, such as those sent to you by a printer or vendor, or those you generate from third-party profiling software.
Soft ProofingPrior to printing, it's a common practice to soft proof one's work. A soft proof is an onscreen simulation of how your image will look when you print to a particular printer or press. It's a good idea to soft proof your work, as no two printers render color in exactly the same way and you will get a more accurate idea of what your final print will look like once your display has been converted to simulate the gamut of the final output device. Note It's important to calibrate your display regularly to ensure that it accurately represents your final print result. Invest in a good-quality spectrophotometera hardware calibration devicefor your display.
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