Using Photoshop for Color Proofing

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Note

Before starting the exercises in this section, make sure you've configured the Color Settings file in Photoshop (see Chapter 5).


Proofing from Adobe Photoshop can simulate what an image will look like on a desktop printer or printing press, using either a display (soft-proofing) or another printer as the proofing device.

Configuring Photoshop's Proof Settings

Proofing an image in Photoshop makes use of the Customize Proof Condition and printing functions, both of which you learned to use in previous exercises. All you need to do now is to tell Photoshop which device you want to simulate.

1.

Launch Adobe Photoshop CS2.

Note

If you have set Photoshop's RGB working space to a profile other than Adobe RGB (1998), the Photoshop Embedded Profile Mismatch dialog box will appear when you open the file. If that is the case, select the Convert Document's Colors to the Working Space option and click OK.

2.

Choose File > Open and then navigate to and open the file Ben at Park.jpg, located in Windows XP Color Management Project Files > Chapter 9. (You should have already downloaded the project files from the book's Web site to this folder on your hard drive.)

3.

Choose View > Proof Setup > Custom.


Figure 9.1.


4.

In the Customize Proof Condition dialog box, from the Device to Simulate drop-down menu, select a press profile, such as U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2.


Figure 9.2.


5.

If the Preserve Numbers option is available, make sure it's deselected.

Note

In Photoshop CS and 7, this option is called Preserve Color Numbers.

If you select a profile that is in the same color mode as the document's working space, the Preserve Numbers option becomes available. In my case, the Ben at Park.jpg image is an RGB image, and the U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2 profile is CMYK, so the option is not available.

6.

From the Rendering Intent drop-down menu, choose Relative Colorimetric.

The rendering intent determines how colors that are out of gamut for the selected device are mapped to the output device's reproducible gamut. Relative Colorimetric, which is suitable for photographic images, compares the highlight of the source color space with that of the destination color space and shifts out-of-gamut colors to the closest reproducible color in the destination color space. It preserves more of the original colors in an image than the perceptual intent does.

Tip

To immediately view the effect of a selection on an image, select the Preview option.

7.

Make sure the Black Point Compensation option is selected, to instruct Photoshop to use the entire dynamic range within the profile.

8.

Select the Simulate Paper Color option if it's available.

When this option is selected, Simulate Black Ink is automatically selected and dimmed. These options, which are not supported by all profiles, improve the accuracy of your soft proof.


Figure 9.3.


9.

Click OK to close the Customize Proof Condition dialog box and then press Command-Y to toggle the soft proof off and on.

10.

Save the proof condition settings by clicking the Save button.

You'll need the saved proof setup you just created before sending the image to a printer for proofing, as you'll see in the next exercise.

Creating a Color-Managed Hard Proof

Now that you can see the soft proof, let's create a color-managed hard proof.

1.

Choose File > Page Setup.

2.

Confirm that Paper Size is set to Letter (8½ x 11") or A4 if you're outside the United States), and that the Orientation is set to Landscape.


Figure 9.4.


3.

Click OK.

4.

Choose File > Print with Preview.

5.

In the Print dialog box that appears, click the More Options button if the full dialog box does not appear.


Figure 9.5.


6.

Select Color Management from the drop-down menu just below the image preview.


Figure 9.6.


7.

In the Print section, confirm that the Proof option is selected.

This tells Photoshop that you want to proof, or simulate, the appearance of the image on one device by printing it on another.


Figure 9.7.


8.

In the Options section, set Color Handling to Let Photoshop Determine Colors, and from the Printer Profile drop-down menu, choose the profile for your printer. From the Proof Setup Preset menu, choose the saved proof setup file (see Step 10 in the previous exercise). Select the Simulate Paper Color option.


Figure 9.8.


This setup tells Photoshop to color manage the file from the working space, Adobe RGB (1998), to the proof-setup space, U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2, to the printer space, which in this example is the custom Epson Stylus Photo 2200 that I created in Chapter 3. In other words, we're telling Photoshop to simulate on the Epson Stylus Photo 2200 the appearance of the image when it's printed on a press using U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2.

The Simulate Paper Color option instructs Photoshop to factor the color of the paper into the proof. A good proof factors in the paper color; otherwise, the colors on the paper will look different.

Photoshop automatically changes the intent to Perceptual (based on the profile selected); the Black Point Compensation option is disabled.

Tip

Keep in mind that the proof may not be an exact match because of differences in the device gamuts, whiteness of the paper stock, and reproduction characteristics of each device. You can use ColorThink to compare the U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2 and Epson 2200 profiles to see how the color spaces of the two devices correspond.

9.

Click Print. In the Print dialog box that appears, choose your printer from the drop-down menu.


Figure 9.9.


10.

Click the Properties button to locate your printer's properties and then choose the correct paper for your device. Be sure to select the same resolution (and other related settings) as were used in creating the profile.

Figure 9.10 shows the Epson Properties menu, with Premium Luster Photo Paper chosen as the paper type.

Figure 9.10.


11.

Locate your printer's color management options and turn them off. The location of these options varies with each printer; look for them under a heading such as Custom, Advanced, or Color Management.

Figure 9.11 shows the Color Management option for the Epson Stylus Photo 2200 printer driver, with No Color Adjustment selected.

Figure 9.11.


One of the keys to successful color management is to avoid applying color management more than once. In many cases when poor results are achieved, double color management is to blame. Since we have already applied color management in Photoshop, we want to make sure the printer driver does not also apply color management.

12.

Click OK to close the Properties dialog box and then click Print to start printing.

13.

When the print is finished, compare it with the onscreen soft proof. Make sure that Photoshop is configured to soft proof the image to the final output device.

Tip

Click the Save Setting button in the Properties dialog box to save your settings from these exercises to use again when printing with the profile. It's important to always print with the same settings changing the resolution or paper type will affect the results.


Photoshop handles proofing and printing of image data. To proof and ultimately print designs that incorporate multiple types of elements, you will need to use a page layout application such as QuarkXPress or InDesign. Both of these applications include functions to proof and separate a page layout using color management.

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    Microsoft Windows XP Color Management
    Microsoft Windows XP Color Management
    ISBN: 0321334272
    EAN: 2147483647
    Year: 2005
    Pages: 103

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