Knowing the Value of Monitor Calibration and Profiling.
You've sensibly decided to call in a photographer to photograph your new advertising campaign. The shoot was a great success, the pictures looked superb on the photographers laptop and now you're just expecting the final CD.
The shots are back and look sensational, with a little 'enhancement' in Photoshop they'll be ready for the printer and you're new product brochure will be on your desk before you know it.
Why then when you get your brochure back from the print house does your product photography quickly look so inaccurate? The pictures are way too bright and contrasty, all those soft tones are lost and there seems to be a ugly colour caste?
This is an really commonplace concern and one I hear clients agonize about on a recurring basis. The natural response would seem to be, 'blame the photographer', after all they were the suppliers of the original image files. But in truth it is most likely to one of or a mixture of the following complications:
1. Severe Image Editing. Unskilled or incompetent Photoshop retouchers will often perform unnecessary and damaging image manipulation approaches that will often end in poor quality printing.
2. Conversion to CYMK. The picture files your photographer supplies you with are commonly in a RGB colour space and will require conversion to a applicable CYMK colour profile prior to printing. The picture files will necessitate careful colour conversion and ideally proofing if precise colour accuracy is demanded.
3. A Absence of or Inadequate Monitor Calibration and Profiling. This is the big problem and the one that I believe creates the most disappointment and problems. If your monitor isn't correctly calibrated or rather you simply use the makers canned factory settings, there is a good risk that your monitor is deceiving you!
To prevail over this concern you must calibrate your monitor which is the process of setting up your monitor options to accomplish a neutral result, including changing its luminance (brightness), white point (colour temperature) and gamma settings. If you deal with professional photographs on a frequent basis or you don't employ the services of a graphic designer or some other pre-press professional then I strongly advise that you invest in some fundamental monitor calibration software and apparatus. It need not cost a fortune and will indeed cost a small fraction of what a spoilt print run will! If you do use hire a design consultant or pre-press house that fully appreciates the significance or colour management then you may just be happy to manually set-up your monitor, though remember not to alter the picture files in any way as what you see on your screen will be different to what your designer and printer sees!
The calibrator will effectively measure your monitors imperfections and in combination with the software will work out a profile that is unique to your screen. Think of this profile as a 'filter' or 'mask' that once utilised to your screen will remove any imperfections and will give you a totally neutral view.
It never ceases to astonish me how even professional designers simply don't recognize or choose to ignore the significance of colour management in their workflow. Monitor calibration is a small yet valuable part of a professional digital workflow that when dismissed, can cause untold disappointment and problems. So do yourself a massive favour and invest in some simple monitor calibration equipment, you'll wonder why you haven't done it sooner!