| Posted By |
Message |
| LisaSam67 Mon 9th Feb 2009 07:53
|
With a local competition coming up I figured I better get this question answered finally.
Last year I had some shots printed. I had two copies made of one of the shots.
One version was edited in a program I paid for: Microsoft Digital Image Suite.
The other version edited in a freebie program: Faststone Editor
The prints were not the same when printed out. The colors were softer, almost faded looking in one.
The only editing I did was cropping btw. No color adjustments at all.
So the question is.. Was that due to the differences in programs?
Which program is the best out there to sink some money into to get the best results when printing for juried shows (or clients for that matter)?
Btw I'm not printing at home. No way. Got that part figured out already ;)
|
| Lensvision Mon 9th Feb 2009 14:43
|
You said you had them made, I guess you had them printed and not did it yourself. That could be the problem, not the program you used cause you said you only cropped the image a bit.
Every store uses their own way of printing images, using their own printing profiles and if these are different from the one you use then you have a different image.
I do print my own cause that way I can keep a handle on the colors and stuff.
|
| LisaSam67 Mon 9th Feb 2009 17:10
|
ya but I figure if they printed them at the same time (and this is a professional print place) it must be the difference in the way the program saves the file.
Pondy mentioned somthing last year around September about this.... I'm gonna go grab him and drag him in this room LOL
|
| Lensvision Mon 9th Feb 2009 17:23
|
It's all in the colorprofile, it's possible that the programs you used use a different profile.
|
| LisaSam67 Mon 9th Feb 2009 18:07
|
That's what I'm thinking too. It's all greek to me though haha
|
| Lensvision Mon 9th Feb 2009 19:43
|
You can always check the website of the printing company you use to see if you can download their print profile so you can use it in your editing programme. That way you should get the photo's like you see them on your screen.
|
| LisaSam67 Mon 9th Feb 2009 21:08
|
it's actually a local camera store that did them
I'll ask Harvey about that when I go see him tomorrow
|
| PhotoPro PRO Mon 9th Feb 2009 22:16
|
Buy PSP - I get just as accurate colors as a calibrated CS3, and no matter where I print, the color is almost exactly the same. My most often sold pics are the more saturated so the color is pretty important to me. A nice deep green sky wouldn't work well.
|
| LisaSam67 Tue 10th Feb 2009 04:42
|
It would if we were aliens! ;-)
|
| fourdeadpresidents Wed 11th Feb 2009 21:32
|
we use PE Photo and they are awesome!!! even with using differant editing programs they still print perfect every time.
|
| PhotoPro PRO Fri 13th Feb 2009 20:56
|
I use Walgreen's and they nail it 98% of the time...:-))
|
| sweetcokies Sun 24th May 2009 20:05
|
I print my own photos at home and it I got very good result, I used epson r270 its an old model, it has six individual ink cartirdges, refilable, I like this printer coz I the software can adjust the color balance , brigthness and adjust image sizes you like, we have it also in the studio and the customers are satisfied, they said the colors are great and amazing different.
|
| damansara71 Thu 23rd Jul 2009 12:38
|
Inkjet users need to do profiling often. If you don't use it for couple of days, the prints won't be accurate. Apart from the paper quality.......
|
| Captivelight PRO Fri 24th Jul 2009 05:27
|
I think I've almost given up with ink jet printers for anything serious, I now use a cheap Samsung laser printer as a general office printer, and a Mitsubishi Dye Sub for photos up to 12 x 8, which gives me the same (excellent) results time after time after time. For images over 12 x 8 I use outside printers, which works out cheaper then doing it yourself!
|
| Wildspirit PRO Mon 27th Jul 2009 04:32
|
Experience with printshops has led me to the conclusion that quality prints depend upon the knowledge and experience of the manager, mostly. Like anything else, management determines quality and service...most places have lousy management practices. The best equipment in the world won't do unless it's operated by quality technicians.
|
| Captivelight PRO Mon 27th Jul 2009 08:22
|
I agree ... you need to choose wisely and build up a good working relationship with them. I've built up quite a strong relationship with one particular printer, so any images I send there I can tailor the images exactly for their machines as I have the colour profiles and bleed values for the equipment they use.
|
| twsottawan Sun 22nd Nov 2009 12:22
|
Hypothetically the RGB values in a digital image file are absolute and should produce equivalent colours and brightnesses on the same photographic paper. In practice some print shops will automatically do corrections on the luminence values of a file to correct for under and over exposure, low or high contrast, and off colour. It is difficult to predict what the software they use for this will decide is the best output. If you have done your own editing and correction on the file, such a print job will significantly alter the look of your picture. As someone has already pointed out not all printing labs particularly the one hour kind, monitor their processors closely enough to ensure consistent results. Switching from one brand of photographic paper to another can also change the final look of the photo all other things being equal. Many automatic printing machines will use the same exposure measurement as you have in an slr camera. If you have not used the meter reading when you took the photo or adjusted the exposure after in the editor, the auto exposure in the printing machine will undo your correction. You can ask at Pro printing lab that they not override your own corrections to the file and print the file as is.
I don't make prints of my photos anymore. The last time I owned an ink jet printer the printer itself was a loss leader for the purchase of ink cartridges, and most ink jet printers that are any good have at least six cartridges, at a price from $20 to $50 each. The printer itself often cost as little as one of these cartridges with the first set of cartridges included. Unless you use it frequently ( a few times a week ) the ink jets will dry out and clog and then it is a great deal of work and expense to get the thing useable again. I could imagine buying one of these things as a disposable printer. The machine costs very little and the initial cartridges it comes with are virtually free. One could make a few prints at less cost than at a print shop, then throw the thing away when you are finished or when the cartridges are empty.
I think it is still true that ink jet prints will fade significantly faster than silver halide emulsion prints, so they are only really useful as proof prints or for short term exhibit.
|
| LisaSam67 Mon 23rd Nov 2009 05:11
|
I've just gotten CS4 and Lightroom2
So the next question is... should I have my camera set to record in adobe color space or just in RGB.
I can't print at home. I have a printer curse. They don't last more than a few months. I think maybe because of the reasons you state above I don't use them much so maybe it's all dried up cartridges that's the problem :(
sorry for scattered typing. I'm one finger typing on the iPhone at the cabin. No wi fi in the sticks lol.
|
| |
173,285 members
2,597,202 photos
6,996,360 comments
