Julian,
It was some time ago that I was printing larger pictures to get colour
management working via online internet printers. If I was you, I would try
to contact each of your three, and see if they run the same system as
Photobox did approximately 5 years back.
Things may well have changed by now - I can imagine that a lot changes in
terms of machines used, systems available and how each company solves this
problem for their more knowledgeable clients.
Speak to each of them and see if they can explain what happens in their
company, and how you could best get a colour-managed solution for you.
Feel free to report back too - I'm sure that many others would be
interested in understanding how best to do this. I'm certainly interested
in the current state of affairs. I don't buy photo printers since I print
so little that it's not economic for me - so being able to print
colour-managed prints again would be great.
Thanks,
Mark.
On 20 June 2013 15:56, Julian J. M. <[email protected]> wrote:
> On Thu, Jun 20, 2013 at 7:05 AM, Mark Hayes (Hotmail) <
> [email protected]> wrote:
>
>> Julian,
>>
>> In the past, I had the same problem - sending calibrated prints to online
>> printers and receiving dark prints back.
>>
>> It has been some time since I printed anything online - but the issue
>> obviously remains. I quizzed the online printers, who were exceptionally
>> helpful and once I'd got in touch with the correct person (someone who
>> actually understood what I was talking about!), and we worked out the
>> problem.
>>
>> The printers I was using at the time (Photobox.co.uk) had their standard
>> consumer-type machines set up to completely ignore any embedded profile.
>> They told me at the time (some five years back) that this was in fact
>> industry standard - YMMV. Since it stripped out all profile information,
>> it just took basic RGB data from the file and printed it using their
>> standard setup - which always came out too dark.
>>
>
> Given that Darktable's exported JPGs use sRGB, it shouldn't matter that
> they discard the embedded profile, right? Or do these smaller printers use
> a different color space?
> I wouldn't like to have to tweak my edits, making them brighter that they
> should so that the prints come with the correct brighness... It's trial and
> error, but I could create a Preset to be used in the export module, with a
> tone curve that increases brighness. At least that wouldn't mess with the
> edit history.
>
>
>> The solution was to print on their larger machines. Their larger
>> machines (printing on much bigger paper) were set up on the assumption that
>> the users would be either professionals or advanced amateurs. The larger
>> machines did take notice of the embedded profile - but it forced you to
>> either print big pictures (>18" along one side I think), or copy several
>> photos (using the same profile) onto a single canvas and send that in -
>> have them printed onto one large sheet and then cut them to size by hand
>> afterwards. So by ordering photos of a larger size, they automatically
>> went to the larger printer, and it examined and used the embedded profile.
>> It worked too. But in all honesty, it was a right Royal PITA, so I didn't
>> do much after that.
>>
>
> I'll try this with some of the photos I printed before, and see if it
> makes a difference.
>
>
>> Someday, it might be a good idea for there to be a list on a website
>> somewhere which lists out suitable online printers that do the job
>> right...! And how to order from them to achieve this...
>>
>
> +1 for this.
>
> Thank!
>
> Julian.
>
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