Hello everybody,
I discovered recently the LittleCMS profiler marvel and am now stumbling to make it work (basic tasks -calibration, profiling). Before hand I would like to apologize for not using the technical language of this forum. I am not an engineer, or programmer but a visual artist who uses photography on a daily basis.
Here are the problems. In order to produce a scan of the Q-60 35mm slide color input target for Kodak Ektachrome, which I am using to calibrate my Nikon Super CoolScan 4000 ED, I turned off the color management of the scanner (being set before to AdobeRGB1998). I am not using any image enhancement tools inside the scanner software in general.
So I made several scans of the slide target using different settings (resolution and bit depth). To my surprise the images scanned at 14(16) bit, 4000ppi or lower, (both with or without Digital ICE scratch �dust removing) turned out very dark and saturated. The patches on the left side of the target are so dark, that the colors are not identifiable �really dark scan. This is compare to the original Q-60, as well as to the much lighter scans I was making when the scanner color management was on.
The scans in 8 bit, 4000ppi or lower, (both with or without Digital ICE scratch �dust removing) turned out lighter (much closer to the normal luminosity) with absolutely legible color patches.
Is this normal, and what is it related to? Bit depth? It doesn�t seem to be correlated to the resolution though, or?
The second question is about the profile generation itself. I am following Marti Maria�s tutorial (Thank you Marti!) �How to use the sample profilers Ver 1.09�. I am having success until the moment I try to create �Working Space profiles� with the Monitor Profiler. When I first test the original scanner profile with the Measurement Tool and press the �Proof� button the initially very dark Bitmap untagged target image brightens a lot (looks like the original Q-60). Then I use the Monitor Profiler (as suggested) to make-transform this profile to one that works with PhotoShop color management. I am using PhotoShop 6 on a PC and Windows 98 SE. Next step: I am saving this ICC profile in C:/windows/system/color.
Once in PhotoShop I open an untagged TIFF, or BMP image. In the �Missing Profile� dialog I assign the newly created scanner ICC profile and check the �And then convert to the Working space� box. Here is the problem. The resulting image is even darker then the original which I first opened. Horror! Not only there is not any improvement (in luminosity), but it�s even worse than the original.
The question is: Why do I get a better result with the very first generated profile (checked in the Measurement Tool), but after I convert it to a �Workspace Profile� the result of the soft proofing is not anymore the same. The �first� profile is good but not readable-accepted by Photoshop, the second one is accepted but with no consequence-result. And more importantly how can I solve these problems?
One more thing. If I only need LittleCMS for monitor-scanner-printer calibration and profiling, and not for writing programs, do I need to install QT, Microsoft Visual System 6, and the LittleCSM color engine? By the way, I did not �install� the five Profiler programs included in the ZIP file free download. I just use them (open them, double-click) from the folder where I unzipped them. Is this approach correct? Please tell me what am I not doing right.
And the last thing (please don�t shoot me!) is: Is it possible to use TIFF files in LittleCSM for profiling purposes (for my workflow) and how do I achieve that?
I would appreciate your highly professional help.
Please excuse my ignorance, and sorry if I am wasting your time.
It�s one hell of a letter and I hope you will be able to quench my thirst for knowledge.
Thanks in advance.
Best regards,
Konstantin
Konstantin Popdimitrov
Artist -Painter, Sculptor, Educator
E-mails: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Website: http://go.to/konstantin_art
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