monitor and printer calibration - what's the REAL deal?

[Rudi]

Hi everyone,

I'm cross-posting this to a few forums, because I'm desperate for answers. :)

What is the best way to calibrate your system so that WYSIWYG with regards to inkjet prints? I use an Epson printer as well as all-Epson consumables, and overall don't have too many problems, but the colour BLUE is a real problem to get right in my prints! This is a real problem with prints where the focus of attention is the sky, or a blue flower. The resulting print always seems to be too purple or too green, never the right amount of blue! It is most probably something not noticed in all my other prints, but it's driving me batty at the moment

I have tried different setting and colour profiles, and nothing has been perfect so far. What profiles do you people use, and what tricks are there to bring me closer to the ideal? Please share all, as I need all the help I can get. My monitor is set up with Adobe Gamma, and is as close to a match as I can tell. But maybe there is a better way! Help! Share all you can...

The thing is, I will gladly pay to purchase a colour profile for my printer, I just want one that will WORK!

[Transfix]

There are color calibrators that you can attach to your screen to adjust your colors. I use an Epson 1280 Printer, and I go with the guess & check method when It comes to printing a large 8 x 10. I make 8 wallet sized pictures and print them all on the same page with different level configurations until I get the result I'm looking for. Then I'll print the 8x10.

[kdobson]

I use the Colorvision Monitor Spyder and Profiler Plus. I'm very happy with the results.

My only caution is that you have a decent scanner. My UMAX scanner (low-end) works poorly (red's turn out very wrong), but the Epson at work is great.

[LEC_D30]

I was having skin colors looking as light purple or magenta which was maybe caused for excessive blue over the picture.
I did not want to spend hundred of dollars calibrating my monitor and printer so I did the following:

1) I perform a basic monitor calibration using Adobe PS 5.0 under the gamma calibration menu.

2) I open the files as sRGB (File\Color Settings\Profile Setup)

3) When the picture looks in my monitor the way I like it, then I send it to print and some key selections will need to be made:

a) The kind of paper to be used (This is critical to be correctly selected)
b) In PS 5 you are presented with the choice of selecting the output profile that will be used for printing. Make sure that you select the profile for your printer (some people selects Adobe 1998 profile that apparently also gives very good results. Personally I have not tried that).
c) On the printer properties you need to make sure that the ICM option is selected and on the PS window make sure that the option "Color Management" is NOT selected.
d) On the printer options select at least 1440 dpi and unselect high speed.

4)Press ok and see the printing results.


Good luck !

PD I use an Epson Stylus Photo 785EPX

[oops]

Anybody ever try Profile Prism?
http://www.ddisoftware.com/prism/about.htm

It promises so much but I am too uninformed to judge by the sales claims.

[Rudi]

I have come across it in my quest for the perfect printer profile... :D

It uses a scanner to compile a profile for your printer (as I understand it). While not as accurate as professional instruments, using a scanner should still be a hell of a lot better than nothing! :)

I have actually arrived at quite an accurate print matching "technology" a few days ago. I stumbled across some information at the Luminous Landscape web site (by Michael Reichmann - http://www.luminous-landscape.com/). There, he has a road-test of the new Epson 2200. The instructions for using the supplied colour profile are NOT what you'd expect! I have followed the same instructions with my printer (also an Epson, although a completely different model!), and the colours are closer than I have ever managed previously! Especially the colour BLUE!!! (This is supposed to be the hardest colour to match on an inkjet printer!).

And all this time I have been using the supplied printer colour profile the "logical" way... what a waste of time THAT was! :D