Newbie needs help!!!

[Aikita]

I've been shooting for a couple a months. I didn't focus in post processing yet, I haven't had enough time, but I'll get there. I just have Lightroom, and the only thing that I've been doing is importing my photos, some sharpening, white balance(with Whibal) and that's it.

1. I notice while lightroom is importing the pictures, the color looks right until the last moment, when lightroom imho oversaturate the colors. Why Lightroom is doing this?

2. The colors of my prints don't match my monitor at all. My monitor is a Samsung . It is not calibrated, I don't have the hardware to do it.
How can I get the right colors on my prints?

I know that I have to go deep into monitor calibration and color management, but the truth is that on monday I have to show some prints of my work and I don't have enough time. What can I do to fix these two things really fast, I'm not looking for perfection, but some quick fix so I can show some prints.

[Beaufort 12]

Sorry, there's no quick fix for color problems.

No calibration, no correct color. (it's even easy to get wrong color WITH calibration, so don't hope for a miracle).

Now, that I just decreased your already bad mood, the good news.

1. Color Manage, and your colors will get better.

2. Buy a book on how to use Lightroom correctly. Scott Kelby's Lightroom book discusses every button and every nipple that program has.

As for your Monday presentation, you could:

1. Call in sick, and read a book on color management in bed.

2. Make the others sick, so they won't see the bad colors. Preferably good tasting, but spoiled food, cheap wine, bad music, loud singing (in or out of tune doesn't matter, as long as you're not a professional singer).

3. Good luck.

4. Don't take it too seriously. Every good image sits on top of many failed attempts.

[davidcrebelxt]

1. I notice while lightroom is importing the pictures, the color looks right until the last moment, when lightroom imho oversaturate the colors. Why Lightroom is doing this?

2. The colors of my prints don't match my monitor at all. My monitor is a Samsung 245BW. It is not calibrated, I don't have the hardware to do it.
How can I get the right colors on my prints?

1) The color change your seeing is because LR first shows the embedded .jpg image inside the RAW file (camera processing) and then after it renders its own using its own processing algorithms, shows that. LR2 with the "beta" profiles generally does a much better color rendering, but that change is still noticable if you're looking.

2) Beaufort is right. Without a color managed monitor its going to be difficult to help you through this one. Esp. since LR is EXPECTING a calibrated monitor, I believe.

If you just need some quick prints, you may want to try Canon's DPP (leave it set at sRGB mode.) and try not to do alot of color correction. Just concentrate on other tools like cropping, and maybe contrast and see the results there. (DPP's images typically need some touching up to look how you want them, again may be difficult to do without calibrated monitor.) But try printing a few to see how you like them and what adjustments may be needed.

Another option, in case you didn't shoot RAW+jpg, is to use Zoobrowser (also from canon.) Left at its default settings the RAW image task there will process your RAW files almost identically to how the camera would have made them appear. I know thats probably not what you WANTED from shooting RAW... but sometimes if you need a quick presentation of images, the camera's interpretation is better than none. Then print a few samples and see how they turn out color wise. (Don't expect them to match screen still.) If they are acceptable, do edits like cropping/sharpening but try to avoid color/saturation adjustments.

[chrishunt]

I know that I have to go deep into monitor calibration and color management, but the truth is that on monday I have to show some prints of my work and I don't have enough time. What can I do to fix these two things really fast, I'm not looking for perfection, but some quick fix so I can show some prints.

As said by others, you need to calibrate your monitor and it actually only takes a couple minutes. It's not a big project at all.

That said, if you need to fix your photos by Monday and don't want to deal with calibration this weekend, then do this:

- Print your photos

- Decide what you don't like about the photos.
- - Are they too saturated?
- - Too green?
- - Not sharp enough?

- Open Lightroom and make the adjustments that suit your observations.
- - Decrease the saturation a bit
- - Bump the tint toward magenta a bit
- - Add some sharpening

- Print the photos again, they will be better. Repeat the above steps as time and money allows.

In the end, it will always be faster and cheaper to just calibrate your monitor, but it's certainly not the only way.

EDIT: Another way to get your photos corrected is to have a really nice friend do it for you, then have the same friend teach you how to calibrate your monitor so you can do it for yourself in the future. :)

[Right Cranium Imaging]

I know this will not help now, and is not meant to be a slam on you, but I would suggest not getting yourself into a situation where you "have to show prints of your work" if you do not have the equipment to produce or are not prepared to do so. I obviously do not know what the situation is on Monday, but if this is something you are trying to get paid for or do professionally, I would say you are not yet ready to take that step. Make sure all your ducks are in a row as they say, before you get in over your head. Again I dont know your situation upcoming, but I know a few others who have made this mistake and it ends up doing harm to your name and your rep.

Best of luck, sorry I dont actually have a helpful solution other than what others above have suggested.

[Aikita]

Well, thanks a lot for all your replies guys. Now I'm getting prints pretty close to what I see on my display. I don't even know how I did it but it works.
I couldn't even put my LCD to 6500K!!! How am I supposed to do it with the Samsung? I gave up with that and setting the gamma.
Then playing with the profiles that my computer already had, I started playing with LR. I chose a Epson profile inside LR and now it's working.

I decided that I'm going to get the a Spyder to clibrate my monitor. But once I have it in my hand, what should I do? Which steps should be followed?

[davidcrebelxt]

I decided that I'm going to get the a Spyder to clibrate my monitor. But once I have it in my hand, what should I do? Which steps should be followed?

Instruction manual is always a good place to start. ;)

Other than that, read up on color management... check the FAQ's at the top of this forum, links like this: http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=296149

An important step is disabling any other color management apps that may be installed like Adobe gamma. And when printing, disabling automatic corrections by the printer driver. But you'll learn more from that link than I could ever post here.