ACR Calibrator & ACR 3.1

[Dale]

Has anyone used the ACR Calibrator available a: http://fors.net/chromoholics/download/ to calibrate the camera for use with ACR 3.1 ? Before I purchase a MacBeth Color Checker card ( over $100 in Canada) I would like to know if there is a big difference (better) using the calibrated settings in ACR that were created with the calibrator tool or not.

[Bill Boehme]

Yes, I have used it for a long time. Mr. Fors has not updated it in a long time so it gives an error message if your version of ACR is later than 4.3, I believe. Since he seems to have let maintenance become sporadic, I updated the program for my own personal use to work with 4.4.1 and not give the error message. I also fixed some of the terminology such as changing "Shadows" to "Blacks". Now that 4.5 has been released, it looks like I need to tweak it again. Note that the error message doesn't preclude you from using the software -- it is just a precautionary warning. Personally, I have found the calibration to be well worthwhile and I get far better accuracy in colors. It is not necessary to get the large card -- you can get the mini color checker card. Also, the card is not a one trick pony. I have found it to be very useful for many things including tone control adjustments and white balance.

[blinded]

If you could upgrade or somehow use the new adobe standard profile, I think that would be best option. It's better than the canned profile I had for my camera.

[davidcrebelxt]

If you could upgrade or somehow use the new adobe standard profile, I think that would be best option. It's better than the canned profile I had for my camera.

What software are you using?
You need CS2 or CS3 to run those scripts I believe.

But otherwise I agree with those staements by blinded.
I think PSE6 will accept those new beta profiles he mentions (have not tested out myself yet, however.) But the toolset in Elements is more limited than full ACR in CS3.

So if you already own PSE6 or CS3, you should be able to use those new profiles at no cost.

Otherwise, PSE6 costs $99 or less US.
Or, LR is $99 us if you qualify for upgrade or academic discount (not sure how works in Canada... but here it can be anyone in your household... even a kindergartener qualifies you.)

Color-checker has other uses as stated above, but it may be possible for you to (at similar cost) to get something that works without hassle associated with calibrating. Though again, some people will likely prefer their own calibrations too.

[René Damkot]

Mr. Fors has not updated it in a long time

This whole thread hadn't been updated in quite a while either ;)

[davidcrebelxt]

This whole thread hadn't been updated in quite a while either ;)

Holy Crap!

I didn't even notice that... where DID this thread get dug up from? That OP was a good year and a half before I even started posting here!

[René Damkot]

where DID this thread get dug up from?

My guess would be from the "Similar threads" ;)

[Bill Boehme]

This whole thread hadn't been updated in quite a while either ;)

Holy Crap!

I didn't even notice that... where DID this thread get dug up from? That OP was a good year and a half before I even started posting here!

My guess would be from the "Similar threads" ;)

That must be the case! I don't know how the heck that I got it on my screen, but apparently thought that it was something recent. You don't suppose that the OP is still waiting for a response, do you? Anyway, it is good to not let a question go unanswered. :oops:

The new beta release of Adobe's DNG Profile Editor does all that the old script by Mr. Fors does and more because it has the ability to interpolate values between two profiles and also can be selected as a real built-in profile rather than an add-on patch that requires an extra step to apply (not a real big deal, but still has a lot of functionality). It also runs MUCH faster than the old script.