PS CS3 / Lightroom ACR color problems

I’ve been experiencing a problem with photographs in photoshop CS3 or Lightroom becoming overly saturated (with red) when viewed in a non-colored managed app like explorer. I use ACR to convert from RAW.

I didn’t see the problem with Photoshop CS2. My monitor is calibrated using my Spyder II and I’ve been pleased with color management up until Lightroom and then CS3 came along.

When I use sRGB as the color profile I see the problem mentioned above. When I use Adobe RBG as the color profile I see a different problem – when viewed in explorer the colors are slightly muted – but no red overstauration.

ANy help would be very much appreciated.

Best Rerards,
Mike

Did you see this thread?

I did and I followd and read alot of the links, but nothing can explain why this problem just started with Lightroom & CS3, Even now if I can use Bridge 1 and not see the problem, but using the new ACR I see the problem.

Regards,
Mike

So basically what you are saying is: All else is equal, only difference is the transfer from CS2 to CS3??

No different color settings, no new monitor calibration, no nothing?

The colors of an AdobeRGB file should be 'muted' in a non CM application.
The 'over saturated reds' could be the difference between your monitor and the 'average one' (sRGB).

So the only strange thing here is the difference between CS2 and CS3.

There was a thread today (here) about a mismatch between LR and PS, which turned out to be caused by a broken (?) monitor profile. Might be worth a check.

Otherwise, some screenshots might help.

Set everything you can find to sRgb.

Rene,

That is correct - I've been using sRGB for several years and when Lightroom was finally released I was pleased with the new ACR and started using it. But I started to notice photos I was posting on the web were looking oversaturated. When I converted using CS2 there was no problem. Now CS3's here, I see the same thing with the CS3 ACR. Everything looks fine in PS, but in exploreer (or when I proof colors to Monitor RGB) I see the red tinge. I'm convinced this is something to do with ACR 4.

I've attached a sample problem photo - it doesn't look terrible, but the colors are just over saturated from where they should be.

HOSTED PHOTO
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Perhaps the easiest way to see problem I'm having is by taking a photograph of a person (with light skin) - convert from RAW using ACR 4 with the sRGB profile. Once in photoshop check the skin colors look natural. Now use Save for Web - the skin becomes considerably more saturated in red.

I do the same thing with CS3 (using ACR 3.7) and there's no problem - no saturation when going to Save to Web.

First of: Not too clear on your post: You say "When I converted using CS2 there was no problem". Meaning you don't convert now? Converting to what? sRGB?

Proofing to monitor is essentially the same as not using color management, so that should look like in Explorer.

The attached photo has no embedded profile.
Explorer isn't color managed, but will treat the image as sRGB, and send it straight to the monitor. Not using your monitor profile. The same image with embedded sRGB profile would look the same.

Sounds like your monitor profile is different from sRGB. Mine is as well.
Not much you can do. Should not be a large difference.
The problem should have been exactely the same using CS2, unless you did something different back then (like converting to your monitors profile, which is not a good idea IMO)

René Damkot wrote in post #3112737
The attached photo has no embedded profile.

I guess I need to stop using Opanda for these Color Problem threads.

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Hey, that's strange

This is what I get:

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I don't have PS right now to see what it says but this is strange???

Mike's software's better than Rene's

That image looks good to me as is, it's well saturated and on the high edge of normal but not oversaturated. I tried assigning other profiles, and none of the common ones make it look better, which suggests that color management isn't your issue, or at least it's not the standard kind of issue we often see here.

My suggestion: print it and see how it looks in daylight. If you don't like it reduce the saturation. Check your raw saturation and contrast settings.

Thanks a lot for the suggestions and input. I first noticed the “problem” when I installed Lightroom (release, not Beta). The photos I was converting using Lightroom’s ACR looked fine in Photoshop (either sRGB or Adobe RGB space), but when I posted them on the web they were way too red. Photos I converted using PS2’s ACR were fine, no significant change was noticeable between what I saw in Photoshop and what I saw when looking at my pictures on the web with explorer.

So I continued to use PS2’s ACR for my conversions and all was well.

So then PS3 comes along and I see the same problems I was seeing with Lightroom (no big surprise).

One solution to the problem is to use Adobe RGB as my color space which some have recommended when using 16bit anyway. (I use 16bit when editing.) When saving to the web the photo becomes a little duller, but it’s barely noticeable – I could just boost the saturation a little before saving.

Best Regards
Mike

mikepa wrote in post #3113396
Thanks a lot for the suggestions and input. I first noticed the “problem” when I installed Lightroom (release, not Beta). The photos I was converting using Lightroom’s ACR looked fine in Photoshop (either sRGB or Adobe RGB space), but when I posted them on the web they were way too red. Photos I converted using PS2’s ACR were fine, no significant change was noticeable between what I saw in Photoshop and what I saw when looking at my pictures on the web with explorer.

So I continued to use PS2’s ACR for my conversions and all was well.

So then PS3 comes along and I see the same problems I was seeing with Lightroom (no big surprise).

One solution to the problem is to use Adobe RGB as my color space which some have recommended when using 16bit anyway. (I use 16bit when editing.) When saving to the web the photo becomes a little duller, but it’s barely noticeable – I could just boost the saturation a little before saving.

Best Regards
Mike

You still shouldn't see a difference. I don't when I convert from Adobe RGB or ProPhoto RGB to sRGB. My guess is that when you converted your RAW files using ACR in CS2 that you converted using the sRGB profile. Now when using ACR in CS3 you are converting using some "other" profile. Lightroom uses ProPhoto RGB, but upon export you can tell it which profile to convert.

mikepa wrote in post #3113396
Photos I converted using PS2’s ACR were fine,

I assume you mean "converting from RAW to jpg" , ot "converting from whateverRGB to whateverRGB color space"?

What color space where you using back then?
That must be the diffrence I think.

Putting AdobeRGB images on the web is *not* a solution: They will look way different on a color managed browser.
Also: The images that come across as 'too saturated' might come accross as 'a bit dull' on someone with a monitor which has a narrower Gamut (assuming no color management).

What monitor do you use BTW? Not a wide gamut one by chance?
Otherwise the change between AdobeRGB in a color managed environment vs. AdobeRGB in a non color managed environment should be *way* bigger then the same comparison with an sRGB file...

Have a look here