color profiles

[photophil]

I am using win98 and adobe ps 6.01 I have 3 labs that I send my work to but they all seem to adjust color differently.
The profile I am using is the sRGB one that seems to be the closest to all of them. This year I would like to make them more exact so let's see if I can explain what I want to do. The picture I receive from my major lab seem to have skin tones that are a little bright (not enouggh saturation for my liking )
If I load their profile into my color space the image looks closer to what they suppy but no where close to what I want, so here is what I'm trying..

I save a copy of the image using their profile. Then I load the original image back in using the sRGB profile. When I load the copy with the other profile I check the box to keep their profile.

let's call their image yuk..
I now add a layer to yuk and open a hue saturation adjustment layer. I then adjust the yuk image to match mine with hue and lower the lightness slightly. I fine tune using individual colors until yuk looks like mine.

Now if I save the yuk image and send it in it should match what I see on my screen.. right???

I should then be able to write an action for this lab to apply to my photos??

[DJ Dubovsky]

I think I understand what you are saying and it makes sense in a way. It's worth a try and if it works you've solved a huge stumbling block, if not, there's not much lost in the trying. I am one of those frustrated by color profiles and matching them so I am eager to see how your experiment turns out.
DJ

[George]

I believe it should work. When I make either a hue or saturation adjustment one thing that I do is to view the image with Gamut Warning selected to see if any of the colors show up as being out of the printable range for the profile I am using.

[photophil]

I have sent a test sheet to the lab instructing them to not correct.. just to print so that I can see the results. I put 2 images side by side, one crrected and one not.
I'll let you all know how it goes.
Thanks
Phil

[photophil]

The test prints are back.. and they match my monitor color so the setup will work like I explained. This will save me any guess work as to what I will be getting back from the lab.. shazaam!!

[DJ Dubovsky]

How do you like that? You beat the system! Good going Phil.
Now you should save that profile adjustment and name it for the place you get prints at because if you print else where you will have to do the same thing all over again to match theirs. Maybe you can set an action to do it and name the action for that print place.
DJ

[photophil]

yes I am in the process now for testing each lab and making an action for each. My labs said it wouldn't work but that's because they want you to set your monitor to theirs.. which really is quite impossible if you have multi-labs plus web pages to contend with.
Know so far my adjustments have been very minute.. -8hue -8lightness.
The big thing to remember is to add any color changes you make to the original image to the lab profile image before you run the action.

[DJ Dubovsky]

The true test of this procedure will come when it works for each lab you try. Can't wait for the results. You may be on to something here Phil.
DJ