where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.3?

[Caravaggio]

Hi,

I have profiled my Cinema Display monitor every few weeks over the past few years using color monkey and I always saved the profiles after creating them. I saved the profiles mainly because I find monitor calibration tricky and incase I wanted to fall back on an earlier profile. Problems I had with calibration include that I don't know how to reset the Cinema Display back to its factory defaults before re-profiling. I called Apple tech support about this and they don't know and were unable to even tell me what the factory defaults are for a Cinema Display.

Anyways I broke the case for the color monkey and am waiting for a new case to arrive from Xrite. Since I can't re-profile my monitor until the new case arrives, I thought I would use one of the older profiles I had created and saved using color monkey but I can't find them. I have looked in Library > ColorSync > Profiles and only see one profile there for the Cinema Display and that one was created a long time ago. I know that I have re-profiled my display more recently than that.

So my question is where are all the icc profiles that I created and saved using Color Monkey stored in mac OS 10.8.3?

Thanks.

[Caravaggio]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

I called Xrite and they told me that Apple hid the profiles in Mountain Lion. To find them open a finder window and then click on Go on the menu bar while holding down the option key. Still holding down the option key click on library and the icc profiles will be found in ColorSync > Profiles. Its annoying that Apple chose to hide the profiles.

[andrewrodney]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

It IS annoying. You can make this folder visible forever too.


This method makes the user library folder permanently visible but requires the use of Terminal (not for the novice user):

Launch Terminal from the Utilities folder.
In Terminal type the following command and type Return key:

1. chflags nohidden ~/Library

Enter administrator password and then type Return key.

Type Exit and quit Terminal.

Profiles do NOT have to go into this one area. Launch the ColorSync utility and you can find all the profiles spread around your system, even those in "packages" installed by print drivers.

[Caravaggio]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

Thank you very much Andrew for that. My profiles are now permanently visible!

I have another question for you about monitor calibration as I know you are an expert. What are your thoughts on choosing a white point balance for my monitor? D_50 is the white balance that is recommended by Xrite because the whites are closest to the white of the paper.

I am in a fairly dark room that doesn't have a lot of natural light coming in. The wall behind my monitor is painted neutral grey. The room is lit by a not very specialized light bulb, one of those coiled bulbs that are energy efficient and environmentally friendly. Thanks.

[andrewrodney]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

What are your thoughts on choosing a white point balance for my monitor?

You pick it based on the print viewing conditions and set a value that provides a visual match. The numbers are rather meaningless in this context. This might help:

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/why_are_my_prints_too_dark.shtml

[Caravaggio]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

Thanks Andrew. I read your article which is helpful but am still uncertain what white point I should choose because I mostly just retouch remotely for other people and so don't often get to see the final prints. Other than softproofing and embedding a color profile, is the best that I can do in that case is find out from the clients what white point balance they have their monitors set to and set mine to the same?

If you had to guess what number most professionals are setting the white balance to on their monitors, what number would that be?

[andrewrodney]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

still uncertain what white point I should choose because I mostly just retouch remotely for other people and so don't often get to see the final prints.

That's somewhat a problem, somewhat akin to posting images to the web when everyone else may or may not have a calibrated system. Even if every client calibrated to the identical spec's, unless you were all using the same reference display system, the likelihood is a mismatch among the group. IF every customer had the same system, then you'd all have a match.

I'd probably start with D65 but I also think getting a print to display match might be better assuming at any point in the future, you have some output to view. Just keep in mind that a collaborative system whereby everyone see's the same previews is possible but difficult since everyone would have to use identical hardware too.

[Caravaggio]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

Thanks, Andrew. I appreciate your insight on this.

[Caravaggio]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

I am still having problems changing profiles. I had not mentioned in previous posts that I also have a second monitor, an EX231, that has saved profiles. I want the two monitors to match so need to choose a profile with the same white point balance for each monitor. When I go to System Preferences > Display > Color and choose one of the profiles that I had created for the EX231 it applies it to the Cinema HD but not the EX231. Not what I want! I have no ability or have not yet found a way to change profiles for the EX231 in System Preferences.

How do I choose one of the profiles shown in the attached screenshot and apply it to the EX231, not the Cinema Display?

Thanks.

[andrewrodney]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

The screen capture above is for the Cinema display (you can see the name there). The profile in that area would therefore be for that unit, not the other. Go to that other display and view the same dialog, it should show the name of that unit (not the Cinema).

[Caravaggio]

Re: where are icc. profiles stored on mac OS 10.8.

Awesome. Thank you.