Pantone Skintones Guide

[toggster]

Hi,

I've been looking into the Pantone Skintones Guide with a view to using it in my digital workflow, but can't seem to find very much actual information on how to integrate it with photoshop. Does anyone on here us this already? Is it worth getting and is it easy to work with inside photoshop?

Many thanks in advance!

[toggster]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

Just bumping this, as I can literally find nothing about use of this in the real world on the internet. I take it no one here has used it? Or it's THAT good they are keeping quiet :-)

[girlsfather]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

Hi,

I've been looking into the Pantone Skintones Guide with a view to using it in my digital workflow, but can't seem to find very much actual information on how to integrate it with photoshop. Does anyone on here us this already? Is it worth getting and is it easy to work with inside photoshop?

Many thanks in advance!

As far as I see, there is no digital library for use in Photoshop yet.

If there was, it could be used for reference, lets say client tells you he wanted that skintone xy. Or when the photographer would check which pantone skin tone would fit the model, that would give a reference for the retouch.
In real live I do not see much use in creative retouching. There the aim is mostly not to perfectly reproduce the colour that the model had in reality; the camera sensor calibration with tools like colorchecker passport -also x-rite- could provide that if wanted.

[Eithne]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

Not sure if this is what you are looking for, but maybe this might be helpful.

http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/html.php?file=bbcolorcharts.html

[andrewrodney]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

Why do you want skintone's, defined in a CMYK, device dependent color space? Not real useful!

[girlsfather]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

Why do you want skintone's, defined in a CMYK, device dependent color space? Not real useful!

Pantone is not only CMYK.

A lot of the colours in Pantone colour library within Photoshop are displayed as Lab and rendered accordingly when applied to a file.

The printed Pantone Color Formula Guide is not based on CMYK, but uses Transparent White, two different yellows, Orange, Warm Red, Red, Rubine Red, Rhodamine Red, Purple, Violet, Blue, Reflex Blue, Process Blue (=Cyan) , Green, Black.

If the 110 skintones are rendered out of scans of real human skin, the library behind a printed library would be as accurate as possible.

The purpose of the whole skintone thing would be to have a reference when
talking about the appearance of a skintone.

[andrewrodney]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

A lot of the colours in Pantone colour library within Photoshop are displayed as Lab and rendered accordingly when applied to a file.

All you need is Lab period and that's in Photoshop, current versions of Lightroom. No library needed, you just need to deal with a reasonable ratio of aStar and bStar using any working space.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWaFDKrNrwc

[girlsfather]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

Why do you want skintone's, defined in a CMYK, device dependent color space? Not real useful!

I agree that that would be a bad idea, but:

Where did you hear about the Pantone skintones being defined as CMYK?
Maybe you have more insight into the product?

In the description on the product site from x-rite/Pantone it says:
"Compatible with today's digital workflows – colors easily updated in leading design applications"
So there seems to be a Photoshop Pantone Skintone Library coming - most likely in Lab.
So, again, why should it be a bad idea to communicate about Lab-Pantone-Skintones?

[andrewrodney]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

I don't see where it provides Lab values. I do see you are expected to view under D50 which most profiles assume. There ARE Pantone libraries based on CMYK (some within Photoshop!).

It's a good idea to communicate Skin (any color) using Lab, assuming D50 in several places. Pantone, don't see any reason it would be necessary for this use of Lab. The OP asks:

I can literally find nothing about use of this in the real world on the internet. I take it no one here has used it? Or it's THAT good they are keeping quiet :-)

I suggest because it's not necessary. Photoshop has a Lab color picker.

[girlsfather]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

All you need is Lab period and that's in Photoshop, current versions of Lightroom. No library needed, you just need to deal with a reasonable ratio of aStar and bStar using any working space.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWaFDKrNrwc

I docosmetic product composits where the silk screen printing on the products is rendered and the color reference the client provides is Pantone. So I use the Lab Pantone+ Colors within Photoshop.

The same would be with the skintones. Maybe you understood the word library not the way I meant it. I meant library as a pool of samples of defined colors.

[girlsfather]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

I don't see where it provides Lab values. I do see you are expected to view under D50 which most profiles assume. There ARE Pantone libraries based on CMYK (some within Photoshop!).

It's a good idea to communicate Skin (any color) using Lab, assuming D50 in several places. Pantone, don't see any reason it would be necessary for this use of Lab. The OP asks:



I suggest because it's not necessary. Photoshop has a Lab color picker.

There are lots of clients in the industry using all kind of color references - some of them Pantone - as I said.

Yes there are also some CMYK Pantone colors - not a bad idea though if the client prints CMYK and you have to match colors that are defined in CMYK.
There are for example lots of colors used as Corporate Identity and quite often have to be matched and guess what - they give you the CMYK values.
So there is the theory and the real world. Not everything is perfect and still you have to do an accurate and precise job (concerning a sometimes demanded CMYK file).

Here are some screenshots of the Pantone and other colors in Photoshop:

[girlsfather]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

I suggest because it's not necessary. Photoshop has a Lab color picker.

It should not be necessary for a lot of retouchers.
But:

Imagine you do not have the desired skintone in a picture yet.
Then you have nothing to sample from.
Then when the client says he wants it to be Pantone Skintone xyz.
You open color swatch in Photoshop and search Pantone Skintone for xyz and you have it - in Lab...

So, as soon as the first client works with Pantone Skintone for reference you are glad when you have it within Photoshop.
That is just my opinion. Of course you can call the client unprecise and demand the Lab values. But my experience is that there are standards that you have to deal with. And with this Pantone Skintone thing only being 6 months on air it is too early to tell if this gets a standard tool in certain areas of retouching.

[Shoku]

Re: Pantone Skintones Guide

Good retouchers, who deal with CMYK on a daily basis, don't need Pantones for skintones. There are basic combinations of CMY for every skintone, which must be adjusted based on the press and paper and ink being used.

Pantones can do more harm than good. They tend to give clients a false sense of color because they will only reproduce like the swatch book if the same paper, ink, and press are used for reproduction. Even Pantone solid colors reproduce with slight differences when printed on a paper not used by Pantone to finalize their ink formulas.

The Pantone Matching System is a good basic reference, but if you are looking for exact reproduction you must always customize.