Custom Profiles for Printers, Screens and Scanners
ICC Imagetec is a provider of custom ICC Print Profiles based in Tasmania but available to Interstate customers. We offer either an onsite profiling service or profiles by mail order. Our profiles are made using Gretag Macbeth ProfileMaker 5 software and a i1 Spectrophotometer. We are capable of profiling both RGB and CMYK systems but specialise in RGB Inkjet printing.
Custom Print Profile
A print profile is generated by printing a series of colour test patches of known value through your printer and measuring the resultant print. This spectral data is interpreted by the profiling software to generate an ICC colour profile which is installed in your system and used by colour management savvy software such as Photoshop to allow accurate previews and output of your images.
| Service | Who Does What | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Onsite Profile |
|
$100 inc GST |
| Mail Order Profile |
|
$55 inc GST |
On Site Profiles
Simply call Simon Olding on (03) 6223 7882 or 0424 022 831 to arrange a suitable time and to discuss printer and media type.
Mail Order Profile
- Download the Printer Targets from our Mail Order Profile page.
- Follow the instructions on the Mail Order Profile page to print your targets.
- Download the Mail Order Profile order form and fill out the details.
- Check the Payment page to determine your preferred payment method.
- Securely package the prints, cheque or direct deposit payment confirmation details and the mail order form in a stiffened envelope and post them to:
ICC Imagetec
69 Wellesley Street
South Hobart,
Tasmania, 7004 - We will generate the profile and email it or post it back to you together with a Tax Invoice.
- Install the profiles as set out below:
Installing Profiles on Mac OS X
- Locate the profile we have provided to you either by email or on CD.
- Copy the file to the Macintosh HD>Library>Colorsync>Profiles as shown in the illustration above:
- Your main hard disk may be called by another name but you need to install the profile on the disk which contains your Mac OS X System.
Installing Profiles on Windows Systems
- Locate the profile we have provided to you either by email or on CD.
- Right Click on the profile icon to bring up the dialogue box shown at right.
- Click on Install Profile to automatically move the profile to the correct location in your system.
- If the option reads Uninstall Profile, it means that you already have a profile of that name in your system.
Soft Proofing images in Photoshop using your new profile
Once you have installed your profile you may have to restart Photoshop to make it recognise the new profiles. Open the file you wish to soft proof.
Choose View>Proof Setup>Custom from the menu bar at the top of the screen.
In the resulting dialogue box choose:
- Device to Simulate. This is the print profile you are going to soft proof with. It is going to be simulated on screen.
- Rendering Intent. The two options used most frequently are Perceptual and Relative Colorimetric. For 95% of photographic output we usually use Relative Colorimetric rendering intent. This preserves the maximum amount of your original colours in the printed piece but will clip out of gamut colours. Perceptual sometimes gives a more open shadow rendition but will shift all other colours to achieve this.
- Black Point Compensation. Check this on. It maps the deepest black in the image to the deepest black that the print can produce.
- Simulate Black Ink. This check box uses the information in the profile containing the darkest black that the printer ink/paper combination can achieve. The screen then changes the simulation to reflect the dynamic range of the print. It is not usually required for proofing gloss or semi gloss prints but we do recommend using this setting when proofing matte papers or canvas.
For an even more accurate soft proof, check Simulate Paper Color although you may get a shock as the image will change considerably in its on screen dynamic range, with the white point shifting to the paper white. This is an advanced technique.
For more information on this process check our Guides and Tips section.
Monitor Profiles - Onsite Visit $100 inc GST
A monitor profile describes the behavior of your monitor when in a calibrated state. Applications such as Photoshop use this monitor profile for every image that it displays. You can't turn it off so it is arguably the most important profile in your imaging workflow.
We can calibrate LCD, CRT or laptop displays. It is worth noting that the calibration and profile only describe what the monitor can display. With Monitors you get what you pay for so that a calibrated $400 BENQ will be no match for a $2500 EIZO, but it will be much better calibrated than not.
A monitor calibration and Profile is the result of the combination of your display (including its settings), your video card, connection type (analog or digital) and the resolution that your monitor is running at. If you change any of these parameters then the calibration is no longer valid.
Additionally, monitor profiles do not stay valid over time. As the monitor ages and the back light fades or CRT phosphors age, the colour of the monitor will shift gradually. LCDs are relatively stable but all monitors will require recalibration over time.
We can visit your studio to calibrate your screen for you. Ultimately we recommend that you purchase a calibrator of your own so that regular calibrations can be performed. Check our Monitor Calibrators page for options.
The cost for an on site visit to calibrate your monitor is $100 inc GST.
Scanner Profiles - Onsite Visit $100 inc GST
A scanner profile describes the colour dynamic range of your scanner. We can calibrate 35mm and flatbed scanners (transparency or reflective.) A good profile will help eliminate 90-95% of colour casts in your scans leaving you with a lot less work to do in the retouching stage.
We use and recommend two scanning products:
SilverFast: This is a very versatile scanning application which includes excellent colour management tools in the software (depending on which version you buy). The down side is that it is expensive at up to about $400 for the full version. Check out www.silverfast.com
VueScan: This shareware product from Ed Hamrick is worth every penny you pay for it, an it is not much at US$79.95. It supports just about every scanner there is, gives you free updates for life and has built in profiling tools to help achieve great colour scans. It is fast and includes ICE functions on those scanners that support it. Check out www.hamrick.com
When we come to profile your scanner we will bring our selection of targets for different film and paper types. Cost for an onsite scanner calibration is $100 inc GST.