ppage Loc: Pittsburg, (San Francisco area)

I don't print at all, I give it all to Costco. My prints come out somewhat darker than I see them on my monitor. I've heard about monitor calibration but I thought that was mainly for color correction. Do I need to calibrate my monitor? I also belong to Bay Photo but I haven't printed with them yet.

Thanks,

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Yes, for WYSIWYG color and black-and-white prints (i.e.: what you see (on the monitor) is what you get (from the lab)), you most certainly do need a color managed workflow, and that workflow starts with a calibrated and profiled monitor. Kits are available from DataColor and X-Rite.

Calibration uses a colorimeter and software to guide you through adjustment of your monitor for linear red, green, and blue output. In other words, you get perfect gray at every level from black (0) to white (255).

Profiling uses the same colorimeter and software to automatically build a series of look-up tables that match your CALIBRATED device to an international standard. The result is that the color YOU see on YOUR monitor is very, very similar to what I see on mine, and what comes off of calibrated and profiled printers (whether at a lab or your home).

Anyone who tells you you don't need to calibrate and profile is too cheap to know the difference, has other priorities, doesn't care, or is color blind. And that's okay, for them, but may not be for you.

Calibration and profiling kits cost $100 to $600. If you print a lot, they will save you hours and hours of tail chasing, aggravations, and lots of wasted money spent on ink, paper, transportation, and lab bills.

hassighedgehog Loc: Corona, CA

Most would say, "yes, you do, if you want them to come out as expected." However, my computer is a laptop and I have no interest in dealing with that. So, just instruct the place you print with to lighten the prints. Test with one or two to see the result and then next time you go to get a print, remember to ask them to lighten them that same amount.

JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

If you are not going to use a calibrated monitor, it seems it would be easier to make a file for printing that is lighter to send to the printer. That way when you figure out how much to lighten it for that printer, you could lighten it the same amount each time, and not worry about asking the printer to lighten it each time.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

At first, it can be handy to have them print just 4x6's so you have an idea of how to adjust ahead of time. It's not necessarily just the brightness; it can be saturation of colors too. I have a 32" television with 2 HDMI ports and ability to adjust all the contrast, color, brightness etc sliders for each. I would hook my laptop up to one port and hold a print from Costco in one hand while looking at the image on the tv screen (from my computer), and after a few prints, I had the "calibration" down pretty good (are you uploading from internet or taking a memory stick or card in? Either way, if you make adjustments at home, be sure you have "do NOT auto-correct" selected when submitting)

I haven't printed much for a couple of years, so when I recently sent a shot to Walgreen's I had no point of reference. As light as this pic looks on UHH, it printed too dark and red:
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-544824-1.html#9241229

-

Rich1939 Loc: Pike County Penna.

Simply put, when you view a picture on your monitor you see 'transmitted light' in other words the image is lit from behind just as it would be if you were looking at a slide with a light behind it.
When you look at a print you are seeing 'reflected light'. If you look at the print next to a bright light or in a darkened corner of the room it will appear different because it needs to reflect back to you and can only reflect what is available to it. But no matter how strong the light is (under normal circumstances), a print will not be able to be as bright as a monitor image.

rleonetti Loc: Portland, Oregon

Always a problem going from monitor to paper, whether just prints or printed books. Your monitor is brightly lit white (sometimes from behind) and paper is just a dull white. Where it really shows up are subtle darks like shadows: in print they can become dark blobs without detail.

Two simple cures: for my own printer I have developed a compensation profile for the inks. I took a color card and by trial and error got to an acceptable match (boost cyan +2, etc)

High class commercial printers will provide you a monitor profile to use--never used one like that. But Blurb, who prints the books I make, will not provide a profile any longer but I have found that a slightly (judgement call) brighter look in my monitor--just a touch brighter or over exposed--works out in the printed book.

Print makers, like my grocery chain, are another matter yet. In the past I was able to tell them 'no correction' and it worked but now I am told their equipment evaluates the frame in total, averages the exposure and prints it that way. So your bright scenes will be darker, and your darker images will come out lighter. Some are better at not moving the correction than others so, you just have to find someone who is consistent with doing a print that looks like what you expect.

ppage Loc: Pittsburg, (San Francisco area)

Thank-You! That was very helpful information. I will start evaluating the options.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Most professional color labs have two or three grades of printing services.

If you order "machine prints", they may be automatically analyzed, and color shifts in the opposite direction from the most predominant color in the image.

Some labs still make "machine prints" by applying their printer profile to unadjusted customer images. If so, you can get their printer profile and install it in your software for soft-proofing. With a calibrated monitor and custom monitor profile, what you see on your monitor should look very much the same on a print.

Some labs went to the "auto analysis" or "scene balance algorithm" method because customers traditionally DO NOT understand color management, or the real need for it. They blame the lab for every deviation from perfect, when in reality, the color we send from our computers is the color we should get back. But we won't and can't *know* it's WRONG unless our monitors are calibrated and profiled to the ICC standard!

If you order "custom prints", you can tell the lab "print with no color corrections". That should give you the same color and brightness as your monitor, IF you correctly calibrated and profiled your monitor and set up color management options in your software.

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

A properly calibrated monitor is essential for consistent and predictable printing results. Attempting to carry on with a non-calibrated system will only lead to inconsistent, erratic and unpredictable results in both color and density, plus a whole lot of disappointment, frustration and wasted materials, time and money.

Even with everything properly set up and precisely adjusted, you still need to train your eyes to perceive density (lightness and darkness) as well as both extreme and subtle color corrections. There is always a visual differential between a trans-illuminated (lit up) images on a monitor screen and a reflection print that needs to be taken into consideration as your ar editing your files on the computer. Even different surfaces on printing papers (glossy, matte, luster, textured, metallic etc.) and materials will affect the brilliance and range of prints.

If you print your own, you will observe all the differences between the screen images and the resulting prints first hand and be able to adjust accordingly and and with practice, you will be able to predict exact print quality more accurately.

Working with an outside color lab and getting exactly what you want is an age old issue that goes way back to the film era. You need to build a good relationship with the lab manager and calibrate your monitor in coordination with those at the lab. Even in a small or department or box store lab, after a while the folks there will get to know what you expect and come to some compromise or understanding when you submit you images for printing. As a professional photgraher, even back in the film/analog/chemical days, I found it necessary to run my own in-house color lab and black and white darkrooms at my studio. That came at a cost of many- many thousand of dollars and a whole lot of hard work and maintenance. Nowadays, with digital technology, a decent set up can be devised at a small fraction of the cost. It still requires hard work and practice.

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

Yes, you need to calibrate your monitor and lower your brightness on it as well. If the colors are ok just lower your brightness about 20%, open up your picture with the software you edit with, adjust the brightness of your picture to the desired brightness, and then print again. If it's still too dark lower the brightness again and adjust your picture again. Remember these settings and every time you print lower your brightness before you process your pictures to your liking.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Yes, you need to calibrate your monitor, but that's not the end. You also need to know what the output will be so you can set the white point accurately. For prints to display normally, you should set your white point to 80 cda/m² and if you are displaying for print competitions, you set the display to a brighter 120 cda/m².A brighter display will tend to get you to adjust the images a bit darker and that is why your prints are dark. Another factor will affect the brightness of the print is a high ambient light level in your editing space. It's best to edit in a darkened room for the most consistent results.

tdekany Loc: Oregon

I guess I have been very lucky so far. I use a 5k iMac and it hasn’t been calibrated. Prints come out accurately whether it is sent to Costco or online vendors.

rgrenaderphoto Loc: Hollywood, CA

Then you are giving up control of your art, letting a poorly trained "technician" hit a button on a screen and then you accecpt the results.

sloscheider Loc: Minnesota

I've found Mac monitors to be fairly accurate. I still use a Spyder to create a profile but there isn't much of a change. I also find, in general, IPS displays of any vendor are fairly accurate especially compared to older technologies.