Printed copy doesn't look like what's on screen

I guess this is probably a common problem. I have a photo that looks
beautiful on my screen and lousy on the printer. It is a high quality
printer. I am actually making these photos for a brochure, but it
won't be printed using this printer. I'm not sure what to do. I guess
I could alter the image, perhaps through trial and error, so it looks
good on the printer and lousy on the screen. But I don't know if that
makes any sense since we are using an outside printing company to print
the brochures. I realize I could go trial and error with the printing
company's printer, but I am wondering what else I can do. There are a
lot of shots and there would probably be several back and forths for
each shot. Is there a question I can ask the printing company, or a
color profile I can get from them, so I don't have to view each tweaked
version of each shot that their printer prints?


Thanks,

Peter

 

Hi.

You probably could get an ICC Profile from your Printers.

But, if you are not currently running a Colour Managed workflow, (you never
mentioned C.M.), it won't be lot of use to you.

You do not seem to know if your Monitor is showing accurate Colours, so a
profile for a Printing Service is not going to solve that Problem.

Even if you do manage to get your own Printer to match your Monitor. If
your Monitor is inaccurate, then your Image will Look wrong and Print wrong
in a correctly Calibrated system.

You really need to ensure your Monitor has been Calibrated, and is showing
the Colours and Density correctly.

It seems to be rather too late to try and learn about Colour Management, at
the start of a big task.

I would suggest you pass the work on to someone who has a fully calibrated
system, while you start reading up on CM, or delay the Project until you
have an effective Colour Managed workflow.

Have a look at the Ps Help Files, or go to www.digital-darkroom.com, and try
to follow their "Basic Printing" workflow, (designed for Epson Printers,
but can be adapted for any make).

Roy G

 

I can't seem to get the above website to work. Is it still active?

 

This is Ian Lyon's page.
It's been changed to www.computer-darkroom.com

 

Sorry about that. Comes from not bothering to look it up, and just doing it
from memory.

It is www.computer-darkroom.com

Roy G

 

That look like a very helpful website.

Thanks!

Peter

 

Oh ok, CJ, that's good to know.

Thanks!

Peter

 

All good advice - one thing you might like to check first though is that the
type of paper in your printer matches the type of paper that you've told the
printer you're using. Monitor calibration is important, but my experience
suggests that if, for example, you tell your printer you're using hi-gloss
photo paper when you're actually using plain photocopy paper then you'll get
a far bigger deviation from what you intended (more than likely a big soggy
mess) - and vice-versa.

Try printing on photopaper with the correct settings first.

 

Another tip is to ensure you are printing on the right side of the
paper - if you are using a matt paper both sides look similar but
normally only one side is printable. Touch the paper lightly to your
tongue - one side will feel sticky, the other not. The sticky side is
the printable side.

Also - what CJ Southern says about the paper settings is correct, but
the settings in the printer driver normally only apply to paper
supplied by the printer manufacturer - e.g,. Epson papers for Epson
printers. If you use another make of paper, to get the best results you
need a profile for the paper. I have had some awful results on some
papers - the paper makes quite a difference.

So before going any further I would suggest you ensure you are using
paper from the printer manufacturer and use the right settings. If your
printer uses pigment inks it may not print on gloss paper.

 

Ok, Tom, I didn't realize paper was so important.

Thanks!

Peter

 

Peter, I have the same problem but it seems to be due to changing my
monitor to an LCD screen. I have both a PC and a MAC and have the same
problem with both, even tho' the Mac has been professionally
calibrated. I waste so much expensive ink trying to get what I want.

An easy, cheap solution would be to go back to a clunky old-style
monitor which gives a much more accurate rendering of what's going come
out of the printer. Daft isn't it? progress is meant to forward not
back!

 

Well LCD may be progress in terms of desk real estate and weight but it is
definitely NOT an improvement in viewing. LCD have hideous colors, very
cartoonish and can't view from the side at all.
Real progress would give us a CRT display in a laptop! (I wish)

 

Wow, that never occurred to me. I'll have to look into that.

Thanks!

Peter

 

There are a few that give good color, can be viewed from angles, and can
be calibrated. They cost a bundle, but you can get them. For example,
Apple's LCD larger monitors will do this. I'd certainly like those big
wide-screen monitor on my Windows computer, but I can't afford that.

Clyde