X Rite Colour Management Course

[bob carnie]

I am seriously considering the 4 day colour management course offered by Xrite in Michigan, Wondering if anyone here has taken this course and any thoughts or comments would be appreciated on their experience and how it helped their workflow after the course.

[Bruce M. Herman]

Bob,

I haven't taken the course, but I highly recommend that you actively engage in color management with your computer workflow. The two primary players in the business are Datacolor (http://spyder.datacolor.com) and Xrite (www.xrite.com). I've reviewed the high end products from both companies. Choice between them is more a matter of personal taste than one of superior technology. I currently use Spyder for what it's worth.

Be aware that some people have VERY strong opinions about one product or the other. Sort of like PC's vs Macs. This course is going to show you only Xrite's product line. In the end, you may find that Datacolor's approach would fit you better. Perhaps not. But I think that it's worth looking at both before you buy.

Other wrinkles: 1) some of the new LCD's, such as NEC's LCD2690WUXi-SV come with their own calibration software and spectraphotometer. You won't get the full advantage of the monitor if you calibrate it with either Datacolor's or Xrite's software. You'll still need their printer profiling software, unless 2) you purchase a printer with it's own calibration capability. These may become more common with time. 3) Few laptop's have displays that actually have 24 bit color. If you use a laptop as you primary computer, attach it to a separate monitor for your editing. Calibrate and profile that monitor.

Xrite's, Datacolor's, CreativePro's, and Adobe's web sites have some tutorials on color management. Lynda.com has an online tutorial that you can purchase as a DVD. Andrew Rodney, a widely respected expert on digital imaging, has free material on his site (www.digitaldog.net), including a webinar on color management with PS CS3 sponsored by Adobe. Chromix has a newsletter and lots of information and links on their site. I don't know how much money the course costs, but there are tons of free resources on the web. You'll encounter some differing opinions, but you'll learn by sorting out the good from the bad and downright ugly. Some folks prefer formal courses over this sort of learning. Depends on you.

Best of luck.

[D. Bryant]

Other wrinkles: 1) some of the new LCD's, such as NEC's LCD2690WUXi-SV come with their own calibration software and spectraphotometer. You won't get the full advantage of the monitor if you calibrate it with either Datacolor's or Xrite's software.

I recently purchased an NEC Multisync LCD2090UXi and the SpectraView II software. A colorimeter nor the software was included with the monitor. The good news is that the SpectraView software supports a number of popular colorimeters such as the Xrite/Gretag DTP94, Colorvision Spyder3, and the Xrite Colormunki. In the case of the Spuder3 and the Color Munki the ambient light sensor is also supported.

The SpectraView software is pretty amazing, the user doesn't have to touch any of the OSC (on screen controls) the software will do everything. And I couldn't be more pleased with the results. My only gripe is that I wish NEC would have given the software away to registered users instead of making them pay for it. That seems like an enticement to get people to purchase their displays.

Don Bryant

[bob carnie]

Thanks for the replies

I should point out that I have purchased x-rite Profile Maker 5 system, and have been making profiles for a while now, we balance in for RA4 (Fuji and Kodak)products and various inkjet media using a Cannon 9000.

I am thinking that going to the source XRITE and walking through their training will be helpful.

What I am finding with this is I seem to be making pretty decent profiles , but I am curious as to when enough is enough, I have sample targets *Bill Aktinson's* as well as some we made ourselves to see the final result on paper , but somehow I am still feeling I am not on complete control of all of this and would like to hear from those who have taken such a course in the past and have found the light bulb come one because of it?
Most of the manufacture's provide profiles for their product but we like to make our own using our materials and equipment.

[Kirk Gittings]

I took a shorter (1 day) course with Xrite some years ago when I first got into digital printing. It was very useful to me as a beginner.

[neil poulsen]

I took a 4 day Gretag MacBeth course on Profile Maker 5 prior to that company combining with X-Rite. Can you point us to the course description and/or outline? From your posts, I'm thinking this is the same class. But, not sure.

[bob carnie]

Hi Neil
Its on Xrites training section of their website and the next class is in April , location Dearborn Michigan. I believe it concentrates on Colour Management with the profile maker as a important tool in their workflow teachings.
Since starting this thread I have convinced the vendor who sold us the profile maker to come in and train us in detail on this device as well as our Wassage rip unit. I am not confident in their abilities at this point therefore , I still plan to take this course and would be interested in your thoughts on the detail they took you through over the 4 days.
We are constantly making profiles and printing off test images that we have produced and are happy to a point , but it seems unlike our Lamda control negatives, we never get to a point where we are confirmed to be in total control and sometimes I think we may be chasing our tails for no reason.

I took a 4 day Gretag MacBeth course on Profile Maker 5 prior to that company combining with X-Rite. Can you point us to the course description and/or outline? From your posts, I'm thinking this is the same class. But, not sure.

[neil poulsen]

I spoke with X-Rite, and I believe the class to which you're referring is Integrated Color Management. It's being offered in Grand Rapids; there's no class being offered in Dearborn.

I was just getting started in color management at that time, and from that beginner's perspective, I thought that it was a good class and can recommend it. That was probably in 2004 or 2005. There's only about 6 who take the class at a time, and each participant gets their own workstation. The class is a nice blend of theory and practice. The instructor base has been fairly constant. They've of course improved the class over the years by making this and that upgrade. I got the PhotoStudio version with Measurement Tool and Statistics, and the Camera Profile module.

The biggest emphasis in the class is on printer profiles, and that includes both RGB and CMYK profiles. Taking the class gives one ample opportunity to ask questions about different settings.

If you aren't using a RIP and send RGB files to your Lambda, then you'll be more interested in RGB printer profiling, which is pretty easy. Based on the class and other sources, I usually specify Logo Colorful (recommended by B. Atkinson I believe) as the gamut mapping protocol, Neutral gray paper, D50, and Large Profile. I've seen a case where an OS can't handle Large Profile, so use the default size in that case.

If you use a RIP, then you'll be pleased with this class, because they go into quite a bit of detail on CMYK profiling. Ask lots of questions on this, because it's kind of an art, and I didn't get great phone support help on this topic. If you have a RIP, I'd recommend refreshing yourself on it's use, what it's for, etc., so you're not trying to tackle two topics at once. When I took the class, they used Onyx as their RIP for the CMYK profiling portion. I didn't have a RIP at the time, so didn't understand this portion as well as others who used RIPs every day. I finally got ColorBurst's Pro version rip for PC's. It's a true CMYK rip. (Unlike ImagePrint.)

Ask lots of questions on how to deal with optical brighteners. Profilmaker's software correction that they'll speak to applies only to perceptual rending. (Maybe that's changed, but I kind of doubt it.) So, knowing about other approaches is important, if you plan on using the colorimetric renderings. (I primarily use relative colorimetric rendering.)

Maybe it's changed, but the Eye-One IMatch software was better at profiling monitors than Profilemaker. Both are decent, though.

They also talk about the Measurement Tool and Profile Editor. Like CMYK profiling, ask lots of questions about the Profile Editor and how to use it. I think they could offer a one or two day class just on that topic alone. Again, I haven't found the phone support very helpful on profile editing. I wish I understood it better.

One thing I remember about the class, is that they don't discuss camera profiles. Maybe that's OK; that topic is a little controversial.

This has been a useful thread. It gave me a chance to give X-Rite a call and learned that Profilemaker has become their flagship product on building profiles. Lucky me!

[bob carnie]

Thanks Neil

your post is helpful, the Lambda has a rip unit that I am very comfortable with , but as I am now starting to print a lot more ink on paper we purchased a Wassage rip unit to push the Cannon 9000 printer but we are not that proficient with the wasage .
I will be getting some training from our vendor before the Xrite course which should give me all the ammunition I need to ask the right questions , and you are right its in Grand Rapids.
thanks and I will post my observations after both training sessions.
Bob

[neil poulsen]

Sounds like you're going to take the class. Based on your comments that you'll be using one RIP or another, it would be a worthwhile class almost for that alone. Also for Profile Editing, which allows you to kind of home in the profile to be more accurate.