Photoshop and image color issues

[Harley Goldman]

I recently got a new NEC 27" wide gamut display. I scanned up some new images and am having color issues.

When converting a flattened scan to sRGB from AdobeRGB (my working space), I am noticing some of the more vibrant/saturated colors are going flatter. This is all within Photoshop (CS3). I can toggle back and forth, reversing the conversion to sRGB and back to AdobeRGB and I can see the colors flatten out, almost as if I am backing off 10-15 points in Saturation, when converted to sRGB.

I am following the same steps I have been doing for years. I first flatten my master file, convert to sRGB and then go on to save for web. I noticing the problem at the conversion step.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

[Sirius Glass]

Shoot some slides and then project them on the wall next to your screen. When you see how much of the color gamut is lost in digital under the best screens, you will start shooting film again. OR maybe you will see that the lost between sRGB and AdobeRGB is small next to the real world loss. [Hint: film covers the color gamut completely.]

One of the top reasons I stick with film. See my signature.

Steve

[Harley Goldman]

Steve,

I am shooting film, but scanning it. I am dealing with scanned chromes.

[Bruce Watson]

I recently got a new NEC 27" wide gamut display. I scanned up some new images and am having color issues.

I doubt actually that you are having color issues. What the new display is doing is allowing you to see the conversion. It won't be very visible on a lesser display.

The sRGB color space is smaller than AdobeRGB. So if your colors go out to the edge of the AdobeRGB gamut, they *must* be reduced a bit to fit inside the sRGB gamut. 'Tis the nature of the beast.

[Sideshow Bob]

If you use "assign profile" the colors will go flat but if you "convert to profile" there should be very little change. I'm using CS5 with a NEC 2690wexi2.

Gale

[Harley Goldman]

Gale,

I am using convert. I am not using assign when experiencing the problems (I never have even tried assign).

[bob carnie]

Harley
srgb is a much smaller colour space than rgb , I am sure you know this, If you are seeing the change so dramatically are you using relative colormetric or perceptial ?
the way they convert is different but really not in such a way you describe.
I am just wondering why there is so much change , unless we are talking about really wild colours , which I could understand this change. Converting to srgb from adobe98 there should not be that much of a visual change. I like you do it all the time for web or presentation and really have not seen this.
I use a Lacie 28 as my main monitor and a mac wide screen as my second and never see this dramatic change.
Bob

I recently got a new NEC 27" wide gamut display. I scanned up some new images and am having color issues.

When converting a flattened scan to sRGB from AdobeRGB (my working space), I am noticing some of the more vibrant/saturated colors are going flatter. This is all within Photoshop (CS3). I can toggle back and forth, reversing the conversion to sRGB and back to AdobeRGB and I can see the colors flatten out, almost as if I am backing off 10-15 points in Saturation, when converted to sRGB.

I am following the same steps I have been doing for years. I first flatten my master file, convert to sRGB and then go on to save for web. I noticing the problem at the conversion step.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

[Harley Goldman]

I am seeing a very noticeable change. I pull up Convert to Profile and I can click and unclick the preview checkbox. I can see the vibrant colors flatten every time the box is checked.

I created an action that uses a slight curve and saturation adjustment to bring the colors extremely close to where they were before the conversion, so I know that sRGB can display those particular colors.

In the conversion, I have tried colormetric and perceptual and all the choices. No difference, it still flattens the colors.

Tomorrow, I will call Chromix, where I bought the monitor. They are color specialists and should be able to give me some insight into the issue. It might just be the smaller color space of sRGB or I might have some PS setting screwed up.

I very much appreciate all the responses!!!

[neil poulsen]

I see this change when converting to sRGB. As others have pointed out, sRGB has a smaller color gamut, and the difference is in the extent of saturation. Converting from Adobe RGB '98 to sRGB is like taking a pair of hedge clippers to your image. Perhaps you're seeing it now, because you have a new monitor. An irony is that sRGB (screen RGB) was originally suppose to have a color gamut that approximated those that monitors can display. But, those were monitors of the day.

As long as you're only using these images for the internet, I wouldn't worry. The default working space for a number of viewers is sRGB. (e.g. Microsoft products.) So, you have the best chance of correct web viewing with sRGB.

As to rendering intent, I believe that you would see it more with perceptual, because all colors are being affected. Try relative colorimetric, which I use almost exclusively. It only affects Adobe RGB '98 colors that are outside the sRGB color gamut boundary.