The idea is that an image colour balanced on a calibrated screen (and embedded with a ICC profile), will provide the same result on other calibrated screens and/or devices (eg. printers etc).This makes life easy, as the output result is known.
But use a screen that isn’t calibrated for colour balancing images and the result is unknown. For example, correcting images with a screen that is green to start with, will produce reddish (magenta) results. Use a screen that is too light, the images will be too dark. As there is no correct starting point, there cannot be a correct finishing point.
Most computer screens are not balanced for photographic or print output. The screens that come as standard with computers, are really only good for office style work.
There are several steps to producing colour correct imagery.
1. A quality computer screen – one that has a high contrast range and controls to make adjustments in the colour, density and contrast.
Eizo Screens are one of the better screens www.eizo.com.au. Good quality screens start at AUD $1,000.
2. A screen calibrator – This is a way of colour balancing a screen to an industry standard. We calibrate regularly to keep our screens in check. Xrite make a number of tools for calibrating screens. www.xritephoto.com.
3. A professional imaging program that supports colour profiling. While rough colour and density balancing can be done with the programs that come standard with Windows and OSX, they are really only good for the family photos.
4. Colour profiling workflow setup – This is important, if an image has an embedded ICC profile eg. sRGB or Adobe RGB, then the output result can be managed, either directly or by a third party (eg. a printer or lab). No profile and the results are less predictable.
Once the above is setup, images can then be colour balanced and managed.
Images taken from any digital camera are not colour or density correct straight out of the camera. They need to be profiled to be used in photographic, print or web media. That’s right, images for websites benefit from colour management too.
Get it right, it’s your product that’s on display.