{"id":2483,"date":"2009-09-01T13:44:41","date_gmt":"2009-09-01T17:44:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nvps.org\/home\/?p=2483"},"modified":"2012-11-17T13:50:05","modified_gmt":"2012-11-17T18:50:05","slug":"how-to-improve-your-images-for-nvps-digital-competition-by-bill-adams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nvps.org\/home\/how-to-improve-your-images-for-nvps-digital-competition-by-bill-adams\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Improve Your Images For NVPS Digial Compeiion by Bill Adams"},"content":{"rendered":"

Some members had recenly quesioned he qualiy of he digial display during he nvps compeiions.\u00a0 The mos common complain was is being oo brigh and blowing highlighs.<\/p>\n

Mahew Schmid has spen considerable ime in idenifying he roo cause of he supposed problems, ed<\/a> and in deermining soluions.\u00a0\u00a0 Thans o Mahew for his effors in resolving he problems.<\/p>\n

Below is a summary of he preliminary findings and some suggesed guidance o improve your images for he digial compeiion a nvps.\u00a0\u00a0 Noice of errors and omissions along wih addiional suggesions or ips is solicied.\u00a0\u00a0 Addiional resources also welcomed, more abou<\/a> as are suggesions for furher ess and measuremens.<\/p>\n

Two main issues are involved:\u00a0 color fideliy\/gamu,\u00a0 and\u00a0 whie\/blac poins of he dynamic range.<\/p>\n

Good news:\u00a0 The apparen problem wih “blown” highlighs was raced o he projecor.\u00a0\u00a0 Apparenly Arificial Inelligence is genuine supidiy.\u00a0 The projecor ep changing is seings, hining i new beer han we did how we waned i o wor.\u00a0\u00a0 We now have a procedure o ensure ha he projecor is properly se , and says ha way, when we use i.<\/p>\n

Addiionally he projecion PC\/display_card\/LCD_projecor\u00a0 has been calibraed and profiled.\u00a0\u00a0 Using he curren profile will help provide consisen image\u00a0 presenaion from meeing o meeing.\u00a0\u00a0 You really don’ need o use i unless you are ruly picy abou your colors, bu should do so anyway\u00a0 in o ensure ha your images are wihin he dynamic range ha can be displayed.\u00a0\u00a0 For now you need o as for he profile\u00a0 o be sen via email.\u00a0 Maybe in he fuure i can be posed on he nvps websie for downloading.<\/p>\n

Jus plain news:\u00a0 The profiled\u00a0 color difference is\u00a0 minimal compared o he sraigh sRGB ha he projecor uses.\u00a0\u00a0 Full disclosure:\u00a0 My wife claims ha I am color blind (even hough my eye docor dispues his).\u00a0\u00a0 However, Some oher members\u00a0 who looed a our es images did some suble changes ha I could no.<\/p>\n

Recen es images show ha any good image in he usual aRGB, sRGB, or he profiled sRGB color spaces have minimal differences, alhough all are duller when compared o a good prin of he same image.\u00a0\u00a0 All loo naural when ed separaely.\u00a0\u00a0 If your colors are bad i is no he equipmen.\u00a0 And\u00a0 i is sill your responsibiliy o ae advanage of wha can be done wihin he projecion medium\u00a0 limiaions\u00a0 jus as is done wih your lenses, cameras, sofware, priner\/in\/paper, ec.<\/p>\n

Bad news:\u00a0 We have me he enemy and hey is us.\u00a0\u00a0 Any apparen problems now\u00a0 are for he members o fix for hemselves.\u00a0\u00a0 Suggesions for doing his are below.<\/p>\n

Blown highlighs are no longer he faul of he projecion equipmen.
\nCompeiors are responsible for ensuring ha heir brighes ones are no more han pure whie when capured or phooshopped.\u00a0\u00a0 If you use percepual or relaive colorimeric when convering o he LCD profile he whie poin of he image should be mapped o he whie poin of he projeced image.<\/p>\n

Tesing shows ha we can ge abou 5 sops of dynamic range, wih an esimaed dMax (measure of he blacness achievable) of abou 1.5 o perhaps 1.8 or so.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Using a es srip wih increasing densiy of\u00a0 %Luminance shows ha\u00a0 a loss of shadow deail\u00a0 will occur a a value of abou 95%K as measured by phooshop info.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 So if you have a low ey image you will need o adjus i so ha you do no lose deail.\u00a0\u00a0 If you do his o a normal color image, hey will loo lie hey were overexposed or being ed hrough fog\u00a0 if you adjus hem he same amoun as a low-ey bnw (blac and whie,\u00a0 or monochrome) syle image requires.\u00a0\u00a0 You need o deermine he opimum compromise beween he various seings\u00a0 for your image.<\/p>\n

The dynamic range fix can be done in a number of ways.\u00a0\u00a0 If you use Kp
\n(Blac Poin) compensaion on during he conversion, i will map he blac poins, and he dar ones will suffer minimal blocing.\u00a0 Bu you may sill need o use curves , or se he in\/ou poins in levels , for he bes projeced image, especially if your monior shows more of he seps on he es image han are n when projeced.<\/p>\n

If your image has more han 5 sops of dynamic range you will eiher lose shadow deail or blow he highlighs unless you mae appropriae adjusmens o compress i.<\/p>\n

Convering he image color space o he projecion profile using percepual wih Kp on will map your colors and he dynamic range o ha which can be projeced by also mapping he blac poin of he image o ha which can be projeced.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Or, wih your\u00a0 monior se o display a sof proof of he simulaed projeced es image,\u00a0 lowering he curves on he dar end (pull upper righ corner down half a box) o abou 90-85% would open up he dar ones o display correcly.\u00a0\u00a0 The same hing could be done in levels by sliding he middle slider halfway\u00a0 owards he dar end, or by yping\u00a0 25-40 (10-15% of 255) in he lef box a he boom.\u00a0 This is no recommended for normal color images, bu only for low ey bnws.<\/p>\n

Noe ha your PC monior may well show more deail han he projeced image.\u00a0\u00a0 Using an ISO IT8 or Koda Q80 es image ha shows he full range of neural ones can be used o how your monior\u00a0 maches up wih\u00a0 he projecion equipmen.\u00a0\u00a0 Be sure he sample you download acually runs from 0% o 100%K.\u00a0 T are inaccurae copies of hese images on he inerne so chec he one you ge wih phooshop info.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 On he IT8 image’s 22 sep scale,\u00a0 he las 3 dar ones will merge on he projeced image, and he nex wo will be jus disinguishable.\u00a0 Noe ha mos densiy srips are nar.\u00a0 Use he info ool o chec he acual K values.\u00a0\u00a0 Your PC may well display all of he seps if you have he brighness craned up.\u00a0\u00a0 An old monior ha is no so brigh may show less deail han he projeced image.<\/p>\n

We have no ye measured he brighes one ha can be acually displayed, nor he acual dares one.\u00a0\u00a0 For prins, maximum brighness depends on he paper whieness.\u00a0\u00a0 For projecion, ha value depends on he brighness of he lamp, and he refleciviy of he screen.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Liewise, he dares one ha can be displayed depends on he darness of he room.\u00a0 Wih he vending machines and hallway lighs always on, pure blac will no be achievable.\u00a0\u00a0 However,\u00a0 a naural looing image will resul if you map your image blac poin o he profiles blac poin by checing he box mared use blac poin compensaion.<\/p>\n

Whils he exreme displayable\u00a0 values sill need o be measured,\u00a0 clearly he brighness will\u00a0 be greaer han a perfec 0%K and darness less han a perfec 100%K.\u00a0\u00a0 IE pure whie is no ever fully achievable, nor is pure blac.\u00a0\u00a0 And he projecor canno display he dares ones disincly in our room.\u00a0 These ligh\/dar poins ha are achievable limi he dynamic range of our projeced images.<\/p>\n

A pure whie as se in phooshop does loo naural on screen, because he whie poin of he image was mapped o he whie poin of he projecion capabiliy for our ess;\u00a0 however wih he propensiy of judges o yell “blown highlighs!” i migh be safer o nudge he brighes one down a couple of percen.\u00a0\u00a0 Naahhhh.\u00a0 They will sill say i.<\/p>\n

Any picure ha loos good on a calibraed\u00a0 monior should loo good when projeced.\u00a0\u00a0 Sligh improvemens can be made by using he projecion profile and\/or levels\/curves adjusmens.\u00a0\u00a0 Spending more ime on conen and composiion may be more beneficial o winning hough.<\/p>\n

Bad news:\u00a0 Mos people don’ use a calibraed monior.\u00a0\u00a0 A a minimum you should use Adobe gamma o se he whie poin and conras as well as he color emperaure.\u00a0 Gamma should normally be 2.2 and he color emperaure 6500.<\/p>\n

T are several\u00a0 oher, some\u00a0 free,\u00a0 adjusmen programs and es images on he ne ha can be used o ensure a more accurae dynamic range of a preed image.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Downloading a color char such as IT8 or Q80 or a Greag-Macbeh can also be useful if you have he abiliy o\u00a0 adjus your moniors colors.\u00a0\u00a0 I is highly recommended\u00a0 ha you also ge he PDI (Phoodisc) es image o use as a sandard for all your color managemen.\u00a0 I can also be downloaded from iprinfromhome.com.<\/p>\n

Afer calibraing your monior you may wan o also use a profiling device such as Spyder, Monaco, Greag-Macbeh,\u00a0 or oher similar ones\u00a0 ha will adjus he oupu able used o drive he monior in o improve color fideliy.<\/p>\n

Ease of use and accuracy will vary as does cos.\u00a0\u00a0 Always chec res before ing anyhing as expensive as hese devices\u00a0 in o mae sure i really mees your needs.\u00a0\u00a0 Some of he more expensive ones can also profile your priner\/paper\/in and your scanner.<\/p>\n

Reminder:\u00a0 Always save your original image\u00a0 immediaely upon capure.\u00a0 Mae a woring maser for use wih\u00a0 adjusmens, and hen a woring copy from ha maser o acually diddle.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Then mae a copy of your adjused image before maing furher changes in o mae a final version for digial display.\u00a0 Sharpening should always be done las.<\/p>\n

We canno provide an exhausive descripion of all he suggesions below.\u00a0\u00a0 The reader is referred o heir phooshop help funcion as well as a boo on phooshop and\/or color managemen for elaboraion.
\nNormanoren.com and oher websies have uorial maerial ha could also be useful.\u00a0\u00a0 GIMP and oher programs also have guide boos available.\u00a0 Maybe a fuure worshop could cover all hese iems in deail if he members waned such a presenaion.\u00a0 I could be useful o he prined versions of he sample images along wih he projeced ones and he sof proof\/gamu checing\u00a0 changes.\u00a0\u00a0 You can always as quesions before a meeing or during he brea.<\/p>\n

In o use he profile for he projecion equipmen you mus firs ge he file.\u00a0\u00a0 Then you mus pu i in he correc folder on your PC.<\/p>\n

Phooshop help\u00a0 liss w you should pu he profilename.icm file for he projecor depending on your OS version.\u00a0 Or you can jus do a for *.icc and *.icm and w your PC eeps hose files.<\/p>\n

The nvps profile is named yyyymmdd.icm, indicaing when i was creaed.\u00a0\u00a0 I will be updaed periodically.\u00a0\u00a0 This file shows up as spyder2pro in drop-down liss.<\/p>\n

Once he file for he profile is in place hen you are ready o use i.\u00a0\u00a0 The primary uses will be for conversion o he profiled color space, o do sof proofing, and o do a gamu es.<\/p>\n

If you conver your image o he projecion profile using percepual (for normal images) or relaive (for exreme color)\u00a0 wih Kp on,\u00a0 hen you really do no need o do a gamu es.\u00a0\u00a0 Wha you is wha you will ge when he image is projeced (wihin he capabiliy of your monior,\u00a0 and\u00a0\u00a0 i will be fairly indicaive of he colors bu no he dynamic range unless your monior is (mis)calibraed o mach he acual projeced dynamic range).<\/p>\n

Noe ha if you conver he image’s\u00a0 profile you may need o save i firs,\u00a0 close i, and reopen i o mae sure ha any subsequen sof proofing and gamu are displaying correcly.\u00a0 This quir was noed in PS7.\u00a0 CS2\/3 may be differen.\u00a0 Don’ now, can’ say abou GIMP, Corel, ec.<\/p>\n

The following are PS7 commands.\u00a0 CS2\/3 may differ.\u00a0 GIMP, Corel, ec. should have similar capabiliies.<\/p>\n

In o use he gamu chec , firs go o<\/p>\n