I want to welcome you all to this forum. I will do my best to help you in any way I can. Feel free to ask me whatever is on your mind. If I don't know the answer, I will research it and try to get one for you.

Let the fun begin!

Nick

I don't know whose bright idea this was but it's greeeat! I've been waiting on a topic like this. Now I just have to pull together all my questions.

It was Cris's bright idea, you can thank him.

I'm glad you are excited about this new forum; I am too. I'll do whatever I can to help you and if I don't know the answer I'll get it for you. Looking forward to helping out!

Welcome, Nick!

I'll waste no time--will start with some questions

I have my monitor calibrated, and have been playing with softproofing in PSCS a little bit lately. My lab makes printer profiles available, but I haven't used them too much. Having the monitor calibrated made a huge difference. Is it important to use printer profiles as well? I print mostly portraits, and have been happy with the results even w/o using the printer profiles. There are options like use black point compensation, simulate paper white, and ink black. Which ones should be turned on/off? What are all the different rendering intents?

Canon's new printer touts 16-bit printing. Upto now most of the printers are 8-bit. I've read that traditional photographic paper, especially b/w paper, is capable of much larger dynamic range than the inkjet photo papers. Is that true? What kind of dynamic range can inkjet papers hold? What's the advantage of 16-bit printing?

Thanks much!!

Is this a lab question or a printer question?

pdlarry:
Welcome, Nick!

I'll waste no time--will start with some questions :)

I have my monitor calibrated, and have been playing with softproofing in PSCS a little bit lately. My lab makes printer profiles available, but I haven't used them too much. Having the monitor calibrated made a huge difference. Is it important to use printer profiles as well? I print mostly portraits, and have been happy with the results even w/o using the printer profiles. There are options like use black point compensation, simulate paper white, and ink black. Which ones should be turned on/off? What are all the different rendering intents?

Canon's new printer touts 16-bit printing. Upto now most of the printers are 8-bit. I've read that traditional photographic paper, especially b/w paper, is capable of much larger dynamic range than the inkjet photo papers. Is that true? What kind of dynamic range can inkjet papers hold? What's the advantage of 16-bit printing?

Thanks much!!

G, good point. Perhaps I should'a asked in the printer forum...

ETA: I think Nick's article answered the question on the need to use printer profiles for LAB destined files. Thanks, Nick!