Printing in B&W - DPChallenge Forums

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III

03/21/2008 04:10:05 PM · #1

Hi guys and gals....need some help and with all your infinite knowledge, where else could I go ;-)

I am trying to print a black and white 8X10 photo of my daughter but the print-out has a blue/greenish tint to it--especially in the shadow areas around her hair etc.

Using CS2 and Epson Stylus Photo RX500.

Tried lots of different settings...but now I am getting lost, lol

Image size is 8x10, 300 Pixels/inch

Anyone give me any advice on :-
1)Which CS2 print settings to use-no colour management,let printer decide/let photoshop decide and if so which profile and which rendering intent to use (absolute/perceptual/relative)
2)How to set-up colour management, if any changes required that is,in the printer settings themselves

thanks in advance and beers on me when I finally get to a GTG ;-)
cheers
Keith

Yo_Spiff

Olympus 12-100mm f/4.0 M.Zuiko ED IS PRO

03/21/2008 04:13:46 PM · #2

What's going on is that you are printing a process black. Process black is a mixture of equal parts of cyan yellow and magenta. In theory it produces a black, but in reality it makes a muddy greenish black. Look for some settings in your driver that tells it to print with actual black ink instead of process. Sorry, but I don't know the specifics for your printer driver and I don't use CS2, so I don't know about that either.

03/21/2008 04:21:01 PM · #3

Thanks Steve..I've checked that out and no joy..but thanks for the help anyway ;-)

geoffb

03/21/2008 06:40:41 PM · #4

Originally posted by wingyisleeds:

Is the file in sRGB or your printer's profile?

You should have Photoshop manage colour.

03/22/2008 07:09:20 AM · #5

Hi Geoff,

Yep, the profile in CS2 and in my printer colour management profile default is the same - sRGB IEC61966-2.1, but still get the crappy tint when printing??

cheers ;-)

geoffb

03/22/2008 10:54:25 AM · #6

Originally posted by wingyisleeds:

Hi Geoff,

Yep, the profile in CS2 and in my printer colour management profile default is the same - sRGB IEC61966-2.1, but still get the crappy tint when printing??

cheers ;-)

Are you colour managing in Photoshop? If so, is the printer then trying to "manage" the colour again?

I can't really walk through any steps, since printing in CS3 is quite different. At least you're in sRGB, so you're on the right track.

cpanaioti

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM

03/22/2008 11:24:55 AM · #7

Originally posted by wingyisleeds:

Hi Geoff,

Yep, the profile in CS2 and in my printer colour management profile default is the same - sRGB IEC61966-2.1, but still get the crappy tint when printing??

cheers ;-)

The printer profile should be the one that matches the paper and ink being used. If you are indicating that PS is managing the colour then ICM needs to be turned off in the printer driver.

For more help you could post screen shots of both your print with preview from PS and the printer driver window that pops up when you select properties.

sRGB, Adobe RGB, ProPhoto is the profile used for editing. You don't need to convert to sRGB before you print if you're not already there. Selecting the right printer profile is the key as this is the profile that PS will convert to before printing.

Message edited by author 2008-03-22 11:26:44.

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS

03/23/2008 08:18:16 AM · #8

Hi Colette, thanks for the reply ;-)

So here is the shot Beth wants me to print:-

( I know, not the best shot, hehe, but she likes it)

In CS2 I set custom proof to this :- [thumb]661004[/thumb]

In my printer I have this :- [thumb]661005[/thumb]

And my print preview dialogue box in CS2 is :- [thumb]661003[/thumb]

any ideas, 'cause I am so frustrated :-(

Message edited by author 2008-03-24 12:58:52.

AlexSaberi

Canon EOS-5D Mark III

03/23/2008 08:34:09 AM · #9

I thought you could just tick the box in the print options of the printer to greyscale printing only. Works for me.

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f3.5-5.6G ED VR

03/23/2008 08:57:52 AM · #10

Hi Alex,
Yep tried that, it is better, but still has this annoying greenish tint and looks very flat..maybe I should get a new printer, ...or just tell Beth..."You are green, are you blind or what child!", lol

thanks for all your help peeps..really appreciate it ;-)

Message edited by author 2008-03-23 08:58:00.

NikonJeb

Nikon D850

03/23/2008 10:02:31 AM · #11

I know this is probably NOT what you want to hear, but I have some printer issues, too, with certain shades & tints when printing 8X10........the part that you don't wanna hear is that I've learned to do "guide prints" occasionally to compensate for whatever issue I'm dealing with and sometimes.......you just don't get what you want.

I've cranked well over 1500 images in 8X10 out of this HP all-in-one that I bought for $279 about three years ago and for better than 25 for 1 have the images come out good as oppesed to problematic......and in most cases not just good, but excellent quality.

This is the lowest end HP printer that comes with separate color cartridges.

I am *NOT* a techie, so I have no specific guidelines other than just experimenting to get the result you want.

Maybe if you get into a duotone range you can set a tone that the inclination to do a green cast will be offset.......I've found that sometimes an orangish sepia can meld well in that case.

What I had to accept is that sometimes, you just cannot get what you see on the screen, and in your head, to print out.

My odds are so massively in favor of the good versus bad that I just accept them.

I know this may not necessarily help, but it's one man's viewpoint.

ETA: I have CS2....and I run the printer out of that.

Message edited by author 2008-03-23 10:03:42.

03/23/2008 12:11:10 PM · #12

yep, I think you are right Jeb.... The colour printing is excellent on the RX500, never had any issues, but this B&W is just really bugging me. As you say, and I agree, it will probably be a trail and error exercise until I get something that I like.

;-)

cpanaioti

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM

03/23/2008 12:20:05 PM · #13

Originally posted by wingyisleeds:

Hi Collete, thanks for the reply ;-)

So here is the shot Beth wants me to print:- ( I know, not the best shot, hehe, but she likes it)

In CS2 I set custom proof to this :- [thumb]661004[/thumb]

In my printer I have this :- [thumb]661005[/thumb]

And my print preview dialogue box in CS2 is :- [thumb]661003[/thumb]

any ideas, 'cause I am so frustrated :-(

sRGB is NOT the printer profile. The printer profile is the one that matches the paper and ink you are using.

The name of the profile will be something like RX500PrmGlsPhoto.icc.

03/23/2008 07:49:54 PM · #14

Hi Colette,
I have this in my printer as automatic set-up :-
[thumb]661250[/thumb]

....but in ICM in the printer dialogue, I have stated for ICM > no colour management, so I am assuming that CS2 is controlling or am I incorrect?

Message edited by author 2008-03-24 12:59:23.

cpanaioti

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM

03/23/2008 09:14:33 PM · #15

Originally posted by wingyisleeds:

Hi Collete,
I have this in my printer as automatic set-up :-
[thumb]661250[/thumb]

....but in ICM in the printer dialogue, I have stated for ICM > no colour management, so I am assuming that CS2 is controlling or am I incorrect?

Right. Since ICM is turned off in the driver and you've indicated that photoshop will control colours then CS2 is managing the colour. Just remember to set the printer profile correctly in the print with preview window.

wheeledd

Panasonic LUMIX-DMC ZS100

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS

03/23/2008 10:27:01 PM · #16

Colette has identified your problem. Let me add to what she has said. The "print preview" screen you showed us said that the printer profile was sRGB. That is wrong. You are trying to print to paper with a profile that is intended for displaying on a screen. You need to us a profile that is designed for your printer and for the paper you are using. I have an Epson printer and it came with a set of profiles for the different Epson papers. I get good results when I use the right profile and terrible results otherwise.

Your printer is designed to handle color images straight from the camera so it handles color sRGB files adequately. But when you want to print a B&W image, getting the right profile which matches your printer and the paper you are using is critical.

--DanW

Edited to correct the spelling of Colette's name. Sorry about that.

Message edited by author 2008-03-23 22:29:49.