PCPhoto

Knockout Color!

Think color from capture to finish for stunning images

By Rick Sammon

Page 2 of 2

Exposure

Getting a good exposure is critical, which is why it’s important to look at the histogram on your camera’s monitor. That’s what I did when I photographed a Ngobe girl in a remote area of Panama (left).

Note that when your camera is set to RAW, the histogram isn’t the histogram for the RAW file, but for a JPEG rendition of that file. The same is true for the overexposure warning. Why is that important? Well, at the time of capture, the highlights may be shown as washed out, but you may be able to rescue them during RAW processing later.

If you slightly underexpose a picture, you’ll get a slightly more saturated and colorful picture. Also, with the highlight-recovery capability of RAW files (up to one ƒ-stop), many professional photographers are pushing the histogram toward the highlights by slightly underexposing. This ensures details in the brightest areas, with details in the shadows being recovered later with software. The technique helps to avoid digital noise, which occurs mostly in the shadow areas.

Monitor Calibration

The image of a Kuna woman has wonderful color (left). The print I made on my inkjet printer and the online print I made look exactly the same as the image on my monitor. How did I get such an accurate print? The first step was to calibrate my monitor. I opened the calibration profile from the CD that came with my calibration device, hung the calibration device on my monitor over the calibration window, ran the program and, in a few minutes, I was all set to go.

Calibrating your monitor corrects on-screen color for the most accurate visualization of color on your monitor. Simply put, if you don’t calibrate your monitor, the colors you see could be off in your prints. What’s more, you probably want to calibrate your monitor periodically to keep it tuned up. Also, be sure to keep your room light consistent. That can affect how colors look on your monitor, too. Some calibrators remain plugged in to your computer, constantly measuring ambient light and automatically adjusting your screen as the light in the room changes.

Left: You can increase the color saturation in-camera for a more colorful picture, or you can underexpose a picture for a more colorful image—but watch out for digital noise. In Elements, you can boost the saturation; you also can darken a picture for deeper colors. You might like the more saturated of these two images of an Emberá girl, but the less-saturated image is more true to the natural colors.

Printer Profiles

After you calibrate your monitor, it’s almost time to make an inkjet print. Before you do, you need to use or download the profiles for the printer, ink and paper that you’re using. This is important. If you don’t, it’s like having your computer talking to your printer in a different language—and you could end up with a picture with color that’s way off!

Paper And Ink

You need to tell your printer what paper type (glossy, matte, etc.) you’re using. If you use the wrong paper, your pictures might look muddy or off-color, and they may take a long time to dry. You give this information to your printer in the printer driver window, which pops up when you print.

It’s essential to use the highest-quality inks, those that have a wide color gamut, to accurately print your images. You also want to use archival ink so your pictures don’t fade after just a few years, which can happen with non-archival inks. Use all the “right stuff,” and you’ll get great prints—especially accurate skin tones. In my print of this Kuna woman, the colors are right on.

Good Color, Start To Finish

My last tip isn’t really a tip in and of itself. Rather, it’s the idea that all of the aforementioned tips work together in the process of getting a good print. Follow all of these tips, from start to finish, and you should be happy with your results. And remember, have fun and be creative. Your idea of good color may be different from someone else’s vision.

To see more of Rick Sammon’s photography, visit his Website at www.ricksammon.com.

Prev 1 2 End

Tags: Camera Technique, How To, Image Processing How To,