Photo printing help
Discussion
I'm a noob at this so looking for a little guidance.
I have yet to edit the raw versions of these but I want to frame some of the wifes photos for her. I've been messing with the JPEGs and I have come up with these two.
The question is would these print OK?
The very few times I've printed pics they have come out very dark so it must be my monitor/eyes or something or is the local print shop useless?
And if anyone can help. How would I go about getting this printed large format and mounted.
I have yet to edit the raw versions of these but I want to frame some of the wifes photos for her. I've been messing with the JPEGs and I have come up with these two.
The question is would these print OK?
The very few times I've printed pics they have come out very dark so it must be my monitor/eyes or something or is the local print shop useless?
And if anyone can help. How would I go about getting this printed large format and mounted.
Im in no way an expert (someone who is will be along shortly im sure) but the first thing i would do is ensure the screen your looking at those through has been properly callibrated and matches the one used by the printer.
Otherwise what you see as correctly exposed may be quite a bit out.
I have 2 screens at work with the same B+W background photo on both, one is BW the other looks like its sepia!
One is nicly exposed in the detail, the other just showing black with no detail in the shadows at all.
(nice pics by the way!)
Otherwise what you see as correctly exposed may be quite a bit out.
I have 2 screens at work with the same B+W background photo on both, one is BW the other looks like its sepia!
One is nicly exposed in the detail, the other just showing black with no detail in the shadows at all.
(nice pics by the way!)
Edited by satans worm on Thursday 28th April 18:56
I've worked in photographic and large format printing for over 10 years now and issues with not getting the results you expect is more often than not down to your monitor. Also, comparing an image in print form to that on a screen will never be accurate as one is backlit with a very bright light, the other isn't. Images on a monitor will always look punchier and more vibrant.
Your images look perfectly fine to me on my PC but then my monitor is not calibrated to anything, it's simply how I like it. If you want to see what your images will look like before they are printed, ask your local lab to see your image on a monitor they have calibrated to their printer. They may not allow you to but it's pretty much the only way your going to see what your going to get before you print it. The majority of places I've worked have allowed customers this service if they've required it. One, the customer was required to sign to say they had seen it before we would print the job. A good printer will always make corrections where necessary to get a decent print. If it looks too dark, they should know it looks too dark...
My only concern with your images are that they are low res, although I imagine these are just previews for us to see rather than the full res file.
Your images look perfectly fine to me on my PC but then my monitor is not calibrated to anything, it's simply how I like it. If you want to see what your images will look like before they are printed, ask your local lab to see your image on a monitor they have calibrated to their printer. They may not allow you to but it's pretty much the only way your going to see what your going to get before you print it. The majority of places I've worked have allowed customers this service if they've required it. One, the customer was required to sign to say they had seen it before we would print the job. A good printer will always make corrections where necessary to get a decent print. If it looks too dark, they should know it looks too dark...
My only concern with your images are that they are low res, although I imagine these are just previews for us to see rather than the full res file.
Edited by MysteryLemon on Thursday 28th April 20:37
People usually have much brighter monitors than prints, hold up a piece of white paper next to your monitor ( assuming the room is reasonably lit )
If the monitor is brighter than the piece of paper, turn the brightness down on the monitor until it matches the piece of paper, then proof the picture.
You can also load paper profiles into photoshop which will "grey" the image so it looks more like a paper print, but you still need a monitor with the correct brightness.
For prints I usually desaturate saturated areas to avoid gamut errors, and use curves to brighten the picture overall.
If the monitor is brighter than the piece of paper, turn the brightness down on the monitor until it matches the piece of paper, then proof the picture.
You can also load paper profiles into photoshop which will "grey" the image so it looks more like a paper print, but you still need a monitor with the correct brightness.
For prints I usually desaturate saturated areas to avoid gamut errors, and use curves to brighten the picture overall.
What software are you using? Photoshop and Lightroom give the option to softproof to the printer calibration - if the printers supply that.
Are you managing the colour calibration, or allowing the printer to tweak the file?
Another option is to get a small print done, then when you're happy with the colours etc go ahead with the large print.
Are you managing the colour calibration, or allowing the printer to tweak the file?
Another option is to get a small print done, then when you're happy with the colours etc go ahead with the large print.
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