The Three Stages of How Photographers and Designers Incorporate with Workflow of Colour Management

The devices listed under each stage represent the devices that could be utilised in that stage. For example, we need a camera to capture the scene, we use a scanner to digitise a hardcopy image or we draw an illustration on a computer. There are different devices associated with each stage, but there is one device that is in common for all three stages. And I believe you already know which device we’re talking about. Yes, it is the monitor. Why is this the only device that is used in all three stages? Because nowadays almost 99.5% of artwork and images is in digital form and unfortunately, we still don’t have the technology to allow humans to view digital content directly, such as by plugging an SD card into our brain. We still need a display device to enjoy digital content, and the most commonly used device is by far the monitor. Of course, one could argue that a projector could also be used, but we don’t have the luxury to have a large, undecorated wall and dark surroundings with us at all times. Hence, one could consider the monitor as the most important tool used in the colour management workflow.

The reason why the monitor is the most important tool in the colour management workflow is because humans rely on seeing the colours displayed on it to judge whether they like it or not. Figure 3 illustrates this idea. If the monitor displays a greenish skin tone image, then we would adjust the image by decreasing green to make the skin tone more natural. However, we could not determine if the greenish cast is from the file or if it is from the monitor itself. If it is from the file, then decreasing the green tone will result in a good natural-looking skin tone image on other monitors.. But if the greenish cast is from the monitor, then decreasing the green tone will result in an image with very little green tone, whic look neither pleasant nor natural on other monitors.. Hence, having the monitor calibrated regularly can reduce the risk of having overly or wrongly adjusted images.

How should image creators incorporate colour management in their workflow? First of all, let us define the image creator. Anyone who ‘creates’ the image falls into this category, for example, photographers, illustrators and designers. Figure 4 illustrates the typical workflow for designers. The designers usually have an idea or ‘image’ in their mind. They then use a computer with a drawing tablet to ‘draw’ the work in software applications. The monitor provides a ‘feedback’ of the drawings, so the designers know what the image looks like and if it has the right artistic intent. So there is no doubt that seeing the right colours is crucial for designers to judge if the work reflects what they have in mind. Therefore, the monitor they use must be calibrated to a unified set of parameters to ensure all the work is created and viewed under the same conditions, and to prevent the greenish skin tone example mentioned earlier.

Once the monitor is calibrated, an ICC profile for that particular monitor will be generated. This ICC profile should be sent along with the image so that others in the colour management workflow can replicate the environment where the original image was created. In other words, others can view the same colours as the original designer did and make sure the original artistic intent can be preserved. The details about how using an ICC profile can achieve this will be explained in detail in subsequent articles.

As for the photographers, the workflow is a bit more complicated, as you can see in Figure 5. When a photographer wants to ‘preserve’ the appearance of the real scene, the photographer needs to place a colour checker in the scene and use an exposure meter to determine the right aperture and shutter speed. Not surprisingly, there is an ICC profile associated with the particular camera he or she uses, and the ICC profile should also be preserved along the workflow. The ICC profile can be either downloaded from the manufacture’s website or it can be created using a colour checker and a viewing booth.

If a scanner is used to digitise a hard-copy image, all you need is a good scanner with its ICC profile ready. The same as the digital camera, the ICC profile for the scanner can be downloaded from the manufacture’s website or it can be created using a colour checker with a spectrophotometer. A spectrophotometer is a device that measures the colours on the substrate spectrally and gives accurate measurement. Both of these methods require a colour transformation to the monitors if you want to see the correct images. The colour transformation is done either inside the software application or the operating system. Nonetheless, the monitor should definitely be calibrated to allow the user to perceive the right colour.

We have learned what is the typical workflow for colour management and its three main stages. We have also looked into how to incorporate colour management into designers’ and photographers’ workflow. Coming up in the next article, we will be discussing more details about colour management workflow for enhancing the images and reproducing the images.