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FeedbackCommunityMember
Inspiring
January 16, 2012
Open for Voting

P: CMYK soft proofing needed

  • January 16, 2012
  • 57 replies
  • 2960 views

Following a discussion on the LR4 beta forum:

Converting to CMYK and soft proofing in CMYK are two completely different things, so at least we need a CMYK softproofing.

During the last years I ran into a lot of problems due to modern LED lightning on the scene, it is able to produce colors (especially in the blues) far away out of the CMYK color space. Converting pictures to CMYK later after my initial processing can change a picture dramatically, a bit similar to a conversion to b/w.

So even if you have to deliver your material in RGB and someone else is doing a professional conversion later, you should be able to predict what can happen to your material!

So if you deliver material that will be converted – earlier or later – to CMYK: You need at least a simple soft proof. Otherwise it can happen that you deliver material that simply can’t be published.

    57 replies

    J
    Jakub22445158kcy9
    Participant
    December 27, 2023

    Hi there,

    I've read that It is not possible to soft proof using CMYK ICC profiles. But is it really true? 

     

    I've seen few blog/vlog content that describes installing profiles on LR, soft proofing, etc in which they are able to use particular (non-display) ICC profiles. In examlple, here: https://youtu.be/hCazWVOGkfs?si=dm_rI8NQuCa9OvNo

     

    Also, why there is a check-box for "simulate paper&ink" which is always gray out?

     

    So where is the truth?  Why they can but we don't!?

     

    I'm using LR Classic 13.0.1 and MacOS Ventura.

      JohanElzenga
      Community Expert
      JohanElzengaCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      December 27, 2023

      Yes, that is really true. There is no support for CMYK profiles at all in Lightroom. Not for soft proofing and not for exporting. You seem to think that only display profiles are RGB-based profiles however, but that is not true. Most inkjet printers expect RGB input, not CMYK input, and so their icc-profiles are RGB based, not CMYK based.

       

      The checkbox "simulate paper & ink" is only grayed out if you have selected an icc-profile that is not a printer profile, such as a display icc-profile or one of the working profiles (sRGB, AdobeRGB).

       

       

      -- Johan W. Elzenga
      J
      Jakub22445158kcy9
      Participant
      December 27, 2023

      I see now. Thanks for explanation. So, I have a CMYK profile which is useless for LR. Do you know if it is possible to convert somehome such profile to RGB? 

      P
      phfsly
      Inspiring
      November 20, 2022

      I'd like to put again this very old complaint back on the table.

      If we use Lightroom as an integrated piece of software, this is because the entire workflow from Raw file to final print is well managed...

      ... Except for the "Book" module, linked to Blurb, who doesn't provide sRVB ICC profile for soft proofing (or Lightroom doesn't handle CMYK profile).

      And using Photoshop is not an option (too cumbersome).

      Does Adobe work on this ? 

      JohanElzenga
      Community Expert
      JohanElzengaCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      November 20, 2022

      Adobe does not comment on future developments, but I doubt very much that they are working on this.

       

      -- Johan W. Elzenga
        johnrellis
        johnrellis
        Legend
        November 20, 2022

        Moderators, @Rikk Flohr: Photography, please move into Ideas.

        TheDigitalDog
        TheDigitalDog
        Inspiring
        September 28, 2020

        LR's engine is RGB for one. There was a time in the past, for like one version where some CMYK support was around and it was buggy and didn't work, so it was removed. 

        IF you need to be dealing with CMYK, you need Photoshop. 

        Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management/pluralsight"
        P
        Paul Nylander
        Participant
        September 28, 2020

        Yes, that is one of the old threads I referenced.

         

        It would be good to see Adobe address this continued shortcoming.

        P
        Paul Nylander
        Participant
        September 28, 2020

        An old thread asked this question, but apparently the feature has since been added and removed again.

         

        I use Lightroom Classic as part of my image processing workflow. While I might not do the conversion until PDF export from InDesign, it would be tremendously helpful to at least be able to soft proof images based on a target profile, intended for CMYK targets while processing. 

        Export conversion to CMYK (again, specifying target profile) would be icing on the cake. It is rare to need this nowadays, but often enough that this feature would help.

        TheDigitalDog
        TheDigitalDog
        Inspiring
        August 16, 2020
        Not back: RGB only.
        Colors in ProPhoto RGB gamut outside of whatever CYMK gamut, no.
        Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management/pluralsight"
        F
        FeedbackCommunityMemberAuthor
        Inspiring
        August 16, 2020
        Has this been added back into Lightroom?  I need it for the same reasons others have pointed out.  Or, is there a workaround I can use to at least get my ProPhoto colors close to CMYK?  Moving into PS then converting to CMYK horribly shifts image colors captured during Blue Hour.
        J
        Community Expert
        Jao vdLCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        May 17, 2020
        No news. Lightroom currently does not support CMYK profile soft proof nor CMYK export. Not sure it will ever get added again. You'll need to do it in Photoshop
        M
        mirkos61204312
        Participant
        May 17, 2020
        Anything new on this topic? I would like to view a CMYK proof in Lightroom, this does not seem to be possible?
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