Workflow to Grayscale

[frankg_photos]

Camera Raw 14.0.1.952

Clicking on the gear icon to access the Workflow options where I want to use and create a preset that applies true neutral black & white vs the default Monochrome option which is still an RGB image with irregular RGB values.  When I select Color Space, the dropdown menu of profile choices doesn't list Grayscale or Gamma 2.2 which  will cut out all color.  Is there a way to add a profile or a better way to get a Grayscale?

[TheDigitalDog]

ACR will only render into an RGB color space. If you want a single grayscale channel file you will have to do this in Photoshop.

[frankg_photos]

When I originally searched the question, this page came up, the author suggested it to be the route to achieve Grayscale neutrality in ACR.

https://www.peachpit.com 

I couldn't find the option as per my original post .

Could you convert to grayscale neutrality  (exactly the same RGB values) in earlier vesions?

Is there a different way to do it now, before going to Ps?

[TheDigitalDog]

If you use a B&W conversion, that is, remove all color where R=G=B, while an RGB document, it IS neutral. But it has three channels. A grayscale document has one. And you can, as outlined, do this in Photoshop if you really, really, REALLY need a single channel grayscale document. Again, ACR engine is RGB. So you can produce a neutral conversion in any number of ways within it. Then render into an RGB Working Space like sRGB, Adobe RGB (1998)  etc. 

[frankg_photos]

Can you suggest the most straight forward way to get equal RGB numbers, in ACR before going to PS & no need for a single channel. 

[TheDigitalDog]

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@frankg_photos wrote:

Can you suggest the most straight forward way to get equal RGB numbers, in ACR before going to PS & no need for a single channel. 

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There are multiple tools and ways to do this. Simplest would be to move the Saturation slider all the way to the Left. 

Or there is a is the B&W button next to Auto (in Edit area of the top panel). 

Or for a lot more control, there is the Color Mixer where you can control each color. 

You can hover over the image and see the RGB values and when there is no 'color' (the saturation is totally reduced), the RGB values are all equal. IOW, 34/34/34 or 145/145/145 etc are neutral. 

[frankg_photos]

When I click the B&W button I don't get equal RGB numbers,

That was my starting point in this thread.

[TheDigitalDog]

You might have other settings introducing the tint which is possible and for some useful (like making a sepia). 

As you can see, it is doable:

Check other panels that can on top of the B&W, introduce a color cast. Or move Saturation all the way to the left which will make everything totally desaturated. 

[frankg_photos]

I think I've found the source of my difficulty. In the Col Grading panel, the 3 color wheels each have a centre button to move the saturation, I right-clicked on each of the 3 and selected to Reset All Ranges. That reset the buttons to the centre & appears to have provided equal RGB numbers. I guess it's the equivalent of Desaturating.

[TheDigitalDog]

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@frankg_photos wrote:

 I guess it's the equivalent of Desaturating.

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Think of it this way: B&W did produce on it's own, a neutral conversion. The Color Grading added a color tint on top so it isn't neutral. The reset button turned it off. 

[frankg_photos]

I understand.

I just would've thought that by selecting B&W it would automatically zero any settings that would introduce col on top of B&W.

Thanks for your help sorting this out.

[TheDigitalDog · Accepted solution]

The conversion to B&W is 'higher" up in the edit 'stack' if you will. But that is simply one kind of edit and others might be desired, again as I outlined, to do a Sepia Tone (or split tone). In the end, it is all compounded if the edits are applied. When you disabled that one pane, or had you reset it to 'zero', then it wouldn't have caused the color cast. Each pane zero's out on it's own so to speak.