Hey y'all,
So for some reason Lightroom Classic is not giving me the option to click on the "Simulate Paper & Ink" while I'm Soft Proofing a photo. Any suggestions???
Thanks,
Nick D.
{Moved from Lightroom Cloud to Lightroom Classic Forum by Moderator}
1 Correct answer
You need to select a printing profile that has paper color defined instead of a color space profile such as adobe RGB.
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Replies
Ok, I agree but precisely HOW do I know which printing profile IS of a type that has paper color defined??? Or to say it from another angle how do I obtain a printing profile that has paper color defined??
By @Phil4adobe2LR
It’s pretty straightforward because if you just add printer profiles using default settings (see below) you will normally end up with profiles that do have a paper color defined, so the question doesn’t require so many question marks. It’s actually more work to choose a profile without a paper color defined.
First, when looking at the color profile menu for Soft Proofing, all the options above the first dividing line are non-print profiles (representing general purpose RGB color spaces) so they do not have a paper color defined. So if you want a print profile, don’t select anything from the first group in the menu.
Second, for the profiles below the first dividing line (which are profiles you add), if you choose Other to add more profiles to that middle section, and you make sure Include Display Profiles is not selected in the Choose Profile dialog box (I think it’s the default for it to be deselected), then the profiles in the list are all printer profiles, so they all have a paper color defined, which means you don’t have to worry about it. In the Choose Profiles list, disabling Include Display Profiles also hides other types of color profiles that might be on your system that are not useful for printing, such as color profiles for video editing and for other abstract color spaces.
Regarding how to obtain them…every print profile in my list was obtained in one of these three ways:
- Some profiles were added to system by the installer for the printer driver software that runs my Epson or Canon printers. That accounts for most of the profiles you see in my Choose Profiles list. So if you are already running a pro-level photo printer, you probably already have these. (The printer software driver installers for some basic home/office-type printers might not install paper profiles.)
- Some profiles were downloaded from the websites of the manufacturers of printing papers I bought.
- Some profiles were manually generated using the profiling software that runs my color measuring device that can profile displays and printers. I chose to make my own profiles for those papers because profiles were not already available for them (some are old or unusual papers).
Ok, I agree but precisely HOW do I know which printing profile IS of a type that has paper color defined???
By @Phil4adobe2LR
That's simple: you don't have a choice. You use the correct profile for the print process, the one that characterizes the actual printer/paper/ink combination. You don't "experiment" with profiles. Only one is the correct one, whether inkjet or offset.
Simulating paper color is fairly straightforward. Maximum ink (black point) is a whole lot trickier. If there is a max ink simulation, you don't really know what it does. The problem is that there are two components to this: one is ink density, the other is diffuse reflection from the paper. The latter may not be included. Paper reflectiveness is not a huge factor with inkjet on glossy paper, there is very little - but it's very significant for offset print, where it will lift the visual black point considerably.
The net result of that is that the finished print looks very disappointing compared to what you see on screen. The black point has a huge impact on the perceived "punch" of the image.
A more predictable way to deal with this is to calibrate your monitor's white and black points to be a visual match to paper color and max ink. For offset print, that usually means a black point in the vicinity of 1.0 - 1.2 cd/m². Then you know that what you see is what you get. That's the holy grail.
My issue is just simply I need to know WHERE to get what is called theright profile to download to my new Lightroom classic so that my "simulatepaper and ink" function will work. That's all I need. Nothing else. I needto know precisely where to obtain the right profile to d/l so that thatfunction under the "soft proofing" option will work. Tell me exactly whatto do. Thank you.
By @Phil4adobe2LR
I already replied with three different answers as to where to get them: The printer driver software you install, a paper manufacturer’s website, or manually created with profiling hardware and software. I also already provided a picture of where to add those profiles to Lightroom Classic.
As to what is the “right” profile, that has also already been answered by others. It’s actually the same answer as to what is the “right” profile for the display: The “right” profile is always the profile that most precisely represents the output conditions. For print, the output conditions are the printer, the ink, and the paper type, so you simply choose the profile that represents that exact combination you will be working with. That is all it comes down to.
Soft-proofing is just a version of that same answer. The reason you want to soft-proof is because you want to simulate the final output conditions. Well, what are your final output conditions? Answering that will lead directly to the answer you want. If you want to simulate printing on an Epson P900 on Epson Premium Luster paper*, then you choose that profile. If you want to print on a Canon Pro-1000 on Moab Lasal paper, then you download and choose that profile.
*In this Epson example…
A. The profile contains information about Epson P900 print characteristics.
B. The profile contains information about how Epson Premium Luster paper reproduces color.
C. The profile contains information about the behavior of that printer’s Photo (glossy) inks, because that is the correct ink type for that paper.
It is points B and C that will allow you to “Simulate Paper and Ink”. The printer profile contains the information needed to simulate the exact paper and ink that the profile represents.
So that is your answer: Just select a profile that represents your printing conditions, and where to get it has already been answered.
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