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Participating Frequently
October 31, 2007
Question

Photoshop CS3 color management "Save for Web" problem

  • October 31, 2007
  • 680 replies
  • 62090 views
This problem is getting the best of me.......

After spending 3 full days researching this problem, I am no closer to finding an answer than when I started. I still cannot produce a usable image through the "Save for Web" feature of Photoshop CS3. I have read web page after web page of "Tips, Tricks and Recommendations" from dozens of experts, some from this forum, and still I have no solution... I am exhausted and frustrated to say the least. Here's the simple facts that I know at this point.

I have a web design project that was started in PS CS1. All artwork was created in photoshop and exported to JPG format by using "Save for Web". Every image displays correctly in these browsers (Safari, Camino, FireFox and even Internet Explorer on a PC).

I have recently upgraded to PS CS3 and now cannot get any newly JPG'd image to display correctly. My original settings in CS1 were of no concern to me at the time, because it always just worked, and so I do not know what they were. I have opened a few of my previous images in CS3 and found that sRGB-2.1 displays them more or less accurately. I am using sRGB 2.1 working space. Upon openning these previous image files, I get the "Missing Profile" message and of course I select "Leave as is. Do Not color manage". CS3 assumes sRGB-2.1 working space, opens the file, and all is well.

The problem is when I go to "Save for Web", the saturation goes up, and the colors change. The opposite of what most people are reporting. Here's another important point... new artwork created in CS3 does exactly the same thing, so it's not because of the older CS1 files.

I have tried every combination of "uncompensated color", "Convert to sRGB", "ICC Profile", etc. while saving. I have Converted to sRGB before saving, and my monitor is calibrated correctly.
I have tried setting the "Save for Web" page on 2-up and the "original" on the left is already color shifted before I even hit the "Save" button. Of course, the "Optimized" image on the right looks perfect because I am cheating by selecting the "Use Document Color Profile" item. Why do they even have this feature if doesn't work, or misleads you?

Does anyone have any ideas what could be happening here? Why is this all so screwed up?
CS1 worked fine out of the box.

Final note: I do have an image file I could send along that demonstrates how it is possible to display an image exactly the same in all 4 of the browsers I mentioned with no color differences. It is untagged RGB and somehow it just works.

I am very frustrated with all of this and any suggestions will be appreciated

Thanks,
Pete
    This topic has been closed for replies.

    680 replies

    Participating Frequently
    November 6, 2007
    >> And off they go...

    nothing that a couple more rounds of proofs cant fix :0
    Participating Frequently
    November 6, 2007
    What really kills me is that if you start off with a CMYK file - like a lot of ad agencies do, and if they do a SFW, the file gets converted to their working space with the ability to embed profile "greyed out" in SFW.

    And off they go into the wild blue yonder blaming everyone and their mother...

    Thanks Adobe.

    broken~!

    The big picture is lack of file process control that Adobe has NO CLUE how to fix.
    Participating Frequently
    November 6, 2007
    As far as I can tell, SFW is working EXACTLY how it should work. The only time I'm seeing a color or saturation shift is when I convert to sRGB in SFW and then view the UNTAGGED file in Photoshop usiing my standard Adobe RGB as a working space. Change that working space to either sRGB or Monitor RGB and everthing's right again. That's exactly what is supposed to happen. It ain't broke, people are just getting confused about color and color spaces - surprise, surprise.
    November 6, 2007

    "If I work in Adobe RGB and Save for Web without "convert to sRGB", my JPG viewed in Firefox looks the same as my original image in Photoshop.!"

    What ever way works IMO, go with. I had to do it that way for awhile...

    November 6, 2007
    I have also calibrated my monitor to 2.2/6500 with the Spyder2, but no matter whether I use that calibrated profile or other preinstalled profiles, the "convert to sRGB" checkbox boosts the colours of my images. However I'm now finding that the images are fine if I leave "convert to sRGB" UNchecked. Very odd. Even odder...if I convert my Adobe RGB image to sRGB manually and then enter SFW...the colours get brighter whether or not "convert to sRGB" is checked. That is odd, is it not?

    Well anyway, I have my working solution now it seems. If I work in Adobe RGB and Save for Web without "convert to sRGB", my JPG viewed in Firefox looks the same as my original image in Photoshop.

    I still think that something is wrong with the way SFW is handling colours, but it's equally if not more likely that I'm simply lost in the labrynth that is colour management.
    November 5, 2007
    What has been working for me is: I calibrated my monitor to 2.2/6500. My thinking is it's getting the calibration on target. My original image has an embedded profile in Adobe RGB (1998). I did not convert the image before going to SFW. That means I do not go to my Photoshop color setting and change anything, I leave it at Adobe RGB (1998). I go to SFW and check the "Convert to sRGB" option and make sure the "ICC Profile" is checked, then hit save. Forget what you see in the "Optimized" window. Open the jpeg image and put it side by side to the original image. They should look the same or very very close. If they don't, you probably need to find a better device to calibrate your monitor. Now remember when this thread started, my Jpeg's were way saturated. After I calibrated my monitor to 2.2/6500 with the Spyder2 pro it fixed the problem.
    November 5, 2007
    Ok this is getting nowhere fast. I have just done a review of all of the 132 posts here and tried all of the various suggestions to no avail. Does anyone here who has (or had) this problem feel that you've fixed it? Can you recap your solution?

    Again, I REALLY appreciate the help that is offered here...it seems that some people have given up trying to help me, but if there's anyone left to still try, well then that's good news to me.
    Participating Frequently
    November 5, 2007
    "If Photoshop CS3 converts to sRGB and strips the profile, why does a non-profile aware browser, which assumes sRGB, display it differently than a profile aware browser, but when you include the profile, both browsers get it right? "

    A non color managed application can only assume the files to be in Monitor RGB not sRGB. The difference you are experiencing is the difference between your monitor and sRGB. If your screen was exactly the same spec as the sRGB spec, then you would see no difference.

    "Is the image in question in fact an sRGB image or not? "

    Yes
    Participating Frequently
    November 5, 2007
    >> why does a non-profile aware browser, which assumes sRGB

    What OS/browser are you talking about?
    Mac browsers/apps assume MonitorRGB, in my experience.
    >> Photoshop CS3 converts to sRGB and strips the profile

    I think you are talking about CS3 Save For Web (default settings converting to sRGB and stripping ICC profiles)?
    >> why does a non-profile aware browser, which assumes sRGB, display it (sRGB?) differently than a profile aware browser

    Again, I am unclear on exactly what you are asking.

    If you mean to say, why does an unaware browser display untagged sRGB differently than an aware program displays tagged sRGB -- the answer is in your own question -- because the unaware program is not assuming sRGB (or they would look the same).

    If the unaware browser was assuming/applying sRGB profile to untagged sRGB, then untagged sRGB would look the same in unaware (and aware) browsers as tagged sRGB looks in Photoshop and aware browsers.

    This is very easy to see in Photoshop and Safari using the links and information you've been given in both your threads.
    Participating Frequently
    November 5, 2007
    Here's a simple concept/question I'd like a straight answer to... If Photoshop CS3 converts to sRGB and strips the profile, why does a non-profile aware browser, which assumes sRGB, display it differently than a profile aware browser, but when you include the profile, both browsers get it right? Is the image in question in fact an sRGB image or not?