By Jon Canfield 

I’m always surprised when a pro photographer gives me a blank look when I ask about their color management practices. This usually comes up when they’ve sent an image or group of images to me to print for an exhibition or limited edition and the colors are obviously off in tone.

The conversation often goes something like this:

Me: “The color balance on these images is off. When was the last time you calibrated your display?”

Client: “What’s that?”

Me: “Have you ever run a utility to make your monitor more accurate?”

Client: “No, I just adjust the monitor until it matches the print”

And there is the problem – they’ve done a calibration of sorts, but it’s exactly the wrong kind. The only time colors will ever match is on their printer and monitor combination. When viewing other images, or when sending images out, it’s a crap shoot on what things will look like.

Color management used to be considered black magic by many of us. The software methods were unreliable and the hardware was expensive and hard to use. That’s all changed, and for the better (except for the software method which is still unreliable).

With hardware devices starting at $60 or so, there is no reason your monitor shouldn’t be displaying accurate color. Yes, you can spend more for an advanced calibration that provides more control over the process. But unless you plan to create printer profiles, you’ll only be investing less than $250.

If you’re a working pro, that investment is quickly repaid in reduced editing and correcting time at the computer. If you’re an amateur, you’re still going to reap the benefits of color correctness, and save time and money when you print.

As a sign of just how mainstream color management is becoming, the HP Designjet Z2100 and Z3100 printers now include built-in color calibration and profiling hardware to ensure accurate color reproduction. The time and cost savings of this feature is tremendous, and the improved accuracy of prints is obvious. For even more control, and adding the ability to calibrate your monitor, the HP Advanced Profiling Solution also includes hardware to calibrate your display.

Regardless of your skill level, if you enjoy printing, editing or even just viewing images, a calibrated display should be considered mandatory. Why not try it and see?