If I’m using a display like the 2490wuxi (sRGB) does it make sense to import raw photos to proPhoto or aRGB? Or how do I know I’m looking at accurate colors of an sRGB image when using a wide gamut display?

Thanks!
Harv

Also keep in mind that printer manufacturers are continually developing high-end printers that expand the gamut of colors they can print. Here’s an example from Epson — the UltraChrome HDR ink used on their new 7900 and 9900 printers. The colors that can be printed with this ink are amazing — especially in the saturated greens and blues. I guarantee you that not too many years from now this technology will become standard on desktop units. So I want to keep my options open for the future by using the widest color space I can today.

What is the use of importing into ProPhoto if your camera only can do AdobeRGB? While this will allow for a potentially larger number of colors, it will not make any difference to the number of colors actually captured, so where is the advantage?

Or does the camera captures more than the AdobeRGB colorspace and just uses that when creating JPG in-camera, basically meaning that colorspace has no meaning when talking about RAW? I’m confused, because the RAW-files from my Canon DSLR has the AdobeRGB colorspace registered and seems to be using it during conversion.

Otherwise, thanks for a good read – your blog has been bookmarked.

I would also challenge the assertion that argb makes much of a noticeable difference in real world prints (unless you are doing some sort of blown saturation deal [sunsets, certain landscapes]…). Prophoto is mostly useless in photography as it mainly adds unrealistic “florescent” like colors that will not show up in your pictures unless you are digitally painting them. In return for this you are getting a greatly increased chance of posterization in 8 bit mode.

90% of photos will not show Argb producing noticeably better prints than srgb when proper softproofing is done on both. (cmyk on the other hand does takes a serious dump on color if you are not careful…) That not to say it does not have it’s place, only that it is not the huge hindrance to good photos that seems to be implied by the articles title.

Wide gamut monitors are NOT for everyone and can make your life miserable if you do not know how to use them. If you DO now how to use one.. the NEC 2690 WUXI Spectraview is by far the best out there under 2k [it runs 1200ish] (26in S-IPS AT-W). The Srgb version is the 2490.

Also… For the new photographer…. if you plan to post your photos on the web, SRGB is the only format you should use for web display…otherwise your photos will look very poor and desaturated to most people’s monitors.

Once again I think you did a nice job explaining the basics and you obviously know what your talking about, I just felt the need to take issue with the idea that more must ALWAYS be better and if a person doesn’t have it they can’t take good photos. It is kind of like the megapixel race…. the average consumer thinks 15 MP must be better than 10 MP, when what the don’t realize is that the 10 MP actually has better IQ and Noise due to larger pixels. Srgb (web, most prints)/argb(some commercial work, sunsets ect)/prophoto(digital painting) all have their place.

Thanks for reading my rant!

As for converting from a wide working space, like ProPhoto, down to a small output space like CMYK for press or sRGB for screen, if you are getting posterization, then you need to revisit your workflow. Posterization is not a function of color space. It’s a function of file management. JP Caponigro has a wide range of free info on the subject. I suggest that you take a look at his site for a wealth of info on color management and workflow. Also check out JP’s DVDs and Mac Holbert’s DVD at Acme Educational.

Finally, I can think of no reason to set my cameras to sRGB rather than Adobe RGB — even if I “always” shoot in RAW. I’ll admit, I’ve inadvertently shot in JPEG, when I thought I was shooting in RAW. The most recent time happened after I set my camera to Small JPEG so that I could shoot a 24-hour time lapse at 10-second intervals and get all the frames (8,640 total) on one CF. Afterward, I missed the RAW setting and selected the adjacent one – which is Large JPEG. Fortunately, because I’d set my camera to Adobe RGB rather than sRGB, I was still maximizing the color in my files. For point-and-shoot photographers, sRGB is fine. For DSLR shooters, the better practice is to choose the wider color space. Right now, that’s Adobe RGB. Ciao!