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Re: Lightroom and QTR for Windows -- advice for an export for QTR strategy
2016-02-15 by brian_downunda@...
When you say that RGB_Matte_Paper does a better job than a custom profile, better in what sense? A generic profile shouldn't provide a better result than a custom, and the fact that it is, is an indicator of something. Perhaps that the generic profile is having less impact on the shadows than the custom, which may not be true for all papers.
Regarding soft-proofing, my experience is that it works fairly well (preserve numbers setting in PS) and you don't need to go to the extremes that Jon Cone suggests. IMHO Jon doesn't adapt his experience very well to the typical user who isn't running a printing studio. A good screen, well calibrated for print, certainly helps as does a measurement device. And a copy of PS. But I draw the line there.
I have a lot of respect for Kenneth Cooper as a tester of printers, and I agree with him (and Jon Cone) that the final print is the ultimate test. He doesn't actually say that he doesn't see the point, or that it doesn't work, only that he opts not to use it because it distracts him from the print. That's a statement of preference and an indication of the extent of his printing experience. For the rest of us, a reliable soft-proof is a substitute for that experience. Soft-proofing from PS works quite well without a lot of complexity. As you've observed, working solely from LR is another matter.