Datacolor User to User Support Group.

On Jan 9, 2010, at 5:08 AM, marko.mili wrote:

> I'm using the old 1005 spectro with v4.1.1 software under Snow  
> Leopard and I am unable to produce a useful profile for Canon iP4500  
> with Kirkland paper and HobbyColor ink.
>
> I print targets with Color Matching > Canon Color Matching and Color  
> Options > Standard in the print dialog. Targets come out looking  
> very similar to what's on screen, and the sample I print within  
> Spyder3Print comes out gorgeous. Problem is, if I use this icc  
> profile to print from anyplace else, it comes out all nasty, dark,  
> greenish. In Preview I select Color Matching > ColorSync + created  
> icc profile, Color Options > grayed out. In Lightroom and PS CS4 it  
> works similarly. All produce nasty results.
>
> With my Epson R280 I have no such problems. I print target with  
> Color Matching > EPSON Color Controls, Color Management > Off.  
> Photos printed from Preview with Color Matching > ColorSync +  
> created icc profile look the same as when the sample is printed from  
> Spyder3Print.
>
> Any suggestions on how to print targets on Canon so I can produce  
> useful ICC profiles?
>
>


Yes: The problem is: you're not printing the targets correctly.
There's a problem with all Canon drivers and Snow Leopard: (as
well as most Canon drivers under Leopard, unless you're lucky
enough to (a) be using the right driver, and (b) to have installed
it a certain way):

The control for turning color management OFF doesn't show up in the
Canon-specific part of the driver. If you can't see that control (a
popup menu selection, which simply "vanishes" and doesn't appear under
Leopard or Snow Leopard), then you can't turn off color management
the normal way.

This isn't a problem with Epson or HP drivers. Both families
of their printer drivers have "OFF" controls which appear normally
and work correctly under Leopard and Snow Leopard, as well as Tiger.
That's why you're not having a problem with your R280. With Epsons,
as long as you choose BOTH "Epson Color Controls" and the "Off"
setting for color management, you'll get a properly printed (non
color managed) target.

The other clue to your problem is your description of the target
prints for the Canon as "gorgeous". They're not supposed to be (they
look "gorgeous" because they're color managed, which is wrong). Target
prints should be darker than that if they're printed correctly.

So here's the fix for you (and everyone else on this list who has
Canons should pay CLOSE attention: this is the only way to build
profiles for them under Leopard or Snow Leopard, and it applies to
all custom profiling systems):

- Make sure you're running OSX 10.6.2 or whatever the latest SL is.
There have also been some Canon driver updates that will show up
in System Preferences:Software Update, so make sure you've got
nothing left to apply as an update. Another way to make sure you
have the latest Canon driver installed: go to Print & Fax, select
your current Canon driver, and click on Options and Supplies... to
see what version it is. (It should be 10.26.0.0 or later, and here's
the Apple list of latest drivers for all printers):

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3669

If you don't have the most recent driver, then click "-" to remove
the older Canon driver from the list. Then, with the printer
attached and powered on, click "+", and add back the driver for it
(this should download and install the latest version for you).

- Now: when you PRINT and want to turn off color management in
Spyder3Print, THIS is the way to do it:

- In the Color Matching pane of the driver, select ColorSync (not
Vendor Matching, or Canon Color Matching!)

- In the popup beneath that, you'll see "Automatic"; a list of all
the Canon standard profiles; and a command to choose from other
profiles. Use that last command to see a list of all profiles on
your system.

- Select "Generic RGB" from the list. (this is the key). Then say
OK and you'll see that "Generic RGB" shows beneath the ColorSync
radio button in the Color Matching pane. This is the secret to
disabling color management with the Canon drivers in Snow Leopard
(and it also works in Leopard, as well, although in that case, a
warning gets displayed underneath "Generic RGB", which can be ignored)

- Select the paper type, output quality, resolution, etc. as usual
and print the target sheet. (Just leave the Color Options pane alone)

- NOW you should get a properly dark (non-color-managed) target print.
Measure this and build a profile.

- Printing with "No Color Management" from Photoshop actually works
the same way. It invisibly pushes through "Generic RGB" or an equivalent
when you choose "No Color Management" in its Print dialog, This is why,
in the Color Matching pane of the driver, ColorSync subsequently comes
up auto-selected and also disabled; Photoshop has done the same thing
I just described "under the hood" and as a result, that choice in the
driver gets "locked".

- When printing through the profile in Photoshop: do it the usual way.
(Photoshop Manages Colors, choose the profile, Saturation intent, etc
etc etc). It should work fine.

- When doing a test print from inside Spyder3Print: since Spyder3Print
applies the profile internally to the image data before it's sent to
the driver, you should set the driver up exactly the same as when you
printed the target image (as I've described above), so this would be
ColorSync:Generic RGB in the Color Matching pane.


David Miller
Senior Software Developer, Digital Color Solutions
Datacolor