Re: Calibration: Is good looking gray scale enough?

[CDTobie@aol.com]

In a message dated 10/25/00 9:23:21 PM, vpera@hotmail.com writes:

>Is using a grey scale test image (thus 21 step gray scale created in
>PhotoShop) a good starting point for visual do-it-yourself calibration
>without any real calibration/profiling package? This is for 1270 to
>be (slightly) on topic.
>
>To me it seems that the printer need more desperately calibration or
>profiling than my monitor to get decent colors. But many people
>are saying the monitor should be profiled first. I don't know what
>to believe.

The monitor is a *much* more linear device, and if you have nailed the gray 
ramp, both in terms of neutrality, and the distance between each of 21 steps, 
I would claim you have pretty well taken care of it, assuming your black and 
white points are acceptable.

Of course the only way I know to do control all this is to balance the guns 
to get the gary ramp in line in general, then use video card curves for each 
of the three guns to adjust for any localized differences, and to form the 
exact curves that define the size of those steps; which should sound 
familliar, as it is exactly what OptiCal does.

Printers are indeed less linear , and simply balancing the  grays they 
produce will guarantee nothing except nice black and white prints; in order 
to get the colors in place you need to do much more. 

So go for the whole package, its a pretty good deal to be able to hardware 
calibrate your monitor, and profile your printer for a few hundred dollars...

C. David Tobie
Design Cooperative
CDTobie@designcoop.com
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