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X-Rite ColorChecker Passport

1. 5 In your photo editing software edit the image of ColorChecker Classic and Creative Enhancement targets using the physical targets as visual guides l See The ColorChecker Classic Correcting Image Color with Spectrum a Patches and Enhancing Images with the ColorChecker Creative Enhancement Target sections to learn more Corporate Headquarters USA 4300 44th Street SE Grand Rapids Michigan 49512 Phone 1 800 248 9748 or 1 616 803 2100 Fax 1 800 292 4437 or 1 616 803 2705 Corporate Headquarters Europe Althardstrasse 70 8105 Regensdorf Switzerland Phone 41 44 842 24 00 Fax 41 44 842 22 22 Corporate Headquarters Asia om 808 810 nhill Metro Tower 1 Kornhill Road Quarry Bay Hong Kong Phone 852 2 568 6283 Fax 852 2 885 8610 www xritephoto com coLoR checker PASSPORT re x rite
2. Bj Gees gt Di OD Dw _MC_1468 C82 MC 1469 CR2 p S ERPS t E JMG_1465 CR2 Canon 05 DIGITAL REBEL XTi taken 20090705 14 04 14 1 3208 F 9 15 55mm 53mm PERFECTLY CLEAR tire Sad Caposure Vibram e Saturation Corwrast wv ngage hecceery o Lot A sareng 100 lo fase Nose Nea 0 oa i ford ted 0 150 100 2 Select the button with the icon of a down arrow in the upper right corner of the window and select Save from the menu _ amp bibblepro file Edit View Browser Tools Window Help a Ribble s l mih calaia AT MaS JACEE gt Bl P3 All images A An sincs imac 1 Pictures Lake 2009 MG 1417 CR2 1 23 1 selected 20 1 selected aS i Rate Qu uC 1456 0n uC 1464 C8 MO 1465 08 Print Que File Grow Th CAPTURE aI M t rams HD J unnvec j El auon E amaci D Dernoo b al Docurent Di Dowroads gt i Ubrary i Mowies ae Mure A LLET vai Lake p k Proto L gt ai Pubs b al tes rad bP Ob wc 146A CRO wE Remove Tool Copy To Clipboard load Reset Rotation New Tool Tab gt Tone Curve Remove Tool Tab A ra we Rename Toot T Mi Autotee PURPECTLY CLEAR owe Oye laporure Vi Deance Saturation Contrast MA gt Memen a Uug WA srarpewng fata Norse Ninja al al a 3 Type a name for your saved Basic Adjustment panel settings file This will s
3. X Rite has other applications that can be used to make custom ICC profiles Visit htto www xritephoto com for more information DNG profiles are not intended to be used exclusively ina DNG workflow They Me es can be used for any camera manufacturer s Raw files and besides DNG can be used to create TIFF PG or any supported file format Adobe Photoshop Photoshop is a robust photo editing program that is designed to meet the diverse needs of professionals in a wide range of fields including professional photographers serious amateurs graphic designers and web designers In addition to the tools offered with the applications listed above Photoshop can also be used for creative pixel editing and precise photo retouching Like Lightroom Photoshop uses powerful DNG profiles ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application The ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application integrates with Adobe Raw processing applications and can be used to build DNG and dual illuminant DNG profiles It s based on an advanced profiling technology that provides excellent results with just the small 24 patch ColorChecker Classic target This application is especially useful for unusual artificial light sources and can create DNG profiles for adaptive dual illuminants The software even tries to detect the ColorChecker in your image so cropping may not be necessary If you like Adobe software you can now make DNG profiles for Photoshop Camera Raw Photo
4. In Camera Raw open an image and click on the Camera icon to see the Camera Calibration tab Camera Raw S 0 Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi Oy ree th 4 fle 7 8 Save image Adobe RGB 1998 8 bit 160 by 1120 1 SMP 240 ppi Opemimage Cancel Done 11 From the pull down select the new profile See the Productivity and Automation section for ways to use this profile on larger groups of images in Adobe applications Auto Detect Function lf the auto detect function in your Desktop Application is having trouble finding the ColorChecker target check out these helpful tips rr es i _y Y y wn If the software doesn t auto detect the target match up the dots with the corner brackets on the ColorChecker Classic This image is dramatically under exposed so the Passport Desktop application can t find the When holding the ColorChecker target for a ColorChecker target in the image shot be sure your finger does not cover any of the patches Obscuring even a small portion of any of the patches can prevent the ColorChecker Passport software from auto detecting the target This image is too curved With a fisheye keep the ColorChecker target in the middle of the frame and backup a bit so that the lines don t bend so much For best results aim to have about 10 of the image covered by the target Fisheyes are tricky because the auto detection in the ColorChecker Desktop Applicat
5. ColorChecker Creative Enhancement Target Exposure Verification and Correction The ColorChecker Passport provides a convenient robust solution to color correction in the field Without a visual reference it can be a challenge to judge control and edit images for the best shadow details and to ensure highlights are not clipped It s also hard to tell what your selective edits will do globally in other color regions The Creative Enhancement target provides a visual 1 3 stop gray ramp to control shadow details and highlight clipping The Creative Enhancement target contains a collection of 8 patches that are designed to warn photographers of an exposure problem The patches are separated into two groups light and dark The light patches are ordered with 1 3 of an F stop difference between them The dark patches are ordered the same with the exception of the last patch which represents the blackest patch in the ColorChecker target The exposure difference between the darkest and next darkest patch is roughly 1 10 of a stop The dynamic range of the target is roughly 32 1 or 5 stops So what does this all mean First and foremost every patch should be visibly different in the final reproduction or there is something wrong with the workflow The most typical problem is over exposure In this case the two whitest patches may not be different In other cases the shadow detail will not be resolved This is a very typical issue in an SRGB workflow
6. Noise Reduction Al Luminance vi Color M Chromatic Aberration Check All Check None Cancel Create Default Presets Lightroom allows you to save your Camera Raw settings as a default Since even the same model camera may capture color a little differently it will be useful to save unique settings for each of your cameras To ensure these settings are only used for a specific camera s serial number and ISO setting set that option in your Preferences 1 Under the Lightroom menu on the Mac or Edit menu in Windows open Preferences File Edit Develop Photo Settings View Window Help About Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 identity Plate Setup Lightroom 2 Catalog Ircat Adobe Photoshop room Develop Xx Develop XH mee o d an a gt a i c5 y Pu AEE yea a EAN N OED Ss 4 foe TE ah Fat ball i Ne ae dll Ya p a os E 2 v o ow TFS 22 2a ae 2 Inthe Presets tab select the option to make specific defaults for individual cameras by serial number or for specific ISO settings Keep in mind this feature may not be supported by every camera manufacturer an Preferences General Presets Import External Editing File Handling irmerface Detault Develop Settings Apply auto tone adjustments i Apply auto grayscale mix when converting to grayscale Vi Make defaults specif rial number WA Make def
7. below the Export Selected Photos message When the menu appears select X Rite Presets from the list 5 Enter a name for the profile that describes the lighting conditions of the shot and click the Export button It s not necessary to include the camera model in the name because the resulting profile will only be available when you are editing images from that camera 6 You can continue to work while Lightroom finishes the profile Watch the progress bar in the upper left corner The new profile will be created automatically and placed in the location where Adobe stores DNG profiles for Camera Raw and Lightroom e Mac Users lt user name gt Library Application Support Adobe Camera Raw Camera P rofiles e PC You must set up your folder options to View Hidden Folders to be able to navigate to these paths e Vista root drive typically C Users username AppData R oaming Adobe C ameraR aw CameraP rofiles e XP root drive typically C Documents and Settings username Application Data R oaming Adobe C ameraR aw C ameraP rofiles ast Only manually delete profiles if you are sure they aren t being used for existing images and won t be needed in the future 7 You may be asked to re launch Lightroom before you can select the new DNG profile 8 With an image selected go to the Develop module 9 In the right panel scroll down to Camera Calibration and select the Profile pull down Choose the new DNG profile from this l
8. build a collection of images You can also quickly import process and manage images from one shot to an entire shoot Plus when paired with ColorChecker Passport you can be confident you re making corrections based on accurate color information This guide focuses on the most popular R aw processing applications Since these applications share many of the same tools and steps this document often cites the process in one program but you can easily adapt it to work in whichever program you use The main differentiator between these programs is that Bibble and Capture One support the use of ICC profiles while Lightroom works with Adobe DNG profiles Custom profiles can be especially useful in getting to accurate color fast Both ICC and DNG profiles can represent your camera lens and lighting conditions but there are differences in how they are made and used DNG profiles are currently unique to Adobe applications They perform virtually the same tasks as ICC profiles but are proprietary to Adobe products The ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application allows independent creation of DNG profiles ColorChecker Passport also includes a Lightroom plug in that can seamlessly build DNG profiles in the background while you continue to edit images It is as simple as exporting a file The profile is generated quickly and automatically stored so that it is accessible from any ACR enabled application such as Elements Photoshop or even Adobe Bridge
9. but it can be fooled For example a camera may not be very accurate at selecting a white balance under low lighting and may even add a color cast The ColorChecker White Balance target provides a starting point for all edits reducing the time and effort required to get accurate color Plus camera previews and software histograms can be judged more precisely Without a standard reference like the ColorChecker Passport you ll spend a lot more time color correcting each image manually White Balance in a RAW Workflow Setting a consistent white point in a set of images also reduces editing time in a RAW workflow because there s no need to individually adapt white points for each image But the real power of RAW format is the selection of in camera custom white balance or in software white balance and the flexibility to alter images without destroying Original image data While some users wait to adjust the white balance sliders or click on various near neutral objects to get the balance they like in the software the results are not consistent This becomes even worse when shooting an event like a wedding where the lighting changes from one location to the next yet the entire event should have a consistent feel ColorChecker Passport makes color consistency a breeze Simply use the target to set the white balance in your software then apply the same white balance to all of the images that were shot under those same lighting conditions K
10. houses and protects three indispensible targets e ColorChecker White Balance Target A spectrally neutral white balance gray card target for in camera white balancing for RAW and J PEG photography e ColorChecker Classic The recognized industry standard 24 patch target for fine tuning critical color and building custom DNG profiles e ColorChecker Creative Enhancement Target A Creative Enhancement target for white balance adjustment and exposure verification Positioning the Targets The ColorChecker Passport is positionable and self standing so you can place the targets exactly where you gt Yxrite coppechec The ColorChecker White Balance Target The only way to get a consistent neutral gray is to shoot a proper gray reference Why gray You cannot white balance if any of the RGB values are at the maximum limit with no tone value It is much easier to expose a light gray card so that the values are all very light but not so light that they don t have any tone A gray patch on the ColorChecker target will actually provide a more balanced neutral for JPEG and RAW photography The ColorChecker White Balance target is produced to be a spectrally flat target meaning it provides a neutral point of reference across the different types of lighting conditions you encounter during a photo shoot Since it reflects back the light equally across the visible spectrum a camera in white balance mode can properly compensate for the lighting
11. open TIFFs with settings Automating Color Control in Capture One Using the Adjustment Clipboard The Adjustment Clipboard is used to hold a selection of image adjustments including color corrections white balance exposure settings and other adjustments These adjustments can be copied from one image and them applied to other images 1 If you do not have the Basic Adjustments window open go to the Tools menu and select Basic Adjustments 2 Click the Copy button This will copy all adjustments that you have edited in this image 3 Uncheck any adjustments that you would not like to apply to other images As you edit other images you can open the Adjustments tab and click on the Apply button to apply these adjustments to those images Automating Color Control in Bibble Saving Basic Adjustments 1 Under the Tools menu select Basic Adjustments amp bibbiepro File Edit View Browser BETTE Window Help AnA 2 eS hd ta wie Nis Se Advanced gt Basic Plugins b Zoom Window al x 4 annA Users acs imac L Retures Lake 3 23 1 selected Work Qu Hide All Toots i Ae fa ace fos a P r Tach Ou Ap Reveal Hidden Tools MC 1456 CR Close All Tools _MC_1465 CR Print Que File row J Macintosh HO J Unoved D akron E xct_vraci gt EB Desktop gt D Documents i Dowrioads gt Mi Uorary gt at Mowe p dd Musa via Pctures via Lake taie gt ul Photo Lti gt al Pub
12. that all require the same color correction Generally they ll make edits based on a few key photos then apply them to the rest of the images This process can pose a problem if the edited images don t contain every color found in the others For example one image may have a wide range of colors but no yellows Another may have no reds Which image should you edit first How will you know what effect your edits have on the missing color A good solution is to capture an image of the ColorChecker Passport during the shoot under the same lighting When you open the shot of the target in your image editing software and make edits you ll see how they will affect the rest of the colors BEFORE you apply them to your images Spectrum Patches Using the ColorChecker Passport s spectrum patches during color correction of an initial image ensures you aren t losing perspective on colors that might show up in subsequent images and increase the success rate during automation In this example there are no elements that are cyan purple or red See the Automating Color Control in Raw section for way to apply color edits to multiple images in Adobe applications HSL Sliders One way to describe colors is by Hue Saturation and Lightness or Brightness Most photo editing applications offer HSL sliders to help you make specific color edits to these three characteristics e Hue is the main attribute of color that distinguishes it from other
13. when the camera or color management system sets the black point to zero rather than physical black point in the scene Identifying Clipping Clipping can be your enemy In a wedding portrait it is important to capture the fine details of the dress If the highlights are too bright you will lose that detail and the bride will surely notice On the other hand if you are shooting a dark product such as a leather couch it can be difficult to hold the fine shadow details that show the Surface texture This is where the power of Raw stands out Although it may appear from a preview that shadow or highlight details have been lost it is possible that the processing software just clipped them and they are still available in the Raw file With some careful adjustments you may be able to bring them back However once the details get clipped in a JPG or TIFF file they are gone forever Not all clipping is bad For instance you may want to throw something in silhouette for creative reasons That would require clipping Similarly when shooting very shiny objects like chrome or jewelry you probably want to clip the specular highlights for a pure bright shiny white appearance This image offers an example where shadow clipping Is perfectly acceptable e 4 If you set your white balance with the neutral gray target you can use the ColorChecker Passport patches to do a quick check to confirm proper color and the cli
14. you open them in your Raw processing software atest See the How to Set In Camera White Balance section for the steps Capture the ColorChecker Passport including the ColorChecker Classic and Creative Enhancement targets in one image When shooting Raw you can do this anytime during the shoot ye See the Tips for Capturing the ColorChecker Classic Target and Positioning Options for specific information Capture your images under the same lighting conditions that you shot the targets Each time you change light conditions shoot the targets again If you choose use the ColorChecker Classic to build a custom DNG profile that encompasses your camera lighting lens combination insite See the Creating Profiles section for instructions In the Raw processing software select a DNG profile a See the Creating Profiles section for more information about DNG profiles Select a white point To use the custom in camera white balance from when the image was shot select As Shot 7 Use the white balance selection tool in your Raw processing software to select the gray balance in the Creative Enhancement target This can be a neutral patch or one that provides the warmer or cooler look you want Ak See the How to Set White Balance in your software and Warming and Cooling with White Balance sections for more information 8 Inthe photo editing software edit the image of ColorChecker Pas
15. 4 color patches represents the colors of natural objects such as sky blue flesh tones and leaf green and each patch reflects light just like its real world counterpart Each square Is individually colored using a Solid tone to produce pure flat rich color without dots or mixed tints The colors are produced by the Munsell Color Services lab which has over 75 years of experience in the creation of physical color targets and standards They have produced color standards for use in a range of industries from sciences to commercial quality control tools Each color is very closely monitored and controlled during the manufacturing process so you can be confident your color references are exact Here s a closer look at the chart Each of these patches can be used to get a quick visual check on color in your images Description of the ColorChecker Classic Patches S lt T A ar a CY A 3 These patches represent skin tones These patches represent blue sky and foliage green These patches represent a variety of common natural tones and secondary colors This row represents RGB and CMY These are the steps of neutral gray How to Use the ColorChecker Classic Target Photographing a ColorChecker Classic is the first step in attaining consistent predictable color Photograph it in the same lighting as your images then open it in your photo processing software for a built in point of color reference to help with col
16. QOnaPC itis located in c Program Files X R ite C olorC hecker Passport 6 Select the DNG tab and drag and drop the DNG file into the window 7 Click the Create Profile button The software will automatically search for the patches and build the profile If the software cannot find the patches you will be asked to manually identify the corners of the patches ColorChecker Passport COLOR checker Instructions x _MG_1417 dng Canon EOS 400D 8 Give the profile a meaningful name that describes the lighting conditions and click Save By default it will be saved to a directory that Photoshop Photoshop Elements and Lightroom use to store DNG profiles Save As Canon XTi Daylight dcp e Mac Users lt user name gt Library Application Support Adobe Camera Raw Camera Profiles e PC You must setup your folder options to View Cancel save Hidden Folders to be able to navigate to these paths Where CameraProfiles e Vista root drive typically C Users username AppData R oaming Adobe CameraR aw CameraP rofiles e XP root drive typically C Documents and Settings username Application Data R oaming Adobe CameraR aw CameraP rofiles Only manually delete profiles if you are sure they aren t being used for existing images and won t be needed in the future 4 x rite 9 Restart your Adobe applications to use the new DNG profile It will be available in the Camera Calibration panel in Lightroom and Camera Raw 10
17. The result is a more accurate truer representation of image color Howto Use the ColorChecker White Balance Target Some photographers try to do a white balance on whatever white object they happen to be carrying printed directions to the shoot or see in the distance the side of the house next door While these objects may appear to be gray it s unlikely that any of them are actually spectrally neutral neutral under all lighting conditions and they re certainly not consistent Not only will this add a color cast to every image but each new custom white balance will be a little different Although a piece of paper may seem to be a safe choice it may not be neutral Plus most have optical brighteners which will only amplify your problems atest See the Setting White Balance section for more information Tips for Capturing the ColorChecker White Balance Target a Shoot the ColorChecker White Balance target in the same lighting conditions you ll be photographing Make sure the lighting is even and properly exposed Strong shadows or reflections will alter the results Accurate exposure is very important and will affect the final results The ColorChecker Classic Target ColorChecker Passport includes the legendary 24 patch X Rite ColorChecker Classic This target has been used by photographers videographers and for scientific evaluation of color rendition since 1976 In fact it has become an industry standard Each of the 2
18. User Manual snes J m 88 EEEH A PASSPORT Congratulations on the purchase of your ColorChecker Passport You ve entered a powerful new world of effortless color control and creative finesse for your RAW workflow You ll be able to quickly and easily capture accurate color instantly enhance portraits and landscapes and maintain color control from capture to edit You ll get expert color results in a fraction of the time ColorChecker Passport combines 3 photographic targets into one pocket size protective case that self stands to adjust to any scene Together with the software you get the ultimate in functionality flexibility and portability You ll gain the biggest benefit when you shoot RAW but even J PEG shooters will find many useful benefits So whether you take advantage of just one feature or incorporate them all we re confident you will find your ColorChecker Passport one of your most valuable tools This guide provides an overview of the many ways ColorChecker Passport can be used We ve included specific steps to show you how to take the best advantage of this powerful color tool for your specific workflow Using the table of contents and sample workflows located in the back of the book select the sections that are most relevant to you ColorChecker Passport is So convenient and portable Make sure you take it with you to every shoot OOPS Fe pO aa cate rian ite te eee 3 Neate S aaa cctete ca lacey ea
19. alance Custom white balance is especially powerful in a Raw workflow because you can shoot the target anytime you re working under the same lighting Setting the in camera white balance is not required but it will help improve the previews on the camera s built in display speed up post production color editing and provide more accurate software histograms Plus having a consistent white point for a set of images will reduce editing time later because there is no need to individually adapt white points for each image Setting in camera white balance varies slightly from camera to camera For detailed instructions and to fully understand how much of the image area Is covered by the target read your camera manual Position the target yy See the Use and Care of ColorChecker Passport section for tips to position the target Since your camera can t focus on the white target change the settings to Manual Focus and Automatic Exposure When white balance is completed be sure to set the camera back to auto a mes focus Aim the camera at the ColorChecker White Balance target in the Passport Try to fill the center of the viewfinder with the target and snap the picture Set the camera to Custom White Balance mode To use this custom white balance later select it from your camera s white balance custom list Instead of disabling auto focus another option for shooting the ColorChecker White Balance target is to fo
20. alance im pt ancy octen aparece aoe eee ach an hei EEEREN EEEa 24 Howto See White Balance i NS a arta ag ages a T E T mp awe doy ps een 24 How toset White Balance dn Bip DG scosejenceesenaneseenonscnnescaedee cave ncansanieundencosdevenusuetacnestastesecuactaatedsudenanemeeenes 25 Correcting Image Color with Spectrum Patches ccceececeeeeeseeeeeneeeeeeeeeneeeeseseaes 26 FS SITS coe cheese tes werent amie se EAE T AA IEEE I oon na T E wat sacaule ales E A E ET 27 AY TSU aC i PSO E E E N ERE A E E pe eee aes depen enna enon Seeman eee 27 Enhancing Images with the ColorChecker Creative Enhancement Target 28 Expose Vorihcalionand Corredo s peirier eee ori nee enn eee ta Sree eee Tee err ere rere ey terre eee reer ee reer ee ee reer 28 Kenti ing Clipp a ts Fes os dee E E iad a nies Guenter aha nso e ate E E E 28 HMichligbt Clipp ng Cone ON OU serren airen ernro EN EE ERRE P e E E E DE TEE E O REE 30 Badon CUPP ATE wu cle Ces ean a E eee E E E ee E T E eee 30 Warminrand Cooling witk White Balinees sssri e eini ES EREE T EEEE EE E EE E EEE 30 White Balanced ona Tib Tarata PON ES eara E EEEE N E E O EE R R 31 Vire baidnelanacaps mub Cooling L ES er aE E e R E R E E A E S 32 ocine OG ee ces iad EE E EE 33 rea crag DNG Proliles Tix Lag MEON o he qoeassasancatnaeye tq tan REEE auaden am ERA ETE E EE E EEE 33 Creating DNG Profiles in Photoshop and Photoshop Elements ssnsnssnssnssnsursrsrnsrsrrsrrrrrsrrsrsrerrrsrrrrrreerernriserni 36 Cr
21. assport you can easily edit the white balance to achieve a custom warmer or cooler look What is White Balance Light comes in many different qualities and colors Daylight can appear bluish or yellowish Artificial indoor lighting can range from a warm yellowish tungsten light to the greenish hue you see in offices and shops Since the human eye does a great job of compensating for all of these different color light sources our perception adjusts without us really noticing However since cameras see light literally these subtle shifts can pose a problem The only difference between these images is the applied white balance When using film photographers have to select a specific film type or change filters on their lenses to make sure their whites were actually white and their grays remained gray In some cases a photographer might even use a filter to artificially add warmth to an image This process is what we now call white balancing Digital cameras make white balancing easier but they aren t perfect Most include a range of preset white balance settings such as tungsten fluorescent daylight flash cloudy and shade These settings are based on averages so they don t necessarily represent the actual lighting you are shooting under and they can t easily or accurately account for mixed or blended lighting Out of the box your digital camera s Auto White Balance is pretty good at correcting for ambient light color
22. ate color how can you expect realistic reproduction The challenge lies in the fact that different cameras see color differently and the way they capture it varies from brand to brand Different lenses have different color characteristics which creates a bigger problem when you start mixing camera and lens brands But the truth is even two camera models from the same manufacturer can capture colors differently Custom profiles will reduce the differences so they behave more alike Adobe calls these profiles DNG profiles or Camera Profiles and they are selected in the Camera Calibration sections of their Camera RAW and Lightroom software Creating a custom white balance with the ColorChecker White Balance target will ensure you re starting with accurate color Shooting a physical reference will make color corrections quicker plus allow you to assign them to a large batch of images for greater productivity Before you know it you re working in a color managed workflow Anyone who shoots color critical work including studio product photography fine art reproduction and high quality portrait photos can benefit from color management Photographers who shoot large numbers of images on various cameras weddings youth sport teams yearbooks and organization photo directories will especially reap the benefits of consistent color across different cameras Cameras that capture JPEG can benefit from improved in camera white balance with ColorChec
23. aults specific to camera ISO setting Reset all default Develop settings Store presets with catalog Show Lightroom Presets Folder Ley Restore Export Presets f Restore Keyword Set Presets Restore Filename Templates Restore Text Templates Restore Local Adjustment Presets Restore Color Label Presets Restore Library Filter Presets Automating Color Control in Adobe Camera Raw In Photoshop in Mac OSX you can select multiple Raw image files and open them at the same time in Camera Raw Once you edit one you can apply the same edits to the entire series Sync Settings Sync settings will copy settings from one image to all other images you select 1 Editan image 2 From the thumbnails on the left side command click to select other images you want to share these settings 3 Click the Synchronize button in the upper left corner Camera Raw 5 0 Canon LOS Digital Rebel XTi 5 7 td gs a 7 gt r 6 Sic es WI reve beg Saving Presets If you shoot a lot of images under the same lighting conditions saving a preset will allow you to use these settings over and over 1 Qn the right side panel click the little button that looks like a list From the pull down choose Save Settings a eee iT 7 PP u A J gt J A Sic A A hence 51 v imaget Settings x Camera Raw Defaults i B wm mam Te wee ts Prewous utara s uNe nn Custom Settings Sa Apply Preset Export Se
24. ave all of the adjustments made to As you are editing other images you can apply these adjustments by selecting your saved Basic Adjustment panel settings file Open the Basic Adjustments window use the down arrow button and select Load __ amp bibblepro File Edit View Browser Tools Window Help _ P DLA vee LS OSAGA Users jaca imac b Pictures aive Michigan 2009 _ _ S PRE ate oe Poe for fra Remove Tool Copy To Clipboard pad Save Reset Rotation Cc Tone Curve Carers WNew Tool Tab e Remove Tool Tab M Rename Tool Tab New WE As Wee WW Atuou rrRrecriy C x by aka AS Tue Sao Expoture Vibrance 0 Saturation The Complete Photo Workflow There are many ways to use ColorChecker Passport in a digital photography workflow to improve both quality and productivity Here are a couple of examples to help you get started with either a Raw or PEG workflow Raw Workflow One of the touted benefits of the Raw workflow is that you can wait to make a lot of your decisions until you process your Raw files Although the back panel of your camera may not provide a very accurate preview it can be improved if you do a custom white balance l 4 If you choose set the in camera white balance This will not change any of the actual Raw data but it can Speed up processing by providing a good suggested white balance for your images when
25. cus and recompose Point the camera at an object with detail at about the same distance as the ColorChecker White Balance target and press the shutter down half way Recompose the shot with the ColorChecker White Balance target in the center and press the shutter down the rest of the way Check out the Automating Color Control in Raw section for details on how to assign a custom white balance to other images that were shot under the same light a great time saver How to Set White Balance in Lightroom Photoshop and Photoshop Elements Photoshop and Photoshop Elements both use the same Camera Raw Plug in and the white balance tool works just as it does in Lightroom Select the White Balance eyedropper tool For a neutral white balance select either the first patch on the left in the portrait row or the middle patch on the landscape row Because you are working in a Raw workflow the custom white balance settings are non destructive This means you can keep clicking and testing until you get the look you want If you aren t happy with the results you can always revert to the white balance settings from import How to Set White Balance in Capture One In Capture One select the eyedropper in the toolbar This is the Pick White Balance tool The curser will become an eyedropper As you move your curser over the image the current values for that area will appear on the window above the image For a neutral wh
26. d Filters vw Calibration _ Synchronize f Cancel 3 All of the settings from the first image will be applied to the selected images SA Saving Presets If you shoot a lot of images under the same lighting on a regular basis in your studio for instance it might be helpful to save a preset that can used over and over 1 Inthe Develoomodule open an image of the ColorChecker target that was shot under the desired lighting 2 Set the white balance and select your camera s DNG profile On the left side panel next to the word Presets click on the button Develop Te ee l 3 This will open a window that allows you to select any setting that you want to include in this preset Select only the settings you need New Develop Preset 4 Give this preset a meaningful name that describes the lighting oN conditions and camera that was used l Folder User Presets 5 Click the C i button Auto Settings Auto Tone When you need this preset simply open an image and select it trom ee ERRE A the list Keep in mind you may need to reselect your white balance tf asic Tore i Coto for each change of lighting A Exposure v Saturation Vi Highliaht Recovery vi Vibrance vil Fill Light vj Color Adjustments M Black Clipping v Brightness ral Split Toning v Contrast Settings A vianettes Vi tone Curve Wi Lens Correction vi Post Crop ral Clarity A Craduated Filters Wi Sharpening Calibration W
27. d with Adobe RAW processing applications e Repeatable creative white balancing with warmer or cooler effects in RAW processing software e Accurate color correction that can be applied to one photo or a group of images providing consistency within shoots The ColorChecker Passport Lightroom plug in for creating DNG profiles This user guide will teach you how to use ColorChecker Passport and associated software in a color managed workflow that is customized to your individual needs JAOO Idd S14 mW Tiiie ATT TIE MSCCPPPEXXYY Why Color Management Before we get into detail about how to use ColorChecker Passport it s important to understand a little about Color Management and how this tool fits into a color managed workflow The art of color management is all about getting your colors to match from input to output That means your camera captures true colors your monitor displays them accurately and your printer produces a photo that is true to the Original scene With so many input and output devices this can be a challenge However technology has come a long way in the past few years and creating a color managed workflow is no longer reserved for just photo professionals Workflow ans Workflow With Without Color lt 5 sar Color Management Management Original Unprofiled Printer Profiled Printer Camera Calibration and DNG Profiles It all begins with the camera If it doesn t capture accur
28. daylight conditions in the garden outside This adaptive profile will work well in both settings as well as a variety of other lighting conditions so you can concentrate on getting fabulous photos of the wedding couple ys When creating a dual illuminant profile use the same camera lens and ideally ISO ASA for both shots Here s how it works Creating a Dual Illuminant DNG Profile in Lightroom Shoot the ColorChecker Classic under the first light source Shoot the ColorChecker Classic under the second light source Import the images into Lightroom Select the two images Click the Export button and follow the steps for creating a DNG profile ee Export Preset Export 2 selected photos to gt Lightroom Presets a nee COLOR ChHeckKeR gt User Presets Y ColorChecker Passport DNG Profile Name Canon XTi Daylic The profile generated will only be selectable for images created with the same camera model Enter a meaningful name that describes the shooting conditions this profile represents for example this may include lighting conditions or lens choice Dual illuminant DNG Profile Instructions DNG Camera profiles can also be made with two illuminants For example Adobe DNG profiles include color tables for a very warm tungsten light source and a cooler daylight This type of profile is a Dual luminant ONG Profile It can be used with a wide variety of light sources with very good results X Rite Dual ill
29. djustments ow Sharpening wv Brush MW Graduated Filters vw Noise Reduction v Luminance lt gt vw Color vV Chromatic Aberration Check All Check None Cancel Copy 4 Click the Copy button 5 From the grid or filmstrip view select another image or group of images 6 Select Photo Develop Settings Paste to apply the settings Synchronize Settings Lightroom allows you to synchronize settings in the filmstrip of either the Library or Develop modules or in the Library Thumbnails 1 Click to select an image that has been edited to your liking 2 Select an image or group of images that you would like to share the settings with and hit the Sync or Sync Settings button in the lower right corner Lightroom File Edit Develop Photo Settings View Window Help OG on vw White Balance vw Basic Tone vw Exposure wv Highlight Recovery wv Fill Light v Black Clipping wv Brightness wv Contrast w Tone Curve wv Clarity M Sharpening wv Noise Reduction v Luminance wv Color wv Chromatic Aberration Check All Check None Develop 8 Se88 CRAD BE 0 BR oe f n amp Enn BEE HEND Synchronize Settings vw Spot Removal vw Crop v Straighten Angle wv Aspect Ratio wv Treatment Color wv Color v Saturation ow Vibrance wv Color Adjustments nl Split Toning E Vignettes v Lens Correction v Post Crop wv Local Adjustments wv Brush vw Graduate
30. eating a Dual Illuminant DNG Profile in the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application or the ColorChecker Passport E E Tea E E E E E E T 40 Creating a Dual Iliuminant DNG Prole tmn Tigbhirooni srpstvu r naan ee eT eee E EEE EEE 4 Creating a Dual Illuminant DNG Profile in Photoshop Camera RAW casts corti etadincndatatignanbaatu Lines viotginnreletiwrrnadeattarsee iets 42 Automaling Color Conrol in RaW semerre orien e E E O ENEE E EEE ee Er RE Ei 43 Automating Color Controlin Lio hirOOii serere eeni ERE EE EE ER I E RS RE 43 Copr and Pane somings a he Derd op Modul oorp ir nne REEE ETR EE E EE EEE E 43 Copy owd Lano Sotaga ie ran Modal e ies EE EE EE E E EREE eeaats 45 E R E E ee 46 DOV ECHO E N T aH a et gels Gieanema me Bineh ee eees Soatotees 47 IBIS oA Ad One ee eee E Ree Ee Tee Ie E eee Ree ETT et tT eee te ee E eee 48 SVG SCH a E E E baphiaesa ne uvideageane depeoctiaueuGemenumeden EE 49 E A E TEETE E E E S 50 DE ENEE E EA E A E EE E E E EE EEEE toe E 51 o E A E EE A E E eer rere re ere eee 53 The Complete Photo Workflow ccccccccneceeeceneeecueceeuneeeeuneeeeuaueeuuauseeuaueeuaenseuannes 55 Raw Workflow 2 0 ccc ccc cece eee eee eeneeeeeeeneseneeseuccescceccecceeeceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeebnbnsnnesbeeeessseseseeeseeeeeeeeeees 55 JEE Oi TO oo ee oes Les oteae E Gna ee a mag aetene ata aos ea obo gees E E cant eee E eae mee Gu ane peed E 56 ColorChecker Passport ColorChecker Passport is a unique solution for any photographer lo
31. eep in mind even if you are using custom DNG profiles you will still need to do a custom white balance each time you change to a different lighting condition This custom white balance can be performed in camera before shooting or afterwards in the ColorChecker Desktop Application When shooting RAW with the ColorChecker Passport you have the ability to set the white point in your RAW processing software for added creativity The ColorChecker Creative Enhancement target includes the White Balance patch as well as patches for warming portraits and warming or cooling landscape images Simply shoot the Creative Enhancement target in each new lighting condition and use the patches to warm up flesh tones in portraits or add richer blues and greens in landscapes See The Creative Enhancement Target and Setting White Balance sections for more information White Balance in aj PG Workflow ColorChecker Passport adds high value to JPEG workflows too Many wedding sports and event photographers choose PEG when shooting high volumes of images and an inaccurate white balance can render these images essentially unusable Simply shooting the included ColorChecker White Balance target in each unique lighting environment can provide accurate starting color and save hours of color editing work later Consult your camera manual for specific workflow information The Targets ColorChecker Passport is a rugged pocket sized case that
32. ighting conditions The two images used to build a Dual iluminant ONG profile must be taker with the same camera 1 Drag two DNG images into the image pane ColorChecker Passport will attempt t automatically detect the ColorChecker in the images 2 If auto detection fails click on the corners of the ColorChecker in the image to manually place the crop marks Zoom in 3 Click the Create Profile button Give the profile a name and click Save The profile will be saved to the specified jocatior For more information click 6 The profile will automatically be created with both light source tables and saved You will need to restart your Adobe applications to use this new profile Save As CanonXTi Daylight and Fluorescent dcy f Where G CameraProfiles Cancel Save When you select this profile your Adobe Raw software will use both light source tables to adapt the profile to match the image s illuminant 4 x rite Automating Color Control in Raw When shooting an event or a series of product shots under the same lighting conditions editing the basic color settings all at once and applying them to the rest of the series can save a lot of time Whether it s applying your DNG profile or white balance settings or even doing some general color correction this automation can help you achieve consistent edits across the board in a fraction of the time Corrections can be made to any shot in the series
33. ion is lookina for straiaht lines Creating a Dual IIluminant DNG Profile in the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application or the ColorChecker Passport Lightroom Plugin A very powertul feature of the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application and the ColorChecker Lightroom Plugin is the ability to create custom DNG profiles with two illuminants This type of profile called dual illuminant can provide very good results in a wide variety of light sources Dual Illuminant DNG profiles can be made with any two of the supported illuminants However they must have different correlated color temperatures CCT and for best results the CCT in degrees Kelvin should not be very close 0 Unknown 1 Daylight 2 Fluorescent 3 Tungsten incandescent light 4 Flash 9 F ine weather 10 Cloudy weather 11 Shade 12 Daylight fluorescent D 5700 7100K 13 Day white fluorescent N 4600 5400K 14 Cool white fluorescent W 3900 4500K 15 White fluorescent WW 3200 3700K 17 Standard light A 18 Standard light B 19 Standard light C 20 D55 21 D65 22 D75 23 D50 24 SO studio tungsten 255 Other light source This variety of combinations allows you create profiles that are optimized for almost any kind of lighting you may encounter For example if you re a wedding photographer who regularly photographs events in the big church downtown you can create a profile that includes the lighting in the church plus
34. ist Keep in mind this new profile can also be used by all ACR applications such as Photoshop Bridge and Elements See the Automating Color Control in Raw section for ways to use this profile on multiple images in Adobe applications Creating DNG Profiles in Photoshop and Photoshop Elements Photoshop and Photoshop Elements both use Adobe s Camera Raw Plug in To make a DNG profile based on your camera s output 1 Open an image of the ColorChecker Classic in the Camera Raw plug in You do not need to perform a white balance the ColorChecker Passport application will analyze the image and make adjustment automatically 2 Don t edit the image but make sure to verify that it was exposed properly ian See the Automating Color Control in Raw section for more details 3 To save the image as a DNG so you can open tt in the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application click the Save Image button in the lower left corner A new window will appear Camera Raw 50 Canon FOS Rene AT 4 Destination Save in Same Location J pi Select Folder Users macpro5 Pic 9 Cance File Naming Example _MG_1417 dng Document Name e Extension dng z3 Format Digital Negative 4 ov Compressed lossless JPEG Preview Medium Size H Convert to Linear image Embed Original Raw File 5 Launch the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application e OQnaMac itis located in Applications ColorChecker Passport e O
35. ite balance select either the first patch on the left in the portrait row or the middle patch on the landscape row White balance can be saved as a preset so you can assign It to other images that were shot in the same lighting See the Automating Color Control in Raw section for details How to Set White Balance in Aperture Aperture s white balance is similar In the Adjustments panel scroll down to white balance Click on the eyedropper then for a neutral white balance select either the first patch on the left in the portrait row or the middle patch on the landscape row How to Set White Balance in Bibble In Bibble the white balance tool is called the Click White Curser The easiest place to find it is in the upper tool bar the third tool from the left For a neutral white balance select either the first patch on the left in the portrait row or the middle patch on the landscape row Color Casts In cases where the color of the liqht ic verv imnortant vai won t want ta nenate color casts This image has a custom white balance applied This image has a daylight white balance applied Correcting Image Color with Spectrum Patches When editing images wouldn t it be nice to Know the exact color of an object in the photo to determine whether your colors are accurate Shooting the ColorChecker Passport can tell you Event and catalog photographers often shoot a large number of images
36. ker targets for further color fine tuning but cameras that shoot in a RAW format can benefit even more from custom profiles Why Custom DNG Profiles Most manufacturers offer standard profiles with their cameras and your RAW processing software may even offer a profile for your exact model But if you are looking for true accurate color you need to create a custom profile based on the RAW output from your camera in your shooting conditions Although it is possible to get the color you want through custom image editing the faster easier and more consistent method is to start with good color from a custom profile then apply your subjective edits Custom profiles can be especially useful when editing a lot of images that all need to be consistent like from a big event or a catalog shoot If you are shooting an event with multiple cameras ColorChecker Passport will minimize color differences by providing a starting point for each image in all of the cameras Then back at the studio you can make all of your creative color edits from the same starting point ColorChecker Passport s Desktop Application is based on an advanced profiling technology that provides excellent results with only 24 patches To build a profile simply photograph the ColorChecker Classic under even lighting ideally the same lighting you are using for your photo shoot The ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application also offers an option for an adaptive dual illuminant DNG p
37. lete profiles if you are sure they aren t being used for existing images and won t be needed in the future Many high end Raw image processing applications support ICC or DNG profiles Some Raw image processing applications like PhaseOne s Capture One software or Bibble Lab s Bibble use ICC profiles X Rite has other tools to make ICC profiles for use with these applications Visit htto www xritephoto com for more information Lightroom Photoshop and Photoshop Elements use DNG profiles ColorChecker Passport s Desktop Application can build DNG profiles for single and dual illuminants ye See the Camera Calibration and DNG Profiles section for more information on custom DNG profiles Creating DNG Profiles in Lightroom If you are using Lightroom the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application makes building a DNG profile a very simple and automated process 1 Open the Raw image of the ColorChecker target that you shot earlier You do not need to perform a white balance the ColorChecker Passport application will analyze the image and make adjustments automatically 2 Do not edit the image In fact any edits will be ignored when you begin building the profile Make sure to verify that it was exposed properly 3 Under the File menu select Export er Lightroom I tx Develop Photo Settings View Window Heip ANA New Catalog a 4 From the Export window click anywhere in the banner at the top of the window
38. lorChecker Classic should be properly exposed in the image If color channels are clipped you will not be able to make a profile with the image When creating a profile correct exposure in the camera is necessary Using your software to correct bad exposure will not make it usable Lighting The lighting of the ColorChecker Classic should match the lighting of the subject of the image This is especially useful for unusual and mixed light sources Even lighting is important When you set up the target make sure there are not any strong shadows or reflections on it In daylight conditions it can sometimes be helpful to use a reflector to fill the shadows Then focus and shoot gt See the Creating Profiles and Creating a Dual Illuminant DNG Profile in the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application sections for more information Adequately Exposed Even steps are visible between each shadow and highlight patch Black does not go to 0 0 0 and white does not go to 255 255 255 or 100 100 100 ae Overexposed This capture shows no distinction between Underexposed Notice there are not visible steps between the highlight clipping patches and goes p to 255 or 100 the black patches in the exposure clipping row Dappled Lighting Although this capture is well exposed the dappled lighting is not ideal for building a profile The ColorChecker Creative Enhancement Target The fir
39. nd to accommodate proper positioning of the targets for shooting e The lanyard attached to the hinge spine makes it easy to carry and access the Passport during photo shoots Here are some tips to help you get the most out of your targets e The case is designed to open and close like a booklet To open it hold the Passport case in your fingers by the Sides press the button and pull the sides apart Hold the frame and if necessary push on the inside of the hinge Be sure to hold the outside of the frame and not the target inside e Always close the case when you are finished to protect the targets from extended exposure to direct sunlight UV energy in the sunlight is the most damaging type of light and will fade the ColorChecker patches e Dirt and moisture can destroy the ColorChecker targets so use caution when handling them with the case open e Carrying the Passport with the lanyard over your shoulder and across your back will help keep it from banging into your camera bag Care The ColorChecker Passport case can be wiped with a mild cleaning solution Use care so liquid does not enter the case If the ColorChecker targets become dirty brush them as gently as possible with a dry cloth or blow with a can of compressed air The color chips can be marred in the cleaning process so cleaning liquids should never be used The typical lifespan of a ColorChecker target is two years However you must take care of it to achieve this longevit
40. not just the first one and applied to 1 or 1 000 shots taken in the same lighting Wedding and event photographers who process thousands of Raw images will appreciate this automation Most Raw processing applications have color contro automation options This section explores Lightroom Adobe Camera Raw and Capture One Automating Color Control in Lightroom In Lightroom there are three strategies for applying settings to several images at once e Copy and Paste Settings is perfect if you have a few images shot under the same lighting that require the same color corrections Simply copy the settings you adjust in one photo and paste them into other images This can be done either in the Develop Module or the Library Module e Synchronize Settings is very useful to apply settings to a whole series of images When viewing a series of images in the main window or filmstrip select an image that has the setting that you want to share across to other images Select all of the other images you want to share the settings with and use the Sync option e Saveas aPresetis ideal if you regularly shoot under the same lighting such as in your studio Simply save the settings as a preset and apply them to future images taken under the same conditions You can apply a preset when opening images e n Lightroom there are two strategies for applying settings to several images at once Copy and Paste Settings in the Develop Module Use these steps to copy
41. oking for accurate consistent color and creative flexibility especially those working in RAW format ColorChecker Passport includes a set of three ColorChecker photographic targets both a desktop camera calibration application and an Adobe Photoshop Lightroom camera calibration plug in to create DNG profiles that encompass your specific camera lens and lighting conditions for use in a RAW workflow everything you need to attain full creative control from image capture to post processing What s Included A set of three ColorChecker photographic targets housed in a functional plastic case that s small enough to fit in your pocket yet sturdy enough to go everywhere you go e ColorChecker White Balance target a spectrally neutral white balance target that provides in camera white balancing for both J PEG and RAW photography e ColorChecker Classic the industry standard 24 patch ColorChecker target for fine tuning critical color and building custom DNG profiles e ColorChecker Creative Enhancement target with Spectrum patches to ensure color fidelity across all hues adjust white balance verify exposure and make creative portrait and landscape enhancements The ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application to create DNG profiles for use in a RAW workflow to help you achieve consistent results from image to image regardless of the camera and lighting environment e Creation of DNG and dual illuminant DNG profiles that can be use
42. oling patches on ColorChecker Passport are designed specifically to enhance the cool greens in landscape photos Click on each of the patches to preview the adjustment and select the patch that gives you the best look Save the setting and apply it to other landscape images that were shot under that lighting Cooling Landscapes with White Balance Coldest on left balanced in middle warmest on right a nA Po eae A lt Creating DNG Profiles Calibrating your camera to produce custom DNG profiles is a must for any photographer who relies on consistent accurate color Creating a custom white balance with the ColorChecker White Balance target will ensure you re starting with accurate color Shooting a physical reference like the ColorChecker Classic target will make color corrections quicker plus allow you to assign them to a large batch of images for greater productivity But if you are looking for true optimal color you need to create a custom profile that is specific to your camera and your lighting conditions J ust because ColorChecker Passport helps you build a DNG profile doesn t mean you need to convert to a DNG workflow This is just Adobe s camera calibration profile format You can still use your Canon Nikon etc Raw image in your standard ICC profile workflow When creating a profile correct exposure in the camera is necessary Using your software to correct bad exposure will not make it usable Only manually de
43. or correction With the included ColorChecker Passport application you can also build DNG profiles for Lightroom Photoshop and Photoshop Elements Ak See the Creating Profiles section for more information about using the ColorChecker Classic Tips for Capturing the ColorChecker Classic Target When capturing the ColorChecker Classic there are a few things you need to keep in mind Size For highest profile quality the ColorChecker Classic should comprise at least 10 of a 10 megapixel image If it is too small within the image the color patches may not contain enough pixels to sample accurately and profile quality may suffer Rotation The ColorChecker Classic may be rotated within the image but as far as possible it should be placed parallel to the plane of the lens Try not to tilt the target towards or away from the camera Distortion Avoid placing the ColorChecker Classic in images where its shape will be distorted If it is necessary to place it in an image containing distortion such as a shot taken with a fisheye lens place the ColorChecker Classic in the least distorted part of the image Do not cover or shade patches and make sure the chart doesn t fill the frame Some lenses may vignette around the edges so it may be helpful to bracket the target Focus The ColorChecker Classic should be in focus If the focus is too soft the auto location feature may have difficulty recognizing the edges of the target Exposure The Co
44. posure evaluation and one click white balancing for RAW editing packages that support these features Camera Calibration with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom ColorChecker Passport comes with a Lightroom plug in which provides fast automatic and reliable RAW camera calibration to build DNG and dual illuminant DNG profiles and installs them automatically The profiles you create can be used in Lightroom and Photoshop as well as any other Adobe Camera RAW ACR program Adobe Camera RAW 4 5 and higher now supports custom DNG profiles and is supported by Photoshop CS3 and later and Elements 7 and up Using the Lightroom plug in with Lightroom 2 or higher you can work seamlessly and build custom DNG profiles without switching between multiple applications Plus Lightroom attempts to automatically detect the ColorChecker target in your image so most times you won t even need to crop ye See The Software section for more information about Lightroom and its use with ColorChecker Passport Benefits of a Calibrated Display Have you ever wondered why the colors you see on your monitor don t match the scene you photographed That s because what you see on screen is only as accurate as your display Over time the color performance of monitors changes phosphors and liquid crystals begin to fade and the display s colors will drift Calibrating and profiling will optimize your monitor s settings and bring back the true colors Since yo
45. pping patches to fine tune highlights and shadows 1 Sample the black patch with the eyedropper This patch should be nearly neutral so the R G and B values should be close to equal Although the black patch is very dark it should not read as pure black ADO troom 2 Catalog ircat Adobe Photoshop Lightroam Develop Develop 0 tsau ies DA p s ER p E gt EE o m 2 Do the same thing with the white point The white square should be very light but not pure white and the RGB values should be nearly equal Ls lt eet mm 4 amp Se ee 3 To check the color cast select the gray patches in the middle Red green and blue values should not vary from each other more than seven points on a 0 255 scale or three points on a 0 100 scale ee Highlight Clipping Correction The Highlight Clipping patches can help verify whether you are holding details in the highlights and shadows In Adobe applications use these patches along with the clipping preview to see if you are losing details Here s how to do this in Lightroom and Camera Raw 1 In the Histogram window click on the triangles in the corners to turn on the clipping preview for the shadow and highlight areas 2 Roll over the patches to check for blow out There should be a difference in value from one patch to the next and none of the values should be at 255 or 100 While editing an image settings like brightness expo
46. rofiles to provide for better color across a wider range of lighting conditions ye See The Software section for more information about capturing the ColorChecker targets Color Management in a RAW Workflow In the past most camera calibration solutions required a controlled and consistent studio environment to obtain a good profile and usually only worked for TIFF or JPEG image formats However many of today s photographers are taking advantage of their camera s full capabilities by capturing images in RAW format ColorChecker Passport has opened the door for these photographers by making the RAW calibration and profiling experience fast and easy Shooting RAW provides greater flexibility to color adjust images based on how a particular camera captures color A calibrated RAW workflow minimizes color differences between cameras and lenses adapts for mixed lighting and makes it possible to color match across different scenes You also have a greater capability to calibrate and correct color because you re starting with a consistent foundation And shooting RAW enables you to apply color management to a large number of files automatically Adobe RAW processing software can make use of the ColorChecker Passport s custom DNG profiles If your RAW processing application does not support custom DNG profiles you can still use ColorChecker targets to provide a physical reference for color editing The target offers such things as ex
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48. s such as red yellow and green e Saturation describes how vivid or pure a color is e Lightness describes a color s lightness or darkness Treat your profile as a starting point then use the color and tone rendering controls to make specific adjustments In Camera Raw these sliders are located in the Hue S aturation Luminance tab In Lightroom they can be found in the Develop dialog Visual Comparison Visually comparing the colors in an image to a physical target will helo you make educated color decisions These steps are written for Lightroom but are almost identical in Photoshop 1 Inthe Develop window select the Target tool from the upper left corner of the HSL panel 2 Roll over the colors They roughly correspond with the HSL sliders in the Lightroom Develop dialog 3 To select a color and make edits either hold down the mouse button and move the target tool up or down or use the sliders or numbers in the HSL panel ASNO ghtroom 2 yO t Adobe Photoshor Develop tw CI pp b See TmT a E oe ee Further visual color matching is possible with the ColorChecker Color Rendition patches When doing visual color matching be sure to use a calibrated monitor and controlled lighting conditions such as a viewing booth to illuminate the ColorChecker Passport See the Why Color Management section to learn more about the benefits of calibrating your devices Enhancing Images with the
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50. settings from one photo and paste them into other images from the Develop Module 1 Select an image and set the white balance If you re using a custom DNG profile set it then make any necessary color corrections 2 Click the Copy button The Copy Settings dialog window will appear Lightroom file Edit Develop Photo Settings View Window Help Tito SBSBs eon g ii _ aan 3 Select the settings to copy to another image If you want to copy your custom profile make sure to select the Calibration check box 4 Click the Copy button Mi White Balance M Treatment Color Wi Spot Removal iwi Basic Tone ivf Color vf Crop vi Exposure MA Saturation iwi Straighten Angle vi Highlight Recovery A Vibrance ivf Aspect Ratio W Fill Light v Color Adjustments Wi Black Clipping Mi Brightness Mi Split Toning Mi Contrast l M Vignettes Wi Tone Curve Wi Lens Correction Tal Post Crop A Clarity M Local Adjustments v Sharpening A Brush duated Filters wi Noise Reduction vi Luminance vi Color v Chromatic Aberration Check All Check None Cancel 5 From the filmstrip at the bottom of the window select an image Click the Paste button These settings will be applied to the selected image Lightroom file Edit Develop Photo Settings View Window Help ADD Lightroom 2 Catalog ircal Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Develop Develop Copy and Paste Settings in the Library Module If you alread
51. shop Elements Camera Raw and Lightroom and access them from right inside the Adobe Bridge Installing the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application Installing from a CD on Windows 1 Insertthe CD into the CD drive The setup program should start automatically 2 Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the installation Installing from a CD on Mac 1 Insertthe CD into the CD drive 2 Double click on the CD icon that appears on the desktop 3 Double click on the ColorChecker Passport mpkg icon to start the installation process 4 Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the installation Installing from a Downloaded File on Windows 1 Double click on the downloaded file 2 Follow the onscreen instructions from your extraction program to extract the setup file 3 Double click on the extracted setup file and follow the onscreen instructions to complete the installation The application will be installed in Program Files X R ite ColorChecker Passport You can check version of the P lug in and its status in Lightroom by selecting the File menu then selecting Plug in Manager Installing from a Downloaded File on Mac 1 Double click on the downloaded file 2 Follow the onscreen instructions from your extraction program to extract the setup file 3 Double click on the extracted setup file and follow onscreen instructions to complete the installation The application will be installed in Applications ColorChecker Passpor
52. sport using physical targets as visual guides ye See the The ColorChecker Classic Correcting Images with Spectrum Patches and Exposure Verification and Correction sections to learn more 9 Copy and apply these edits to other images that were shot in the same lighting conditions me See the Automating Color Control in Raw section for specific instructions JPEG Workflow When working in a JPEG workflow simply doing an in camera white balance will go a long way to improve your JPEG captures Better accuracy in the camera s histograms will guide you to make better decisions on exposure Plus you can trust the camera s highlight warnings reducing the risk of overexposing highlight areas Overall you ll experience better image quality and faster editing Using ColorChecker Passport to prepare before shooting can help you reduce editing time even more 1 Setthe in camera white balance ies See the How to Set In Camera White Balance section for specific instructions 2 Capture the ColorChecker Classic and Creative Enhancement targets in one image See the Tips for Capturing the ColorChecker Classic Target and Positioning Options sections for more information 3 Check the exposure in camera using the camera s histograms and the Passport clipping patches with the camera s highlight warning tool 4 Capture your images under the same lighting conditions e at
53. st step to better color is accuracy achieved with in camera white balancing and custom DNG profiling The second step is creative enhancement Most photographers recognize when skin tones don t look right but only those with strong color correction skills can fix it This type of creative editing usually requires a lot of know how and experience Even then it can be a time consuming game of trial and error and results are often random and non repeatable It only gets worse when you need to manually correct a large number of images to appear the same The ColorChecker Creative Enhancement Target provides absolute reference points for creatively changing white balance so photographers can enjoy the benefits of creative white balance editing Portrait warming and landscape warming and cooling patches help create pleasing and repeatable edits with just the click of the eyedropper Now anyone can attain the truest skin tones and an accurate basis for color correction and editing and apply them to multiple image edits Plus the ColorChecker Creative Enhancement target can be used with virtually any Raw processing software 5 Ir RRR yt ds MSCCPPPEXXYY Use and Care of ColorChecker Passport Use The ColorChecker Passport case is designed to serve many purposes e The rugged outer shell keeps the ColorChecker targets secure during transport and away from the elements and UV exposure e The hinged opening will be
54. sure and contrast can affect these values If after adjusting these settings you notice you have lost some highlight detail try using the Recovery tool to darken the highlight without darkening the rest of the image If these adjustments do not bring back the highlight details the shot was probably too over exposed and can t be recovered Shadow Clipping Correction Use the Shadow Clipping patches to verify whether you are holding details in the shadows This is how it s done in Lightroom and Camera Raw 1 In the Histogram window click on the triangles in the corners to turn on the clipping preview for the Shadow and highlight areas 2 Roll over the patches to check for blow out There should be a difference in value from one patch to the next and none of the values should be at 0 Editing brightness exposure blacks and contrast can affect these values You may be able to open up Shadow details with the Fill Light tool which will lighten mostly in the shadow areas If you unable to bring back the details the shot was probably too under exposed Warming and Cooling with White Balance In addition to the white balance patch the ColorChecker Creative Enhancement target includes blue patches for warming portraits and red patches for cooling landscape images J ust like using lens filters with film you can warm up portraits to make flesh tones look healthier Or if you re shooting outside you can alter the white point to achie
55. t You can check version of the Plug in and its status in Lightroom by selecting the File menu then selecting Plug in Manager Passport System Requirements Windows e Microsoft Windows XP 32 or 64 bit with latest Service Pack installed or Microsoft Windows Vista 32 or 64 bit with latest Service Pack installed 512MB RAM Intel Pentium IV or AMD Athlon XP or better CPU 200 MB of available disk space User must have Administrator rights to install uninstall the application Monitor resolution of 1024x768 pixels or higher Internet connection required for software update e 4 Macintosh MacOS X 10 4 11 or 10 5 X with the latest update installed 512MB RAM G4 Processor or higher G5 recommended 350MB of available disk space User must have Administrator rights to install and uninstall the application Monitor resolution of 1024x768 pixels or higher Internet connection required for software update How to Set In Camera White Balance Image quality lies in the balance Setting a custom white balance in the camera will adjust it to compensate for color cast while still maintaining all of the subtle shades of color that the camera can capture Setting White Balance If you re working with a J PEG or TIFF workflow the best way to get accurate neutral color is to do a custom white balance in the camera before you begin your shoot Without a custom white balance it s not possible to adapt for gross errors of white b
56. ttings to XMP Update ONG Previews Load Settings Adube MCA 1920 6 be 1634 by 1000 11 SMP 240 p 2 Select any of the settings that you want to include in this preset but only the ones you need Subset Custom Subset H Save w White Balance f Cancel mw Exposure a erl Recovery ITAI Light Blacks Brightness iw Contrast Clarity Vibrance wv Saturation Pararnetric Curve Point Curve l 1 Sharpening Luminance Noise Reduction 1 Color Noise Reduction ral HSL Adjustments Split Toning l 1 Chromatic Aberration _ l Lens Vignetting Post Crop Vignetting al Camera Calibration Auto Settings Apply auto tone adjustments 3 Give ita meaningful name that describes the camera and lighting conditions 4 Click the Save button To use this preset simply select the Preset tab on the far right and select the preset of your choice from the list It will automatically be applied Default Presets Adobe allows you to save your Camera Raw Settings as a default Since even the same model camera may capture color a little differently it will be useful to save unique settings for each of your cameras To ensure these settings are only used for a specific camera s serial number and ISO setting set that option in your Preferences 1 From the Photoshop menu on the Mac or the Edit menu in Windows select Camera Raw Preferences Bom File Edit Image Layer Select Filter Analysis View Windo
57. uminant DNG profiles can be made with any two supported illuminants Instructions Select two images taken by the same camera and lens Each image must be taken under a different lighting condition Learn More Add mov Y Using a custom DNG profile d Plug in Manager 4 Cancel Export 6 The profile will automatically be created with both light source tables and saved You will need to restart your Adobe applications to use this new profile Adobe Standard Camera Faithful Camera Landscape Camera Neutral Camera Portrait Camera Standard Canon XTi Daylight Canon XTi Daylight and Fluorescent When you select this profile your Adobe Raw software will use both light source tables to adapt the profile to match the image s illuminant Creating a Dual Illuminant DNG Profile in Photoshop Camera Raw Shoot the ColorChecker Classic under the first light source Shoot the ColorChecker Classic under the second light source Open each of the images in Photoshop Camera Raw With each image click the Save Image button to save them as DNG files In the ColorChecker Passport Desktop Application select the Dual Illuminant DNG tab Drag and drop the DNG files into the window After each is located click the Create Profile button OI A U N e Instructions A Dual iluminant DNG profile is a single DNG profile representing two lighting conditions This profile can be applied to images taken in a wider variety of l
58. ur monitor is the only place for you to view your digital data in its native form working on a calibrated monitor can be indispensable for previewing edits and making color critical decisions Seeing colors as they ll print will save you the time associated with trial and error editing If you re going to take the time to make custom DNG profiles it just makes sense to take this easy step to ensure you re seeing true colors so your edits are actually making the changes you want Benefits of Printer Profiles Following the same logic wouldn t you like to Know the colors you send to the printer are the colors that will show up on the paper Printer profiles provide this assurance Many printer manufacturers provide profiles with their printers These are fine for photo hobbyists who may not be as critical with color But if you rely on consistent accurate color especially if you wish to use media that is not sold by your printer s manufacturer It s a good idea to create a custom profile that defines the specific color characteristics of your exact printer inks and paper ENE X Rite offers a range of products to meet your specific color management on needs Visit htto www xritephoto com for more information White Balance Starting with an accurate white balance is critical in any photo workflow because it ensures the colors you are Capturing are true and provides a point of reference for post shoot editing With ColorChecker P
59. ve richer blues and greens in a landscape Choosing a blue or red tint actually creates a new neutral to allow for a little more creativity When you select a warming or cooling patch the white balance values will be corrected to the neutral values shown in the preview window of whichever photo editing software you are using For example when selecting a warming patch the actual patch is a blue tint The software will balance that sample patch to neutral and all other colors will shift Slightly to the opposite of blue which is yellow Then if you select a patch that is more blue it will shift all of the colors to more yellow White Balance Portraits with Warming Patches Warming up portraits can portray a more appealing and healthy look than purely accurate tones Try each of the ColorChecker Passport warming patches to see which gives the effect you re looking for When you find something you like use the same patch to white balance for other lighting conditions to achieve a more consistent appearance for cases where a similar look is required Warming and Cooling Portraits with White Balance Choosing a new neutral can change an image s white point These images show the gradual shift from warmest to neutral TITTLE WARARR g G UIL E White Balance Landscapes with Cooling Patches While some landscapes can benefit from a warmer appearance others would benefit from a richer green look The reddish co
60. w Help About Camera Raw Services Hide Photoshop Hide Others PORE BF R amp POOL RSE wr DO 5 ai _MG_1417 009 2 Under the Default Image Settings select the 1 Cosssspsissnss Gerson SNP oo option to make specific defaults for individual cameras by serial number or for specific ISO settings Keep in mind this feature may not be supported by every camera manufacturer If for example you would like to save a custom DNG profile as the default for your camera open an image and select the DNG profile then click on the button that looks like a list and select Save New Camera Raw Defaults These settings will then be applied automatically anytime that you open an image from this camera Keep in mind you may need to reselect your white balance for each change of lighting General on 9 Save image settings in Cancel Sidecar xmp files H H Apply sharpening to All images Default image Settings Apply auto tone adjustments Mi Apply auto grayscale mix when converting to grayscale Wi Make defaults specific to Camera serial number Mi Make defaults specific to camera ISO setting Camera Raw Cache Maximum Size 1 0 cB Purge Cache Select Location Users macpros Library Caches Adobe Camera Raw ONG File Handling kmp files ignore sidecar Update embedded JPEG previews JPEG and TIFF Handling JPEG Automatically open JPEGs with settings F E TIFF Automatically
61. y Heavy outdoor usage especially with exposure to the sun or unfriendly environmental conditions may reduce the lifespan The proper use of the Passport s case makes it easy to protect the targets from extended exposure to light and can help them last longer e 4 Opening and Closing the Passport Case Since the hinge is rigid enough to hold positions opening and closing the case can be tricky Passport Use and Care e To open it push the latch button Hold the outside of the case and pull it open e When you close it be careful not to touch the patches Quality Guarantee Label The targets are designed to last two years Write the date of the first use on the Quality Guarantee label so vou know when the taraet expires Quality Guarantee X Rite Inc certifies that this ColorChecker Passport meets or exceeds all our specifications and requirements It is precisely manufactured by Munsell Color Services to ensure production consistency and color performance We utilize a spectrophotomeric measurement process to meet strict manufacturing tolerance requirements Munsell Color Services is a division of X Rite nawu m oertor ime ColorChecker Passport 4 H K RNE AP EAEE AARO 4Xrite should be replaced within 2 years from initial use DATE FIRST USED nnn PNE This Passport belongs to All Munsell Color Services instruments ar MSCCPP 123456 SNE 12345678 Carrying the ColorChecker Passport The attached lan
62. y have an edited image and are viewing it in the Library Module and want to copy the settings use these steps to copy settings from one photo and paste them into other images from the Library Module 1 Under the Photo menu select Develop Settings amp Lightroom File Edit ubra BEEN Metadata View Window Help ADO Add to Quick Collection R abe Photoshop Library Open in Loupe a Show in Finder HR Library Show in Folder in Library Lock to Second Window gt x None Stacking Create Virtual Copy Rotate Left CCW Rotate Right CW Flip Horizontal Flip Vertical Set Flag Set Rating Set Color Label Auto Advance Set Keyword Change Keywords Reset Remove from Collection etti Remove and Trash Photo YOR Paste Settings Delete Rejected Photos amp Paste Settings from Previou Auto White Balance Auto Tone Convert to Grayscale 2 From the sub menu select Copy Settings The Copy Settings dialog window will appear 3 Select the settings to copy to another image If you want to copy your custom profile make sure to select the Calibration check box mM White Balance iw Treatment Color wv Spot Removal vw Basic Tone vw Color vw Crop wv Exposure wv Saturation ow Straighten Angle v Highlight Recovery vw Vibrance vw Aspect Ratio v Fill Light v Color Adjustments wv Black Clipping v Brightness a Split Toning v Contrast Vignettes W Tone Curve M Lens Correction M Post Crop Z Clarity vw Local A
63. yard is great for carrying the Passport and keeping it handy Carrying it diagonally across your chest over one shoulder and under the opposite arm will keep it from banging against the camera as you move around 17 Positioning Options To help you get the best possible shot the ColorChecker targets can be positioned a variety of ways Self Standing ColorChecker Classic and Creative Enhancement Target The Creative Enhancement and Classic targets can be positioned inline with each other Use the back page to stand the targets and adjust the angle with respect to the camera Self Standing ColorChecker Classic or Creative Enhancement Target The Passport case can be articulated so that either target is exactly facing the lens When positioning the target be careful to not rest patches straight down ona Surface where they could become soiled Hand Holding The passport is small and rigid enough to be easily held by its edges in the scene in plane with the camera Be careful to not cover any of the patches with your fingers TTT G TTT TIE _ Sean i Lid E anr j The Software Raw Processing Applications There are a number of applications you can use for basic Raw photo color correction such as Lightroom 2 Phase One s Capture One and Bibble Lab s Bibble These applications are designed specifically for photographers to make basic color corrections adjust for exposure and contrast crop images and

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