| |
love5523
PeaAddict
PeaNut 58,325
December 2002
Posts: 1,294
Layouts: 216
Loc: Clarksburg, Maryland
 |  Posted: 2/17/2013 6:57:08 PM
I'm not sure if this is the best board for my question but I would like to start printing my photos at home, but I can't seem to get a decent print.
I'm not sure if it's my computer, or my printer, but whenever I print a photo it always prints way darker than it looks on my computer screen. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I might be doing wrong?
Thanks in advance  |
|
|
Idahopea
AncestralPea
PeaNut 118,464
December 2003
Posts: 4,186
Layouts: 0
Loc: Idaho
 | Posted: 2/17/2013 7:58:37 PM
This is kind of a hard question because it will depend on a lot of things such as whether or not your monitor is calibrated, what printer you have, what software you use for editing, etc.
I have an Epson printer and have found if I add a levels layer on top of my photo after I edit it in Photoshop, I get a much better print. My prints are dark otherwise, even with a calibrated monitor. For my printer I edit the photo so it looks correct on screen, then add an additional levels adjustment layer, drag the right side of the levels graph in about 3/8 to a 1/2 inch and then move the middle slider just a smidge to the right. I also let the printer manage the color rather than Photoshop. This works almost every time for my printer. The main reason I do it this way is this lets me use the correctly edited photo by quickly deleting the last levels layer if I want to post it online, send it in an email, or use it in a slideshow. If I edited the photos for the printer, they would be too light for online purposes. HTH | |
|
voltagain
OklaPhoma
PeaNut 18,334
July 2001
Posts: 35,105
Layouts: 15
Loc: State of cultural confusion. Yeehaw and Aloha have collided!
 | Posted: 2/17/2013 8:46:52 PM
Because monitors are backlit things on screen look brighter than they do in a non back lit format such as print. A calibration device helps. Lacking that, hold a print up next to the monitor and adjust the brightness level of the monitor so the screen and print are a somewhat closer match. Most people have their screen brightness turned up pretty high. That makes your edit look bright even when it isn't. |
|
|
love5523
PeaAddict
PeaNut 58,325
December 2002
Posts: 1,294
Layouts: 216
Loc: Clarksburg, Maryland
| Posted: 2/17/2013 10:34:46 PM
Thank you so much for both of your replies! Both were really helpful. Now I just have to figure out whether or not it's worth the effort to do it myself! LOL |
|
|
lbfritts
Can you hear me now???
PeaNut 26,273
December 2001
Posts: 7,806
Layouts: 180
Loc: North Carolina
| Posted: 2/18/2013 6:11:29 AM
I agree with Volt backlit monitors are not the same as opaque photo paper! You can try adjusting the brightness on your monitor or lighten the image more than on the screen.
I have learned, before I print, I lighten a little - makes a difference! |
|
|
coolbeans
StuckOnPeas
PeaNut 341,583
October 2007
Posts: 2,896
Layouts: 84
Loc: Erie, PA
 | Posted: 2/18/2013 7:17:17 AM
I have found its just not worth it to me. I am a perfectionist and really feel I would waste so much in paper and ink. I use several labs and really satisfied with what I get back. |
Canon 7D and XTi
Jackie S.
| |
|
|
memories5
PeaAddict
PeaNut 272,462
August 2006
Posts: 1,832
Layouts: 348
Loc: Indiana
 | Posted: 2/18/2013 7:38:29 AM
I print at home for my own scrapbook use if I need something fast, but I do not think you could really get consistant prints for clients. Maybe I am the one wrong, but with labs so cheap I use other than home for my clients. just my opinion |
Photography by Jennifer
NIKON D 600
Nikon 28 mm F2.8
Nikon 50mm F 1.4
Nikon 85mm F 1.8
NIkon 105 mm F 2.8
Nikon 70-300 F 4.5
It is my desire to learn more about photography everyday.
I think a photography class should be a requirement in all educational programs because it makes you see the world rather than just look at it. | |
|
|
Idahopea
AncestralPea
PeaNut 118,464
December 2003
Posts: 4,186
Layouts: 0
Loc: Idaho
| Posted: 2/18/2013 3:33:19 PM
To save ink, especially if I'm printing a big photo like 13x19 size, I do a temporary crop to 4x6 size and print a small print first. Helps to see what adjustments I need to make before I print at a larger size. Sometimes the ratios are not the same so part of the big photo is cropped off when I crop to 4x6, but it is worth checking to see if it comes out overall. It is important to use the same settings and same type of paper as what will be used with the final print though. | |
|
NatalieParker
PeaWee
PeaNut 570,893
October 2012
Posts: 6
Layouts: 2
Loc: Oakland, CA
| Posted: 2/24/2013 5:18:58 PM
I print all of my pictures at home because I'm a control-freak 
When I got my new printer, I printed a single picture using a bunch of different settings on the printer until I got a default setting that I think best approximated what I wanted. Yes, I could calibrate, but I'm too lazy for that. Chatting with someone who had the same printer, she experienced pictures printing too dark so she actually lightens all her photos before printing. |
Natalie Parker
http://www.almostneverclever.com | |
|
|
