Soft Proofing is a way to simulate on-screen what a print will look like on your chosen paper/print product. Profiles are available for our giclee prints, rolled canvas, print and mount, self-serve frames and stretched canvas.
Working knowledge of soft-proofing, basic colour theory, and a relatively new, colour-calibrated monitor gives the best results.
If your monitor is calibrated, here's what to do:
- Download our print profiles (updated October 2023). The zip file includes profiles for all our print products, organised by folder. They're designed to be viewed in daylight (a colour temperature of 5000 - 6000K).
- Install these in the relevant folder on your system.
Installation using Windows:
- Extract the downloaded Zip file by right-clicking the zip folder and selecting “extract all”.
- Right-click on the unpacked ICC Profile and select "Install Profile". The installation will only take a few seconds. You can manually install your profile by moving it to the folder below.
Windows 2000, XP, Vista, 7, 8, 10 - C:/windows/system32/spool/drivers/color
Windows 95, 98 - C:/windows/system/color
Windows NT - C:/winNT/system32/color
Note: Please restart your graphics application (e.g. Photoshop) if it was open during the profile installation.Installation using Mac OS:
1. Double-click on the downloaded Zip file. The ICC Profile will be extracted in the same folder automatically.
2. Move the extracted ICC Profile to the proper folder listed below.
Mac OS 8-9x - System Folder > Color Sync Folder
Mac OS X – [Go to] > [Computer] > [Macintosh HD] > [Library] > [ColorSync] > [Profiles]
Note: Please restart your graphics application (e.g. Photoshop) if it was open during the profile installation. - Open the file you wish to soft proof in Photoshop, then go to View > Proof Setup > Custom and select the profile you'd like to soft proof. Make sure "Black point compensation" is ticked. 'Simulate paper colour' is a setting that you can use to understand the differences in luminosity and whiteness that will affect your image, especially on matt papers/laminates where you will see a significant change. This simulation is often overemphasised on matt finishes, so bear this in mind.
- Name each paper profile so you can select it easily in the future. Don't forget to save.
- Use View > Proof Colours to see what your image will look like as a print. (Your file's title will change when viewing proof colours).
- Switching between the working space and our profiles, adjust the colours according to your chosen paper type. You'll notice that very bright colours may appear dull when soft-proofing (especially on matt papers), but you can change your file to make these colour shifts less noticeable.
- When you are at this stage, you should also check if all the colours in your image are in the colour space that we can print. To do this, you can go to View > Gamut Warning. The colours that turn grey are the ones outside of the gamut. A gamut is the range of colours a colour device can display or print. The benefit of going through this process is that you can choose what colour to replace them. If you want to read more about gamut warnings and how to deal with them, visit this helpful link from the University of Delaware.
- When you're happy with the file, please send it with an embedded source profile (usually Adobe RGB 1998). If your image is untagged, assign an RGB profile such as Adobe 1998 or sRGB. Don't embed our paper profile, or your image won't print correctly!
A note on matt papers:
Today's ultra-bright monitors may misrepresent the brightness of your actual print. Colours are shown on screen via an array of light-emitting diodes (or conductors in LCD). Colours are represented on paper using pigments. Therefore, there will be a change in luminosity between the two mediums, which is more apparent on matt papers than gloss.
If you'd like more information, visit Adobe's colour management help page or call us.
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