Ah..... the bygone days of the 4x5 transparency. For those publishers who lament the passing of transparencies I can only say this: be happy they are gone. We have been fooling ourselves for a long time but did not realize it until really good direct digital capture came to the fore. It turns out that transparency film is actually a dreadful medium for reproducing artwork. It has a very limited dynamic range, and a color gamut that often missed the colors of the original artwork. How can this have been allowed to happen, you may ask? In those days the workflow reality was that by the time the film came back from the lab, the painting was often out of the studio, so conducting a direct comparison was impossible. Even when it was possible to compare a transparency with an original, the 4x5 chrome was a glowing jewel on a light box, and the painting was illuminated by room light. The reality is that publishers never had to print an accurate rendition of the original artwork-- they just had to match the transparency. The transparency became the original-- and it could easily travel to the separator and the printing plant, and be directly compared to a proof or even a press sheet. We achieve much more "accurate" reproductions with direct digital captures; however it comes at a price. Things are much more complicated. ICC color management works really well-- but only if implemented correctly. However, it is very complex-- (review Ken's post-- dense stuff, and I'm sure he was dumbing it down for us!) A single misapplied color profile can throw things WAY off. As Ken accurately pointed out, in such a situation the grayscale might well look perfect! Not all is hopeless, though. Direct digital capture is fast, and it is possible to perform good color adjustments in a controlled environment very quickly-- enabling direct comparisons with artwork while it is still in the studio. However it requires a very different approach than shooting transparencies. Calibration is important. Viewing environments must be controlled. In other words, this subject goes way beyond grayscales and color bars, but rather highlights the need to establish clear guidelines and procedures. Thankfully there are lots of initiatives to do this, some of which are highlighted at the upcoming MCN conference. Stanley Smith Manager, Imaging Services J. Paul Getty Museum 1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1000 Los Angeles, CA 90049-1687 (310) 440-7286
