Printing from Lightroom

[Guest]

Hello All,

I rarely actually print any of my photos, but have just bought a new printer and my missus wanted a few arty ones to put up in her place of work, so I ran a few off from lightroom.

Lightroom has the correct printer profile loaded (Canon mg6300), but when I print direct from the software the results are pretty poor, even when using soft proofing. Mono printing looks flat and lifeless, and when printing colour, it looks very different to what I see on my laptop, desktop or phone.

If I use the Canon software that came with the printer it is much better and looks more like what I can see on screen, so is there something obvious that I am missing ?

I should just add that I am a Lightroom Newbie and have only been using it for a couple of months, so replies pitched at "idiot level" would be good.

[StephenL]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

If you are using the printer profile in Lightroom, you have to ensure that any form of colour control is switched off in the print driver. And vice versa. If you use the Canon software it almost certainly switches it correctly itself, which is why the results look better.

Regarding mono printing, you really need a printer which has multiple black inks, otherwise it manufactures black from the other colours. The black in the MG6300 is only intended for text printing, and the printer won't use it as a "colour".

[OlyPaul]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

Jim if you select "manage by printer" you should get the same results as printing direct from the printer as long as you have managment enabled in the printer dialog boxer.

[pault]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

Hi, first question I would ask, is whether the screen you are using has been profiled. You need to be confident the image you are seeing is true.

[pdk42]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

Hi, first question I would ask, is whether the screen you are using has been profiled. You need to be confident the image you are seeing is true.

This is an important point IMHO. Without a calibrated screen all bets are off. In summary, to get screen and print matching, you need the following as an absolute minimum (and then the tweaking begins!):

- Calibrated monitor

- Turn off all printer-side colour management (usually in the printer properties page)

- Turn on LR colour management

- Make sure you have printer and paper profiles loaded in LR

Hope this helps!
-

[Guest]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

thanks all - I think I would probably benefit from calibrating the screen, but not sure it is causing the issue because when using the printer's own software the results are much better and look more like the image I see on screen.

will dig about in the LR/printer settings suggested tomorrow and see if I can improve things.

[Footloose1949]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

Since it sounds like your printer is outputting different quality images from two different pieces of software, the issue you have is likely to be that Lightroom is using (for instance) the Adobe RGB colour space, whilst your Canon software is using sRGB colour space. If this is the case, and the Canon software is producing better results, set your Lightroom software to the same colour space that the Canon software is set to.

Now, without changing anything else, run off the same file from both pieces of software, and on the front of these images, write which software was used, because as you are adjusting things, it becomes all to easy to forget which print came from which software!

The next thing I would check, is that the GAMMA setting values within each colour space is set the same. Gamma 1.0 will deliver different results to Gamma 1.1. Again, if these are different, use the Gamma setting used in the software which outputs the better quality print, into the software which isn't ok.

After doing both of these things, is it possible at some point in the past, you might have also adjusted the Red, Green, Blue, Brightness and Contrast settings within one of these pieces of software. (If it's possible to adjust them) If so, carefully note what these settings currently ARE, and apply them also to the software which doesn't deliver the result you prefer, and then output prints again from both pieces of software.

What you are doing, is ensuring that both pieces of software are 'singing the same tune'. Only after checking out these things, should you consider making changes to the settings on your monitor, so that it matches the colours, contrast and brightness levels shown in a print, because changing these, has no impact whatsoever on what your printer outputs.

You now have reached the point where you can get to work, calibrating your monitor's screen, to match what your prints look like. Always use the same make, weight and surface finish of paper. The paper manufacturer's website, may well offer you paper profiles, and before you start doing any calibrating, you should download and install in both pieces of software, the correct paper profile.

Don't chop and change between different grades and types of paper, with their respective paper profiles, as you will only end up getting utterly confused over what you are trying to do! (I've been there, got the badge, T-shirt and certificate proving what a horrendous mess you can get into!)

[Daveart]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

Hi I have a Canon A3 printer and it can and does print in true Adobe RGB as it is 14bit colour and does a more accurate job at this mode, were as most other printer are 10 bit, this can make a difference to match screen colours and colours are brighter stronger and crisper. My opinion, but have used both Epson and Canon.

Dave

[Guest]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

again, thanks all.

[mike_j]

Re: Printing from Lightroom

I have stopped using Lightroom to control the print and use the Canon driver on my Pixma Pro 9000 -II. The software has a useful utility which prints test sheets of thumbnails at at different manual colour adjustments so that you can pick the one best suited to match the monitor/ink/paper combination.