This is an elaboration of the method suggested in an article "How to Profile your Paper and Ink" by Chris Bair at InkJetArt.com. How to Profile your Paper and Ink
A well adjusted monitor is essential. WiziWYG or Adobe Gamma can do a reasonably good job of monitor profiling if used properly. WiziWYG contains a monitor profiler very similar to Adobe Gamma which is free for anyone to use. WiziWYG web site A hardware profiler such as the ColorVision Spyder can obviously do a much more accurate job. ColorVision Spyder
It is VERY IMPORTANT that your printer is firing all nozzles perfectly before doing the profiling procedure. A nozzle check should not show any faint, deflected or missing portions.
A good scanner with proper scanner setup is also necessary. Ian Lyons Computer Darkroom Site has an article on Epson scanner setup here: Feature Articles - Epson Scanner Configuration. Also on this page is an overview of WiziWYG use.
The Profile Prism help file page also has good information on scanner setup and other profiling assistance. Profile Prism Help
Proper scanner setup is important and also very important when doing scanner profiling is the cleanliness of the scan. This means making sure your scanner glass is as clean as possible. I always scan into PhotoShop and retouch any remaining dust spots or other blemishes before saving the scan to an uncompressed Tiff which is imported into WiziWYG to produce the profile.
Here is how I modify the printer profiles using WiziWYG and PhotoShop Layers to modify the scanned print and target which produced an imperfect profile. The top layer in the adjustment set-up in PhotoShop is a copy of just the WiziWYG target from the bottom part of the scan.
The layer below this is the Curves adjustment layer. This can be more than one adjustment layer such as Hue/Saturation, Color Balance, etc. You can also use more than one Curves layer if the limited number of control points allowed in PhotoShop becomes a problem. By having the adjustment layers positioned below the copied WiziWYG target layer the target is not effected by changes you will make to the printed colour blocks part of the scan.
Next Layers down are the image of "combinedsmalltest.jpg" and the greyscale "stepwedge.jpg". These images make it possible to visualize what the modifications to the adjustment layers are doing.
And the complete scan is the Background Layer.
To make corrections to a less than perfect profile, print the combinedsmalltest image using the imperfect profile. Now use the Curves layer or other adjustment layer to make the image of combinedsmalltest on your screen look bad. That is try and get it to the same imperfection as the print in your hand.
Save this as a .psd file with all layers intact. Then delete the combinedsmalltest and stepwedge image layers. Flatten the remaining layers and save as an Uncompressed .tif file. Load this file into WiziWYG and create a new more accurate profile.
If a new printing of the combinedsmalltest image made with the new profile isn't perfect, reload the layered .psd file and make more corrections to get your profile closer to perfection. Remember you are working in reverse here. Making the combinedsmalltest image on your screen look brighter will produce a profile with prints darker. Making the screen image more green will cause the profile to make a more magenta print.
The greyscale stepwedge.jpg image is added as a layer to more easily correct uneven brightness and gamma, poor shadows etc. and colour crossovers. To really nail down a good profile for printing greyscales images using the colour inks it is necessary to keep correcting and printing the step wedge and slowly coax the steps to the correct colour and darkness. Correcting for colour will change the brightness and changing the brightness can effect the colour balance.
The curves shown here are corrections of a WiziWYG profile used with Generations4 ink on Aspen Dual-Side Matte with an Epson 1200.
The RGB curve shown corrects for a too light Step-12 next to the pure black Step-0 and a lightness around Step-50. The colour correction curves cure some colour crossovers in the greyscale image.
If you learn to use the keyboard to move the adjustment points in the PhotoShop Curves window a quite fine degree of control is possible. Control-Tab and Control-Shift-Tab to select the control point and then use the arrow keys to move the control point.
To print the combinedsmalltest image or the stepwedge I use an 8 x 10 blank image as a background layer with the small test image on a layer with can be moved around the paper to produce many test images on one sheet of paper. When using glossy paper be sure ink from the previous print is dry or it can come off on the printer rollers and make a bit of a mess.
There are a few different methods of applying printer profiles depending on your printer model and the software you print from. With my Epson 1200 and PhotoShop I always select the printer profile in the PhotoShop printer dialogue box, set the Epson driver to No Colour Adjustment and use the Backlight Film paper setting. As long as you are using a method which works properly and are completely consistent in its use all should be OK.
Ian Lyons site has information on the best ways to use profiles and many other hints and tutorials about Epson Printers, PhotoShop and Profiles.
Ian Lyons' Computer Darkroom Site
