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New! Capture One Custom Profiling with Xrite ColorChecker App

Steve Hendrix

Steve Hendrix

Well-known member
For the past few months, we have been working with Xrite on a beta of their ColorChecker App that is utilized for custom profile generation. The key difference for this app is that it now incorporates ICC profiles, not just the previous DNG workflow. For Capture One users, this is huge. Article URL is below with the Xrite public beta download link. Give it a try!

https://captureintegration.com/new-capture-one-custom-profiling-with-xrite/


Steve Hendrix/CI
 
etrump

etrump

Well-known member
Finally! The way I have to do long exposure color profiling now is a pain.

thanks Steve!
 
dchew

dchew

Well-known member
As many of you know from the BTS thread, I just delivered a bunch of images of leather samples. Although most of the colors came out quite good, there were some I had to modify to get the color right. I actually took three images of each sample, one of which included a full color checker passport sitting on the sample. I just went back and created a profile from those color checker images. Boy do the colors look better, especially the blues and greens.
:thumbup:

Dave
 
drunkenspyder

drunkenspyder

Well-known member
Steve Hendrix said:
For the past few months, we have been working with Xrite on a beta of their ColorChecker App that is utilized for custom profile generation. The key difference for this app is that it now incorporates ICC profiles, not just the previous DNG workflow. For Capture One users, this is huge. Article URL is below with the Xrite public beta download link. Give it a try!

https://captureintegration.com/new-capture-one-custom-profiling-with-xrite/


Steve Hendrix/CI
Click to expand...
Ultra cool. Thanks Steve.
 
R

RLB

Member
While I don't doubt the ability of the Xrite software to make a profile I'm skeptical about the quality of that profile based on my past expereice with other systems that are far more advanced.

My concern with the Xrite set up are regarding the aparent lack of sophistication of the process and software:

- Small patch set with only 24 reference tiles. Previously I've profiled cameras using a 200-300 patch set reference target.

- No redudant patches in the target to account to verify the quality of consistancy

- No direction about the type of light source to use for the target, how to light target, etc. which will have a significant effect on the
quality and accuracy of the profile

I too wish that there were a good, inexpensive and easy to use system for profiling a camera, however thats fantasy according to my 20+ years of color management consulting and building profiles for both cameras and printers. Honestly, a $40-$50k DB should absolute come from the manufacturer with such a custom profile, and it should not be the end users task to make such. JMHO.

As a start, if you are looking for accurate color I'd suggest an Eizo monitor calibrated correctly, use Linear for the processing curve, and have a quality spectrally neutral gray card in the image set you are shooting. I've tested many greay cards and sadly most are not as spectally neutral as they claim. If just one link in your color management chain is broken, your end result will suffer.

Robert
 
kdphotography

kdphotography

Well-known member
Try reducing the resolution of the image with the color checker. The pdf instructions state that there is a 150MB TIFF limit that they are working on fixing. I was having problems also, though my image was below the stated 150MP threshold. I lowered it a bit more and it worked.
 
F

FelixCLC

New member
Wonderful! Thanks for sharing Steve!

In terms of using the workflow, does CI have any guides or tips for using a more colour managed workflow than the native C1 profiles with film curves vs creating a new ICC then using linear response?

I'm testing now and noticing that gradients seem more consistent, but overall tones feel like their missing "life" for lack of better terminology.
 
D

dougpeterson

Workshop Member
FelixCLC said:
I'm testing now and noticing that gradients seem more consistent, but overall tones feel like their missing "life" for lack of better terminology.
Click to expand...
That's because scientifically accurate color and tone is very rarely the desired end result for photographers and when they get it they find it lacking in contrast, saturation, and perceived dimensionality/tactility ("life"). Of 100 people who tell me they want "perfectly accurate color" 99 of them find out that's not what they want (instead they want something like "spot hue/saturation matches for product colors" or some other related color goal). Scientifically accurate color and tone is the goal, for example, in Cultural Heritage Digitization and Art Reproduction, for which we have this authoritative color guide for capture one workflows.
 
D

dougpeterson

Workshop Member
RLB said:
I too wish that there were a good, inexpensive and easy to use system for profiling a camera, however thats fantasy according to my 20+ years of color management consulting and building profiles for both cameras and printers. Honestly, a $40-$50k DB should absolute come from the manufacturer with such a custom profile, and it should not be the end users task to make such. JMHO.
Click to expand...
Capture One CH provides bespoke profiles created for each P1 back and a variety of high CRI/CQS illuminates including the DT Photon (98CRI, 98CQS, very flat spectrum). In our experience these profiles out perform in-situ profiles (those profiles custom made by the user) in most cases, and have none of the draw backs (false positives, fragile under slight condition variations, time consuming, error prone).
 
F

FelixCLC

New member
dougpeterson said:
That's because scientifically accurate color and tone is very rarely the desired end result for photographers and when they get it they find it lacking in contrast, saturation, and perceived dimensionality/tactility ("life"). Of 100 people who tell me they want "perfectly accurate color" 99 of them find out that's not what they want (instead they want something like "spot hue/saturation matches for product colors" or some other related color goal). Scientifically accurate color and tone is the goal, for example, in Cultural Heritage Digitization and Art Reproduction, for which we have this authoritative color guide for capture one workflows.
Click to expand...
Gotcha! With that being the case, for most users in the portraiture part of the C1 install base; whom would like to start out in a baser profile/ calibrated workflow friendly environment, we would then make our own preferred (to taste) curves, levels, balances etc.

At which point because we're departing from the initially calibrated file so much that we might as well save time when it’s not a major requirement and use the provided embedded profiles.
 
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D

dougpeterson

Workshop Member
FelixCLC said:
Gotcha! With that being the case, for most users in the portraiture part of the C1 install base; whom would like to start out in a baser profile/ calibrated workflow friendly environment, we would then make our own preferred (to taste) curves, levels, balances etc.

At which point because we're departing from the initially calibrated file so much that we might as well save time when it’s not a major requirement and use the provided embedded profiles.
Click to expand...
Such use cases are, in my opinion (informed by many years of teaching C1 and consulting on color) ill-suited to any programmatic-method of profile creation (i.e. insert color target -> push button -> get profile).

We cover some highly-detailed and quite nuanced methods for the creation of custom profiles specific to portraiture in our Capture One Masters classes. Done correctly, it's faster, more robust, and more specifically suited to portraiture.
 
S

steve_cor

Member
I think the software, ColorChecker App, is free. The idea is you pay for the color checker passport, so you don't have to pay for the program to use it. But I couldn't find anywhere that says so.

The original video instruction is gone from their website. But I found it on YouTube:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3DsrO6u9iWg

It's a lot of steps so sometimes I have to watch it again.


--Steve.
 
MGrayson

MGrayson

Subscriber and Workshop Member
Ye Gods! So much "it can't possibly work well". How about an experiment showing it working or not working? ANY profile is someone's guess at a starting point. I KNOW I don't want perfectly accurate color, but I'd love pinning an accurate blue sky and working from there.

But then, I mostly process to B&W... :angel:

Matt
 
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steve_cor

Member
buggz said:
The links to the software is dead?
Click to expand...
Well, just the beta of new ColorChecker software, and the video is gone. There is a new version now that's not beta anymore. But I wanted to see the video again because it shows how to prepare the file to make the color profile.

I like the colors better using this. It's a few extra steps, but worth it. Now I wrote down all the steps on an index card so I don't have to watch the video every time.


--Steve.
 
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