sRGB in batch processing, or not?

WinsomeWorks

Question, copied from a thread in May that never got answered.... Why do most instructions on batch processing tell me to NOT put files in sRGB when batch-processing? I thought that's what most of my files are normally in. I thought I'd read that here somewhere, but maybe it was in the PS 2 for Dummies book. Would a PS 4 book tell me otherwise? Some of my batch-edited files would end up being uploaded to microstock agencies for sale, lots would get uploaded here for viewing/printing, and some may go to RedBubble or FineArtAmerica for various product sales there. I've read these articles: http://www.smugmug.com/help/srgb-versus-adobe-rgb-1998 (on Smug) and http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/adobe-rgb.htm (Ken Rockwell's site) about the differences, amongst other articles. These lead me to think I should be using sRGB, whether batch-processing or not. I don't know why I've gotten the opposite advice for batch processing.

arodney

This should be a good primer:http://www.adobe.com/digitalimag/pdfs/phscs2ip_colspace.pdf
Best advise I can provide is not to read anything Ken has to say about color management!

Andy

It's really simple: if you want to display on the web, and sell via SmugMug, Anna Lisa, they must be in sRGB.

WinsomeWorks

Andy wrote: »

It's really simple: if you want to display on the web, and sell via SmugMug, Anna Lisa, they must be in sRGB.

Well, I wish it were that simple, Andy. I know you guys will switch it to sRGB here, and that's fine. If for some reason I were using RGB, I can always create a second file that's sRGB too. But I'm currently doing my batch processing in PS 4, and the PS book says not to use RGB when batch processing (I'm not saying I'm going to follow it-- so far, I can't even find the choice!!) I was mainly asking if there's something about batch processing that affects one type of file or the other... I can't imagine what.

Just to note--SmugMug's own article about it says this: "...If sRGB covers the colors of your shots (as it does for weddings, portraits, and most event photography) and your shots are destined for the Internet and commercial printers, we recommend they not pass through Adobe RGB first..." Well, weddings, portraits, events & internet viewing only covers a very small percent of my photos' purposes. I do way more in nature, macro, scenes, various kinds of prints & enlargements, and stock. I'm not a weddings/portraits/events photog. Over on iStockphoto, there are lots of reasons given to upload RGB, since many of those sales will end up printed in CMYK... but of course, some don't like the way their RGB displays then in comparison, when some people are using sRGB. So I've seen arguments for both... career stock people there all have their reasons.

So yeah, when you're doing a whole gamut of stuff w/ your images, it's not such a simple question. At any rate, it looks like I'm doing sRGB for now anyway, because both my cameras seem to be set that way, and like I said, I don't even see a place to choose when batch processing! The book has had other mistakes, so maybe this is one of them.

arodney

WinsomeWorks wrote: »

Just to note--SmugMug's own article about it says this: "...If sRGB covers the colors of your shots (as it does for weddings, portraits, and most event photography)...

That’s a silly statement expect for someone shooting JPEG with the camera set for sRGB. Switch to JPEG and Adobe RGB (1998) and that doesn’t wash. Shoot raw, the statement is simply ridiculous! Are we supposed to believe that weddings, portraits and event photography (all having a broad range of scene gamut) only fall into sRGB? Its easy to demonstrate this isn’t the case, that the real world has colors and our capture devices (and output devices) can capture colors that exceed sRGB.