Installing and Using MUSEA Lab Printer Profile

Installing the MUSEA Lab Printer Profile

1) Download the MUSEA Lab Printer Profile HERE

2) Move the MUSEA Lab Printer Profile to the proper folder on your computer.

For MAC: Go to - Macintosh HD > Library > Colorsync > Profiles

Alternate location: Users > "User Name" > Library > Colorsync > Profiles

For Windows: Windows\system32\spool\drivers\color

3) Restarting Photoshop or Lightroom is necessary for the Profile to show up. You also may need to restart your computer.

Using the MUSEA Lab Printer Profile

1. Open Photoshop. Go to Edit >  Color Settings and set your working space to sRGB
2. Open your image in Photoshop.
3. Edit your file.
4. Now it is time to soft proof to see how the print will look.  Select View→Proof Setup→Custom
5. Select Musea.icm from the drop-down list in the Proof Setup dialog box.
6. Check the Preview box and turn on Black Point Compensation to accurately scale the black level in your image to the printer's black.
7. Do not select Preserve Color Numbers. This shows how your image would look if you did not do a color space conversion — just the opposite of what you want.
8. Set rendering intent to Relative Colorimetric. Your settings should look like the screenshot below:
9. Do any additional editing. You'll especially want to pay attention to the dark tones in your image and possibly do some burning to deepen them a bit.
10. Now do a 'Save As' and save this file in a folder that you know is ready to be printed via the MUSEA Lab
11. Place your order!

DO NOT ASSIGN OUR PROFILE TO YOUR IMAGE!

Since we are printing on matte paper, there is a challenge in getting the blacks deep enough to appear close to what you have on your screen. The system we have outlined above is kind of a 'trick' to get the blacks deeper and more appealing on our paper. If you went purely by our profile by assigning it to the image, you'd probably find the image to come back a little too flat. 

The key to getting your prints to match as close as possible to your screen through us is to commit 100% to an sRGB workflow. Your camera, Lightroom and Photoshop should all be set to sRGB. The above steps allow you to 'soft proof' your images so you can edit properly in Photoshop, but the key is to keep the image in the sRGB profile instead of converting it to our profile 100%. This allows you to get a bit more contrast and punch in your image since the matte paper will try to bring the contrast down. It's a very subtle thing, but we find it's the more accurate and pleasing for all of our papers!

CAN I MATCH YOUR PRINTS TO MY COMPUTER SCREEN?

No print will every 100% match your computer screen. The main reason for this is because a computer screen emits light (backlit) and a print reflects light that falls on it. If you follow the instructions above that will get you as close as possible, but the texture and contrast of paper will never be identical to what you see on a computer screen.

When you are viewing your prints make sure you are looking at them in pure daylight! The best place to do this is next to an open window. This will show you the truly color of our prints. If you are sitting in a room with house lights and a mix of window light and light coming off your computer screen, that will not give you an accurate reading. Remember prints reflect light that fall on them, so if you are in a room with very warm light the prints will look too warm. If you are in a room with mixed lighting, then the prints will look a bit off. Always check the color by going to a window and looking at the prints there!