Soft and hard proofing

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This shows how to simulate what an image will look like when it gets printed using the custom printer profile from CHROMiX. You can soft-proof an image using a feature in Photoshop, or you can “hard-proof” – actually make a print on one printer which simulates the output from a different printer.

Example of soft proof setup in Photoshop

Proof on the monitor (soft proofing)

  1. Open the image in Photoshop
  2. Choose "View > Proof Setup > Custom..."
  3. Device to Simulate: Select your custom CHROMiX profile
  4. Leave “Preserve Numbers” unchecked.
  5. Intent: Choose Perceptual or Relative Colorimetric, whichever you are using when printing (See Appendix B for more information on rendering intents)
  6. “Black Point Compensation”: √ checked
  7. Paper Color: unchecked; Simulate Ink Black: √ (checked)
  8. Click OK

The image on the monitor will be displayed through the same profile you will use when printing. This provides a more realistic expectation of the colors you will see on your print, because the display will be limited to the gamut of your printer.

You can use a press / proofer profile for this simulation, or your printer profile. In both cases Photoshop will display your image as if it had converted through the profile (as in the example above) and then “proofed” back to your monitor. This is the most common use of soft-proofing.

Preserve Color numbers checkbox

If the file is already in the color space of the proofer / printer / press and you do not intend to convert the file for printing (use the profile while printing), then select “Preserve RGB/CMYK Numbers.” Photoshop will then simulate how the image will look when sent to the proofer / printer / press without any further conversions taking place. This is an important distinction. Another attempt to explain this often-confusing feature is here.


Experiment with the “Paper White” and “Ink Black” settings to see how the image is affected. Incorrectly measured paper white or black points may produce inaccurate results.

You can click “Save...” to name and save the proofing setup. This setup will then appear at the bottom of the "View > Proof Setup” menu for use again in the future and also in the printer-proofing technique explained below.

Proof on a printer (hard copy proof)

(steps 1-8 are repeated from above)

  1. Open the image in Photoshop
  2. Choose "View > Proof Setup > Custom..."
  3. Device to Simulate: Select your custom CHROMiX profile
  4. Leave “Preserve RGB/CMYK Numbers” unchecked.
  5. Intent: Relative Colorimetric
  6. “Black Point Compensation: √ (checked)
  7. Simulate Paper Color: unchecked; Simulate Ink Black: √ (checked)
  8. Click OK
  9. Choose “File > Print...”
  10. Choose “Color Management” from the popup menu
  11. Choose “Proof” instead of Document
  12. For Color Handling: “Photoshop Manages Colors”
  13. Choose printer profile
  14. For Rendering Intent: choose Absolute or Relative Colorimetric

Note: When you choose Proof Setup in step 11, the rendering intent will default to the same rendering intent you used to soft proof. If you choose Absolute Colorimetric, the printed image will simulate the gamut and paper color of the proofing profile. If you want to simulate only the gamut and not the paper color, then choose Relative Colorimetric for the rendering intent.

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