Easy Gray Profiles & The Color Editor
March 2, 2009 | Tech Features, Tips & Tech
Capture One Pro has a lot of advanced features which are rarely exploited by the average user. That’s one of the reasons we’ve introduced our online training series. Below is one of the topics we cover in depth in our Master’s Level class.
The Often Overlooked Color Editor
The Color Editor is one of the most powerful tools in Capture One. It can be used to modify skin tones, knock down the saturation of distracting elements, ensure the proper production of a patented product color, or simulate the black and white response of different black and white films. Yes many users have never used Color Editor. One of many uses of the Color Editor discussed in our online training is the creation of a Custom Easy-Gray Profile.
So what is an Easy-Gray Profile?
Slight color casts can be a major problem in some types of photography. One example is interior photography where either the shades of paint are not exactly the same shade of white, or are lit by different types of lights. Since you can only white balance to one white at a time it can be impossible to adjust to these different shades of white. Phase One anticipated this problem and produced easy-gray profiles for it’s modern P-series line of digital backs. The easy-gray profile makes the back less sensitive to lightly saturated colors without affecting fully saturated colors. However, Phase One did not create an easy-gray profile for dSLRS. In addition there may be instances where you want an easy-gray profile that leaves certain shades of lightly saturated colors alone (e.g. lightly saturated reds which are contained in skin-tones).Below you can download one such Easy-Gray Profile created by our Head of Tech Services, Doug Peterson. Once downloaded close Capture One and place the file in [User Folder > Application Support > Capture One > Presets > Selective Color Control] and load it using the down arrow in the upper right corner of the Color Editor. This profile may or may not suit your exact needs so more importantly you can create your own easy gray profile by selecting the inside of the color wheel (which represents the less saturated colors) and reducing the saturation, or by starting with our profile, modifying it, and saving it as your own.
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