RGB or Cmyk

[Infrared digital]

We normally operate in RGB but is it better to work in Cmyk. Our main work is still images and therefore end up being printed but - is it better to operate entirely in Cmyk or convert at the end ?

n

[plastic_]

convert at the end, or don't convert at all.
from the artist's pont of view CMYK is just a stupid print standard. it makes no sense for rendering or photo manipulation.
besides, most consumer printers and large format plotters don't support CMYK with the windows printer drivers, so you would just lose quite some color information because of the conversion. (converting to CYMK reduces the color depth per channel, because of the additional channel)

[egz]

You should stay in RGB as long as possible, and only convert to CMYK before going to print.

The reason is that the CMYK conversion might differ depending on where you are printing. For instance a CMYK image converted for offset printing on coated art paper might look terrible if printed in a newspaper ad, or if printed on a huge plotter. Usually the printer will be able to specify the color profile you should use for the conversion to get the optimal result.

We usually work in 16 bit RBG in photoshop for stills, and then convert using the recommended color profile right before sending the image to print.

[Infrared digital]

So, when you convert, there are slight tonal changes - do you make any adjustments for this ?

[tom182]

from the artist's pont of view CMYK is just a stupid print standard. it makes no sense for rendering or photo manipulation.

well any pics I take are initially in RGB mode then in PS i will convert to CMYK mode and adjust the curves - which is a pretty typical option in image manipulation, i.e. you can warm up pictures very easily in cmyk mode, then I will revert back to rgb before I save and quit the file.

Tom

[jujubee]

CYMYK is the subtractive model used for print. Combine all the 4 'colors' and it gets closer to a grayish black. If you convert to CMYK in PS, your screen to print output should look more accurate on printed materials.

RGB is considered additive as it's light. combine all the colors and you should get white (full spectrum.)

It's not 'stupid' per se - it is what it is unless you can make printed pigments strictly out of photons. Many photo printers compensate for the lack of end-user knowledge now. They automatically convert RGB models over to CMYK prior to print - trying to match the CMYK as close to the RGB as possible.

I convert to CMYK first prior to printing (even on a photo-printer), then adjust the curves to match up to a RGB image. I just find I'm generally more accurate with Photoshop than most of the photo-printer conversions out there.