I thought Photolab 4 used to process my files as Adobe RGB (respecting the camera’s raw file setting). I just noticed it’s been exporting them as sRGB. I can’t find a setting to change this and I checked the online manual and the word “sRGB” isn’t even in the manual. I am using DxO Standard and making some adjustments from there. I am exporting DNG files.
If someone can help me fix this I’d be very grateful!
When you select Export to Disk, select DNG and see what’s filled in next to “ICC Profile.” Is it sRGB?
When you click “export” that’s where you change what type you want sRGB or Adobe RGB, i think you can also select your icc profile.
mikerofoto, thanks for your reply! This got me digging further. However, unlike other export formats there is no place to choose output color mode when exporting to DNG. I would think DNGs should either be the full gamut of the camera or respect the camera setting of Adobe RGB. The DNGs are showing as tagged sRGB in PhotoMechanic. I’m not sure if this color space is “cooked” into the DNGs. If it isn’t cooked in then it is just a tagging bug. If it does throw away colors that are outside the sRGB gamut then it’s a much bigger problem. Capture One doesn’t show a color space for RAW files (it shows its ICC profile for my Canon R5) and outputs the color space set up in the processing recipe so they “turn back into” Adobe RGB when processed which is one reason I haven’t noticed this before. However, if color is being lost on conversion to DNG you don’t get it back if you change it from sRGB to Adobe RGB. Any idea of the answer to this? Thanks again!
Wolfgang, thanks for your reply! Of course, my camera is set to Adobe RGB. However, I don’t see the ICC profile info in your screenshot. I’ve attached a screenshot to show what I see. Could it be a Mac vs Windows version issue (I’m on a Mac)? Also, according to your screenshot, I think tagging the DNG output as sRGB is a bug.
Good question, why there’s no choices with the DNG export.
mikerofoto, I’m still wondering if it’s a problem with the Mac version. Are you Windows or Mac? Wolfgang and Egregius’s profiles say Windows.
All what I know is that exporting a DNG-format file doesn’t limit your colour space.
@RCinNJ
The DNGs are showing as tagged sRGB in PhotoMechanic.
I don’t know PhotoMechanic / why it is showing you this tag.
“I don’t know PhotoMechanic / why it is showing you this tag.”
Wolfgang, that’s an excellent question. I had assumed DxO was setting the wrong profile tag but I’m now thinking PhotoMechanic is showing the wrong profile for some reason. I just posted on their forum. Good to know this doesn’t actually affect the color gamut of the DNG’s. As I said, Capture One shows it’s own ICC profile for my camera, but I just opened an image in Camera Raw and it does show it as in the Adobe color space. I assume this will be the end of my worries. Thanks to you and everyone who helped.
Although, I still have no idea why my copy of PhotoLab 4 doesn’t show the color space for DNGs like your’s does. Technically not needed apparently, but weird that it is not the same.
How big are your DNG’s?.
George
George, I would hope the size wouldn’t make a difference for this issue, but from the R5’s 45 megapixels they swell to about 194 megapixels. I definitely only use these when I feel I need them. Generally for high ISO images and newer lenses were DxO has better support.
I’m just asking for if they where around the same size of your RAW files, then the DNG contains that RAW file and no color space is assigned.
George
I’m on Mac, I can’t test it as I’m away from home for few days but sure will check when I’m back, but I’m still on PL3.
In PM it will tell your camera setting, either sRGB or Adobe RGB, not sure why yours would say sRGB if your camera setting is Adobe RGB.
Not sure if DxO’s DNGs include the Raw file. I know some DNGs do but not sure if all. My understanding is the DxO DNG is so big because the Raw has been demosaiced and essentially contains a 16 bit Tiff plus other stuff (maybe the Raw). I may be wrong and maybe someone will correct me if I am.
I sent a DNG to the senior engineer at Photo Mechanic and have his answer, “Photo Mechanic is using the JPEG preview from the DNG file and the preview’s profile is sRGB.” and “Photo Mechanic isn’t showing you the rendered DNG. It is showing you the JPEG preview and it is in sRGB.”
Photo Mechanic is not an image editing program and it shows embedded previews when possible to speed up what it is excellent for: quickly culling and rating images and adding metadata. I find it weird that DxO has their DNG engine set to create sRGB embedded previews. It’s not impossible the Photo Mechanic senior engineer is wrong, but he generally knows his stuff when pulling apart the embedded info from image files.
If you look at a raw file from PM it will show you the jpeg preview yes, but is the raw preview in PM sRGB like the DxO DNG?
I might be wrong but isn’t PL default processing to sRGB? and only in the export the option to select Adobe or sRGB?
That’s exctly why I asked you for the size.
If you want to compare with DNG’s that contain a RAW file you can download the DNG converter from Adobe Adobe Digital Negative Converter. They save the DNG with a RAW file. In my test, wit Nikon D750, the DNG was smaller as the NEF file but I found out that was due to the embedded JPG. If I changed the size of the embedded JPG to full size, like Nikon does, then the size of the DNG was exactly the size if the NEF.
Here are the specs of a DNG https://www.adobe.com/content/dam/acom/en/products/photoshop/pdfs/dng_spec_1.4.0.0.pdf.
George
@RCinNJ, @mikerofoto
exporting from PL as DNG doesn’t give an option to choose a profile
I think you already gave the answer earlier in this tread. Set the camera to Adobe RGB (as you recommended) and hopefully that will be what´s coming out.
There is a problem though and it´s if you decide to print right from the DNG but do people in general do that? Isn´t it the case in most cases to save it as a JPEG from the DNG (as we might see as asort of RAW) with the appropriate ICC for printing OR screen? If we do that this is no problem is it?
I don´t see this as a problem. Do you?
