Save for Web changes image

[Bayla]

Can anyone explain why sometimes when I do a Save for Web I get a darker image than what I see in PSE6?

Here's an example of what I mean:

http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1ZbP5qlehrp1tqaUoOx0LBHzH56Iwc1_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1ZbP5qlehrp1tqaUoOx0LBHzH56Iwc1)

The image on the left says Original but looks nothing like the original, it is much darker. The image on the right says Jpeg but looks like the psd or jpeg file I'm seeing in Elements. If I click on the preview I see the image on the left which is not what I want!


Bayla

[Juergen D]

Bayla,

Right click on both the left and the right panel in the Save for Web window. You'll see several color display options. I have both sides set to Uncompensated Color, which seems to be pretty close to my printed output.

You can also move the Save for Web dialog box down so you can see the image in the Editor and compare those three displays.

Juergen

[Bayla]

Juergen,

Thanks, I didn't know about that.

OK. I've got them so they both look like my image in PSE6. But when I click on preview you can see what I get on the lefthand image - it's much darker! That's what my Save for Web image looks like.

http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1qrGzNVIVELFBdDZAEpOxTElft81Bv1_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1qrGzNVIVELFBdDZAEpOxTElft81Bv1)

Do you see a difference? Or is it my monitor? Maybe I need to calibrate it?

Bayla

[Wendy]

Hi Bayla ...

Save for web strips off the embedded colour profile ... that maybe causing the colour difference. I really think that it would be worth calibrating your monitor.

Wendy :)

[Juergen D]

What have you set the Save for Web display to? I actually see a difference between the right and left one. The preview is definitely different from everything else. I just tried here, with the Uncompensated Color setting and my Preview matches that.

Juergen

http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/19ehFjKNjr5yKV7DEwwzAeepu9HVs_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=19ehFjKNjr5yKV7DEwwzAeepu9HVs)

[Bayla]

Juergen,

When I set them both to the Uncompensated Color setting the right side looked as if I had a Gif with a selected color palette of about 22 colors selected, so I set them both to Use Document Color Profile then they look more or less similar (though I can also see a difference) and the one on the right looks like what I see in PSE (and Lightroom). Either way the Save for Web is still much much darker!

Bayla

[Juergen D]

...the right side looked as if I had a Gif with a selected color palette of about 22 colors selected...

Hmmm, we may have to wait for one of the color management experts. Wendy may be right with her suggestion to calibrate the monitor. Are you working in the Adobe RGB color space?

Juergen

[Wendy]

Hi ...

If one of the images has a colour profile and the other doesn't .. then it really does sound to me as if your monitor needs calibrating.

Wendy :)

[johnrellis]

As Wendy said, by default Save For Web removes any color profile associated from the saved image. The color profile tells “color managed” programs how to interpret the colors in the image, so you would expect that removing the profile will change the way it is displayed. The fact that in your example the saved-for-Web image is darker is entirely expected. It does not necessarily indicate that your display needs calibrating (though calibration is always a good thing).

How the saved-for-Web image actually appears depends on the original profile of the image, the operating system (Mac or Windows), the program displaying it (Internet Explorer, Safari, etc.), your display, and whether you’ve calibrated the display.

Note that others on the Web viewing the saved-for-Web image may well see it differently than you, depending on their operating system and browser.

To see what the saved-for-Web image will look like before you save it:

1. Right-click the left image and select Use Document Color Profile. The left “original” image should now look the same as it appears in the Editor, Lightroom, or other color-managed program.

2. Right-click the right image and select Standard Windows Color or Standard Macintosh Color to see what the image will look like on typical Windows or Mac computers. This is only an approximation, but it should give you an idea.

Note that using the Preview In button may or may not be useful in determining how others on the Web will see your saved image. It depends on your operating system, the program being used to preview the image, and whether your display is calibrated or has an associated profile.

[johnrellis]

When I set them both to the Uncompensated Color setting the right side looked as if I had a Gif with a selected color palette of about 22 colors selected...
You probably had Browser Dither selected as well, which would cause that effect. That option is for previewing on very old computers and no longer useful.