Dark Printing

[Quinn]

YIKES!!! I'm sooooo frustrated! My photos look BEAUTIFUL on my computer screen, but when I print them, they're dark. Should I be changing something before printing?

[Kelly]

It's might be that your monitor needs to be calibrated so that you're seeing what you'll be printing. I'd do a google search and you can learn all about it...
HTH!
-kelly

[April]

Are you printing at home?

[Quinn]

Both when I print at home (4x6) or @ Costco (12x12) the photos look really dark. I know it's not the photo because they are all taken in great light. Even my sunny pictures come out looking like I should have adjusted the lighting.

[April]

It's definitely your monitor. Hummm... I'm not really sure how to tell you to fix this unless you buy something to help you fix this. You could try adjusting your monitor by your self then do test prints to see if it's any better. You could also go to costco's website and finding their settings they recommend you set your monitor to. I don't remember exactly where to look but you click on something that talks about color settings for professionals.

[Keith]

What kind of monitor do you have? Are there letters/numbers on the front that will give me an idea?

[Quinn]

Keith... I hate to tell you this, cuz I know how you feel about this kind of thing, but... I have an iMac G5. And I bet I'll have to talk to someone at Apple, right? Well, I just wondered if I shouldn't be printing in RGB scale or something. I really appreciate your suggestions and I'll look into Costco's recommendations.

[April]

Although RGB could be the problem, I don't think it is. I've seen lots of people's pictures printed at Costco and they look great in RGB.

[Keith]

Quinn - Have a read of this and see if it makes sense or helps with your printing

http://kb.adobe.com/selfservice/viewContent.do?externalId=321608&sliceId=1

Well make sure it is part of photoshop with the MAC too, I am not sure if it is or not