X-Rite photo

Date Created: 10/2/2017   Date Modified: 10/26/2017

Poor results with Monitor profile in i1Studio on Mac

If a display profile produces poor results (color cast, low contrast, high contrast, low luminance, etc...), try reprofiling after making sure to check the following:
  • Connect the measurement device to a properly powered USB port.  Typically, a tower will have rear ports that more reliably and consistently deliver the required power to the device. 
  • Avoid using USB ports on keyboards and monitors.  Also avoid unpowered USB hubs as well as USB extensions.
  • An acceptable extension is the use of a powered USB hub.  Some laptop computers will require a powered USB hub to deliver the necessary power.
  • PLACE THE MEASUREMENT DEVICE FLUSH ON THE SCREEN WHEN PROFILING!  This will more easily be accomplished tipping the display back and carefully place the device on the screen while viewing from the side.  An instrument that is not flush on the screen’s surface will result in bad measurement data and then poor results when using the profile.  
  • Do not push on the device while measuring as pressure can change color on LCD screens.
  • Consider turning off all anti-virus and/or firewall software when profiling.
  • Laptops must have the power supply connected when profiling.

First reset the monitor:
  1. Go to System Preferences > Accessibility and select the “Display” option on the left.  Make sure that the “Display Contrast” slider is set all the way to the left at “Normal”.  Make sure that "Reduce transparency" is the only item checked just above the contrast slider.
  2. Now go to the Applications folder and right-click (or control-click) on the i1Studio application icon and click on “Show Package Contents”
  3. Navigate to Contents > MacOS > Profiles and then copy and paste the “XRite_LinearProfile.icc” profile to the Mac HD\Library\ColorSync\Profiles folder.  Close Finder.
  4. Open “Displays” in System Preferences and select the “Color” tab.  Click on the profile named “DisplayProfile_Linear.icc” to reset your display’s RGB channels to a linear fashion.  The onscreen color should change and will likely look bad.
  5. Close Displays and System Preferences.
  6. Connect the ColorMunki and open the i1Studio software application.
Profiling the Monitor
Open i1Studio by going to Finder>Applications>i1Studio>i1Studio or double clicking on the icon on the menu bar and select Display Calibration.  Here are the recommended settings for "Display Calibration" workflow.
 
  • Display Settings
    1. The i1Studio software will use default settings for Photo and Video options. The Photographic workflow includes locked down settings of white point, luminance, gamma, with flare correct turned off. 
    2. To change these options select the custom radio button and they will become selectable. 
    3. Video Users will have the following standards available DCI P3, ITU-R REC. BT709, NTSC, PALL SECAM, and REC 2020. The i1Studio will use DCI P3 as the default.
For the photographic users, i1Studio defaults to set values of CIE illouminant D65 for white point and a luminance value of 120cd/m.  In order to make any changes here you will need to click on the "Custom" radio button.  We suggest keeping these options however users may need to experiment with Luminance in order to meet the conditions of their ambient light in the room.  The luminance of your display/monitor determines the brightness.
  • Measurement and placing  the device on the screen
    1. Once the display options are correctly set, click Next to move to the "Measurment" tab in the workflow. The "Display Hardware Setup" is turned on by default.  This option is similar to the ColorMunki Photo preference for shutting off ADC/DDC which makes manual adjustments to the monitors RGB, Brightness, and Contrast options. 
    2. For the most ideal results we recommend leaving the manual option checked and making the adjustment to the displays brightness as the i1Studio software guides you after which the program will run through a series of color patches.  Once this process is completed it will once bring users back to the same Measurement screen, click “Next” to proceed to building your profile.
    3. At the point of placing the device on the screen, make sure that the instrument is in the zippered pouch correctly by examining the shutter before placing it against the screen. Here the slider needs to be in an opened position and at that point a small bulb will be visible inside the device.  If some type of writing is visible this indicates that the instrument is not positioned in the pouch correctly and a message, "Display Not Detected" is prompted until this is resolved and will be unable to move forward.
 
  • ICC Profile
    1. Profile Name will default to the generic name of your display that is being reported by your monitor and operating system.  i1Studio allows users to give these profiles a custom name. 
    2. We generally recommend adding the date to the file name which allows you to build a new profile rather than writing over the exiting file.  The profile name MUST end with “.icc”.
 
Profile Reminder can be set to every 1, 2, 3, or 4 weeks or simply leave none if you do not wish to see the i1Studio Tray in your menu bar or see the messages.  Click "Save Profile" and you will see the right-side panel switch showing you the options to evaluate your profile.  The panel to the right of the screen contains useful information concerning the profile you just built.
To access this information, use the tabs along the upper part of the display panel.  These tabs include:
  1. 3D Gamut View - Shows a 3D gamut of your display profile. Use the Compare profile button to select other profiles to analyze along with your display profile.
  2. Profile Info - Shows the target and measured values for white point, luminance and contrast ratio.
  3. LUT View - Displays the video look-up tables (LUTs) contained in the profile.
  4. Before and After View - Allows you to compare images using the previously loaded profile and the profile just completed.
Click Home and exit the software, your new profile is now being used and you are ready to work.