Ralph Man
Self-taught in his craft, Ralph Man had the vision and talent to turn his passion for photography into a prolific career that spans advertising, magazines, and gallery exhibits. His love for photography started at an early age. Even as he apprenticed and worked in another trade – carpentry – Ralph nurtured his first love and kept honing his photographic skills throughout hours of dedication on his own time. Such perseverance formed the basis of his work ethic, influencing his continued commitment to ply his craft under the best possible circumstances. In today’s digital world, that translates into a color-controlled environment in which to create and realize his artistry. “It’s extremely important to work exactly, and to have a broad control. Since I started photographing digitally in 2005, it has been essential to have exact control of the resulting colors. In a digital environment, an investment of a good monitor and a good calibration device is critical to avoid bad surprises and customer complaints,” Ralph says. He recently selected ColorMunki Photo by X-Rite as his complete color management solution of choice. His reason? Ralph determined that this integrated, monitor-to-print match solution offered him the most complete color management solution. “The accuracy and the opportunity to adjust perfectly all components from the monitor to the printer – and even eventually with another output device like the beamer – makes it the broadest and best system that the market has to offer at the moment,” Ralph reveals. He feels this kind of investment in the best tools available is absolutely necessary to meet his own personal standards as well as current market demands. “As business becomes more competitive, clients are more and more critical and demanding. Especially big agencies don’t accept compromises or incorrect results. You can easily lose clients if you work incorrectly,” he says. Ralph offers an example: “One client (a fashion designer) had a dress in a specific color, which had to be displayed in absolutely the same color. He was excited when I showed him the pictures in exactly the required color and was much more relaxed, as from this time on, he had confidence in my work.”