When did you first understand the importance of color to the photographic process?
The first time I traveled to India I was amazed about the whole culture. It was a conglomeration of new and exotic traditions, textures, flavors, smells, and of course, color! Since then, I understood that color accuracy was crucial for my workflow to express better what I intended to tell with images.
What is the most important aspect of color management that an aspiring photographer should know?
Color accuracy is the most important aspect of color management that is possible to get only with a proper color profile. Nowadays, everyone is able to take pictures and post them on-line but as long as they are not printed, they remain images, not photographs. Once you see your work on paper in a medium or big format, the whole perspective changes and appreciating your images on a small screen is not enough.
Can you make an example of how a solid knowledge of color management (or an accurate color environment) helped you – for a project or for professional consultancy?
Doing travel or street photography is beautiful and challenging at the same time. Regarding color accuracy, by taking images outdoors one is always exposed to deal with different light conditions. Sometimes hard shadows or highlights are present at the same time and perception of color can vary dramatically among subjects. Therefore, having tools to gain color accuracy become very useful to get better results.
Why are you committed to using X-Rite products?
X-Rite is the world industry leader in color management solutions and their quality speaks by itself. I wouldn't expect to have professional results without professional gear.
How important are the latest color management tools in today's industry? Why?
Photography is a field that is always changing in terms of technology and color management tools are not the exception in this wide industry.
What does the (near) future hold for the photo industry, in your opinion? Do you think color management will be more or less important – why?
Color management will be more and more crucial because technology allows us to have better platforms to see and work on the pictures that we take. From 4K monitors to printers that offer better resolutions or social media.
How is color management related to your artistic process?
I want to express with accuracy in a printed image what my camera captured and what my eyes saw in an experience that I want to share through photographs. Colors influence human emotions, reactions, and behaviors and they can really speak louder than words.
Do you see color management as an advantage to save money?
Of course, if your workflow is more controlled and efficient from the beginning, fewer problems I will have during the editing process and ultimately when delivering results to clients or for personal projects.