Color Profile: Converting or Assigning?

[ElCapitan]

I know there is another thread on color space, but I need a direct answer on a specific subject.

I need to prepare an image for Outside Magazine. It is an B&W image that is currently set at sRGB. I know that for print, a lot of people want the image set to Adobe RGB. I know there is assign color profile and then convert to profile, but I am not sure which one is the right one to use.

My file is a PSD and then end product will be a full resolution jpeg. Through messing around, at least in color, I know one keeps the image looking exactly the same on my monitor while the other shifts the colors a bit. Unfortunately, I do not know which one is the one to use for preparing for print.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I plan on sending both an sRGB and an Adobe RGB just to be safe, but I would like to use the right Adobe RGB to be sure.

Thanks!

[teaking]

If the company who is printing the images has asked for the image in aRGB then you need to convert your file to aRGB as your colour space is sRGB and by just assigning the aRGB colour profile the program opening your image will think it is an aRGB file and your colours will be kinda dull. You may have notices this when uploading aRGB images in the internet and viewing them in internet explorer.

May I ask with out sounding like an idiot, if you have edited the files in sRGB ( which is a good idea unless you have an high end monitor capeable of displaying wider gamuts) why convert it to aRGB if its not been requested? As the colours you have edited may well change plus if it does go to plan you will end up with the same colours. Just curious

[ElCapitan]

I do work in sRGB. The reason for the conversion to aRGB is that I know some magazines and other prints like to have the image as aRGB. I sent some photos for possible selection in brochures and other marketing items and they asked for aRGB. I sent both aRGB and sRGB just to be safe.

[teaking]

Sorry if I sounded rude

If they asked for them then your right to supply them.

Im just scratching my head though as if they were not captured in that colour space (if they were Jpegs) then your not going to get any more colours out of them your just spreading them further apart. If they were RAW files converted to 16bit Tiffs there still going to have the same colours but more room to edit them in the wider colour space.... it just seems well, mental lol would love to know why they ask these things

[ravncat]

Assign profile is used for images without color profiles already in the file. ( or with unknown profiles) there are many images without profiles can even save images without them.

Assigning a profile gives the image a profile. Conversion will allow you to keep colors relatively the same as you convert.

[ElCapitan]

That is the best explanation I have ever heard of assigning or converting profiles. All the sites i looked at went in to way too much detail and just made it even more confusing.

Teaking. No problem, I shoot RAW and set the profile to sRGB for when I am working on it. When I print at home, I leave it in sRGB as I see no difference when I print it either way, or the aRGB looks different and not what I want. sRGB pretty much turns out just how I like it.

I guess some major publishing place have their printers setup, or that's just the way their printers work, to take aRGB. I just thought it would be better to be safe and give them both and then let them decide which one to use. Converting one to aRGB left it looking exactly the same, so there were no problems.

[ravncat]

It`s usually not a problem to convert from a smaller color space to a larger color space - ie SRGB to ARGB , but the other way around can sometimes be difficult, depending on if there are colors in the image that are outside of the SRGB color space.