how do a a monochrome to show as a neutral grey in CS3

[Ronald M]

When I scan a black and white neg in my KM 5400 or with my Epson 4780 save it to my computer, and open it using the Mac preview option, I see a beautiful neutral grey scale image with no color cast. All is good.

When I open it in CS3, it has an awful olive green cast to it much like a warm tone paper that is untoned.

I scan in greyscale mode.

If I scan in color mode, the same color cast appears. If I desaturate the image with hue/sat/lightness adjustment layer, the cast disappears and the image matches the neutral grey color patches in the swatches. I can not desaturate the greyscale image because that option is not available.

If I scan in color and convert to greyscale, the same color cast appears.

The iMac monitor is is calibrated with a new Eye One with the advanced mode. Color pictures from my digital cameras display correctly and print correctly if I send them to a commercial printer and ask they print without manipulation.

If I do a "soft proof" and pick the latest monitor profile from the list, I get a nice neutral toned image. However it is my understanding photoshop is suppoed to see the .icc profile from the calibration device and I should not have to do this. This is also unsatisfactory because if I want to tone an image, I can not soft proof it because it would require double profiles profiles to be selected.

I have not profiled either scanner, but I have no trouble scanning a color neg and having it appear correctly in photoshop.

How do I rid the image of the olive cast?

 

[fbf]

scan in color, add adjustment layer--> black&white. Done

 

[Dwig]

A greyscale file has no color so any color cast that appears in PS is a display issue and not the file's fault.

Since a greyscale file and a color file that has been desaturated display differently it must be a cast where there is an embedded profile in one and not the other or different embedded profiles and PS's application of these profiles is leading to the difference.

I would suspect that your scanning software is not embedding a profile in the greyscale image but is embedding one in the color image. You need to review PS's color management settings to resolve the issue.

 

[Ronald M]

Thank you.

Adj layer, black & white worked. I have no idea why image- mode- check greyscale which unchecks RGB, does not work.

I have spent most of last night reviewing PS settings for color and can`t find anything wrong. I will look at the scanner software tomorrow.

The strange thing is I never had this problem until I calibrated the monitor 3 weeks ago.

 

[Ronald M]

Mystery is solved.

Color neg scans from the Minolta 5400 pick up the monitor profile without intervention. If you ask it see profiles.

Greyscale scans show outside photoshop using the latest monitor profile. All is good there. In the box you find at edit-color settings, check the warning boxes that tell you what to do if imbedded profiles are different than what PS uses or untagged images are imported into photoshop. The greyscale scan triggers the warning box. Then you check the option to convert to current profile. It now shows inside photoshop as a neutral grey image.

If you wish to tone to a blue or my favorite, Kodaks old warm black, print emulsion color, go to image-mode uncheck greyscale and check RGB. The image remains neutral but is now in RGB mode and you can apply a color gradient of your choice to simulate a toned print.