Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Mike Ornellas
Mike Ornellas is a man entrenched in the world of print and prepress. I
felt it critical to hear from someone from that industry. Mike (also know
on the various online forums as “Mo” or “Crayola”) certainly understands
and uses ICC color management when he can. However, Mike is in an
environment where he receives files from all types of users of varying
degrees of skill and knowledge. He is expected to produce high-quality
reproduction despite the cards he's dealt. Mike has always been very open
and interested in new color management technologies. He was instru-
mental in supplying many CMYK contract proofs and other tests for this
topic and my ongoing testing of color management products.
Interview with Mike Ornellas
ADR:
How long have you been working with ICC Color manage-
ment?
MO:
Let me see. I think the question should be rephrased to: How
long have I known that I've been using color management? I remember
way back somewhere in 1991 when my mentor at the time spoke of
“things” controlling the behavior of files and how color spaces describe
picture content. Truly an obscure concept at that time, but I did ask lots
of questions and have continued to do so ever since. If memory serves
me, it was Photoshop 2.0 that opened my world to what digital color
was all about. The application(s) at that time weren't anything near the
level of accuracy we are currently using and it wasn't considered an ICC-
based work flow in my opinion. One can argue this statement if it was
color management, or not or lack of awareness, but profiles were still con-
sidered device space descriptor regardless of your belief. Back then, canned
monitor profiles described RGB color spaces and CMYK Look-up Tables
gave us a wide target to aim for. It truly was a guessing game back then.
If you want to get critical about the question, Id have to say that I've
been thrashing the subject since 1995. Monitor profiling software was
somewhat doable but the spectrophotometers were extremely expensive,
and the software was basically poor due to lack of editing capabilities.
Real color control did not come to life in the commercial sector until Pho-
toshop 6 supported an easier implementation of profile handling.
Back in 1998, things started to get really strange when I decided to
not only ask more questions again, but also indulged in stirring the
common pool of knowledge in various forums. I proceeded to basically
force well-known industry professionals to teach me the current state of
affairs with respect to color, by conveying an opinion of disbelief as well
as stating that color management is nothing more than some pipe dream
conceived by lofty intellectuals. Clearly, my first digital inceptions of color
management was one of challenge more than anything else, but I never
