Handling Photoshop’s Predefined Settings

In the Color Settings dialog box, Photoshop allows you to take the easy route and choose from a long list of predefined color settings based on your desired output. After you’ve set up the predefined settings, Photoshop provides all the appropriate working color spaces and color management policies you need to get good color results. Being the smart program that it is, Photoshop won’t steer you down the wrong path with its predefined settings. The only way you can mess up the predefined settings is if your output doesn’t match the setting. Say you choose the Web Graphics Defaults setting for your high-end, fourcolor print job; you’ll be in for a surprise. (Hint: You may want to change those settings.)

Here is a brief description of the predefined color settings in the Color Settings dialog box:
-->Custom: Allows you to manually assign your own settings. When you define a custom configuration, save your settings so that you can reload them later if necessary.

-->Color Management Off: Deactivates Photoshop’s color management system. I recommend it for video output but not for anything else, unless you’re a color guru and know what you’re doing.

-->ColorSync Workflow (Mac only): Uses ColorSync 3.0 Color Management System and ColorSync profiles. It’s not recognized by the Windows platform.

-->Emulate Acrobat 4: Emulates Acrobat 4 and earlier versions.

-->Emulate Photoshop 4: Turns off color management and emulates Photoshop 4’s display. Photoshop 4 didn’t employ color management.

-->Europe General Purpose Defaults: Provides general color settings for using Adobe software in Europe.

-->Europe Prepress Defaults: Provides settings to be used for printing in Europe.

-->Japan Color Prepress: Provides settings to be used for printing in Japan. Uses the Japan Color 2001 Coated CMYK profile, which provides for 350% total ink coverage.

-->Japan General Purpose Defaults: Provides general color settings for using Adobe software in Japan.

-->Japan Prepress Defaults: Provides settings to be used for printing in Japan. Uses the Japan Standard v2 CMYK profile, which provides for 300% total ink coverage.

-->North America General Purpose Defaults: Provides general color settings for using Adobe software in North America. Uses the same CMYK, Grayscale, and Spot working spaces as the U.S. Prepress Default, but uses the same RGB working space as the Web Graphics Default.

-->Photoshop 5 Default Spaces: Uses the default color settings found in Photoshop 5, the first version to use color management.

-->U.S. Prepress Defaults: Provides the settings for printing in the United States. This is a good overall selection if you use Photoshop mainly for print work.

-->Web Graphics Defaults: Provides the settings for Web graphics. If you use Photoshop primarily for Web content, this setting is a good option because it reflects the average PC monitor.

You can always use a predefined setting as a starting point and adjust whatever individual settings you need to. Note that if you do, your predefined setting name automatically changes to Custom.