sRGB and Web Browsers (particularly Firefox)

[CrashC]

I've read many of the previous threads discussing the inability of several web browsers to process color profiles, thus blowing up colors in photos posted on the web.

My workflow:

Capture in RAW .dng. Open in LR on Macbook Pro (circa 2007) OSX 10.5.8, post process as needed. I then either:

a) export directly from LR to sRGB jpg
b) from LR, "Edit in Photoshop CS5" with sRGB set as Working Space, modify image as needed, then save as jpg with sRGB embedded.

This is the best approach to have my images appear correctly to the most web viewers, correct?

When I post the images to anywhere on the web and view on my Macbook Pro, these are the results:

Firefox displays colors correctly
Safari displays colors correctly
Chrome desaturated​

When I view the same images on a PC (sRGB LCD laptop monitor), these are the results:

IE9 desaturated
Firefox desaturated
Chrome desaturated
Safari desatured​

Since I've read Firefox and Safari for PC should process color profiles and thus display my images correctly, that makes me think the PC's monitor just isn't color calibrated. That lead me to view the images in Firefox on two different PCs, both of which showed the same inaccurate (desaturated in this case) colors.

The only variable here I can think of that I'm not getting my head around is if my Macbook Pro's monitor is a wide gamut and all of the PC laptops I tested are standard sRGB. Just a hunch.

Any idea why Firefox and Safari for PC wouldn't be processing color profiles properly? Also, is the above workflow what you use for web posting as well or is there a better solution?

Thanks in advance for any time spent here with my issue. It is appreciated.

 

[Josh66]

Macs usually seem to have better and more accurate monitors for the money... Not sure why ... but that's why you hear so many people saying that Macs don't need calibration (which isn't true).

Assuming that none of the three monitors has been calibrated (which is what it sounds like), my guess would be that the Mac is close or at least closer to the right colors, and both of the PC monitors are off by roughly the same amount.

Do you have the image on all three monitors, side-by-side? If so, I think you would see three different images... The two PC monitors are probably close, but even then - one is probably off more than the other.


My money is on the monitor - not the browser.


There is a better solution. Calibration.

 

[Josh66]

Without calibration, it's entirely possible that one of the three monitors is displaying the right colors, and the other two are just making it look better/worse than it really is... Or, the picture could be all messed up and the monitor is making it OK. The point is, there is no way for you to know if nothing is calibrated.

If you get three different colors on three different monitors, how do you know which one is right - if any even are? ...You don't know.

 

[CrashC]

Edit:

Or, the picture could be all messed up and the monitor is making it OK. The point is, there is no way for you to know if nothing is calibrated.

It seems like this is the most likely culprit. Just a guess, but I'm thinking the PCs are completely off and the Mac is relatively close, but doing my photo editing on the Mac means it will look right only on the Mac and only then in browsers that process color profiles. That's exactly what's happening, so it makes sense.

Looks like I'll have to cough up $128 for a Spyder3 on Amazon. I read in another thread that someone rented a colorimeter. I suppose I'll be checking with the local photography shop in the morning, but somehow I doubt it. Any other good places to look for rentals?

 

[KmH]

What display type is the Macbook pro? TN? IPS?

Most print labs recommend the i1Display 2 over the Spyder 3, which is why I use the i1Display 2.

Display calibration is not a one time deal. I re-calibrate an IPS display about every 30 days.