A co-worker and I got into a discussion about color management in Photoshop, a long-standing source of frustration for web designers. He took it upon himself to research it and just sent out an email to our team here at work. Hope this helps some of you who have been wading around in the dark for too long.

From Brian’s email:
I recently discovered a solution to a long standing issue I’ve had with on-screen colors in Photoshop not matching save for web colors, when Color Settings (shift-command-K) are set for North America Web/Internet or North America General Purpose (I believe the later is the default on install). They are generally darker (depending on the profile in the file), before saving for web, unless you do one of the following, but each method has issues:1) Use Color Setting of Monitor:- benefit: colors match what you see on the web while you’re working on your file- problem: when you go to save for web in Photoshop, the colors will go unnaturally lighter (even more so than if your color settings were for web or general purpose). NOTE: This doesn’t happen if you use Fireworks for optimization (the monitor/web color space is preserved).

2) Use color settings of North America Web/Internet or North America General Purpose, but “proof” the file for web colors using a Monitor RGB proof setup:- by selecting View/Proof Setup/Monitor RGB and then Proof Colors (command-Y) you will see your web comp shift to lighter colors - how it will actually look on the web on your monitor. If you want to view your file as you would see it on the web while you’re working on it, you have to remember to do this for every file you open that has an sRGB profile (web/internet) or general purpose. It is only a viewing preference on a per file basis (not saved). It has to be applied to all of the files you may have open one by one, to view them as they would appear on the web.

I found the following piece of information on the Adobe website i never really thought about:

“Photoshop is a color-managed application. The Web is not. Normally, when you view an image in Save for Web or ImageReady you are viewing it without color management and see it how it will appear when uploaded to the Web.”

However, there is a third ideal solution I have just found and that I now use. It uses solution number one (above), but removes the issue of the colors going even lighter then normal, when using Photshop’s save for web. A simple item unchecked in Save for Web (Convert to SRGB) keeps your viewing color consistent while working on the file using a Monitor viewing preference, all the way up to the save state. You only have to set this once.

Read the following simple instructions on this site.

Sometimes, the simplest of things require effort than the designer doesn’t have time for in a crunch. Enter Webdesigner’s Toolkit, a compact, but highly useful site offering a basic set of handy tools for the designer including browser windows, form elements, buttons and copytext, all in Photoshop PSD format.

Came in handy today when I needed some form elements on the quick and didn’t have time to spare.

I love it when poor Photoshop skills are outed in a major way. Not to say it’s good that these images make their way to the international press and are passed off as real. No, that’s not good. What’s good is that the fraud was exposed and that the creators and perpetrators are brought to justice in the world court of opinion.

Case in point, the New York Times covered a press release photo of Iranian missiles launching. The original image does appear to have come from an extension of the Iranian government, so whether it was “officially” sanctioned or not is questionable, but the point remains that fakery of this magnitude is photojournalistic blasphemy and needs to be fought as diligently as possible.

Good interview of the fabulously funky Chuck Anderson over at iStock Photo. I’ve been following his work since he started and find it impressive that he not only carved his own niche with his unique style, but also spread his roots deep early on in his career by making the right connections, and through sheer talent and hard work. Be interesting to see his work in 5-10 years and how it evolves, if so.

Adobe has launched an online Beta version of its most famous industry-leading software, titled Photoshop Express. While lagging behind Picnik and FotoFlexer in historical terms, it’s very arrival is a grand statement for the web apps segment. PSE houses a slick interface (which I prefer over PS itself), integration with external services like Facebook, Photobucket and Picasa (what? no Flickr?!), and of course a world-dominating brand that knows no equal.

This Flash-based app gives users a paltry two gigs of storage and offers many of the same, standardized tools Photoshop that users have become intimately familiar with, although with more web-friendly labels. Even though I haven’t yet spent quality time with this product, it looks like a promising beginning in the blazing hot web apps space.

Hilarious! I love this.