X-Rite Incorporated has announced its new portfolio of i1 Professional Color Management Solutions. Designed to accommodate all levels of proficiency and expertise, these high performance solutions are specifically targeted to meet the unique needs of photo, pre-press, and publishing professionals, providing exceptional value at very attractive price points.
The portfolio is comprised of i1Basic Pro, i1Photo Pro, i1 Publish and i1Publish Pro. All four feature groundbreaking new technology and applications: i1Profiler, X-Rite's entirely new next generation color profiling software; new PANTONE Color Manager color swatch bridging software; and ColorChecker Proof, a new color checker chart for direct viewing analysis against a printed target.
"With the availability of our easy-to-use, next generation color profiling solutions, X-Rite puts unprecedented color control and robust features into the hands of a broad array of imaging professionals—people who require precise color in a variety of projects," said Dr. Sonia Megert, vice president of inbound marketing, X-Rite. "The integration of the industry-standard i1Pro spectrophotometer and today's most powerful color profiling software ensures tremendous value for our customers. Our new i1 Professional Color Management Solutions are more-than-ever within reach, with features that are designed to accommodate all skill levels, and provide the power and control needed to create the highest quality color profiles in one, convenient solution."
i1Basic Pro is a fundamental solution for high-end monitor profiling, monitor and printing quality verification, and spot color measurement. Designed for an imaging professional's unique needs, i1Basic Pro is ideal for an effective workflow in a color-managed ecosystem. i1Basic Pro includes i1Profiler software, PANTONE Color Manager software and an i1Pro spectrophotometer.
i1Photo Pro is specifically designed for discerning photo professionals to manage their RGB workflow from camera to display and projector to print. Thanks to the iterative profiling capability of the i1Profiler software, professional photo users will enjoy the highest quality color results that especially target highlight and shadow details and delivers greater color accuracy for more neutral grays and natural skin tones.
i1Publish (a standalone software package) and i1Publish Pro are the ultimate, fully-featured ICC profiling solutions for graphic arts professionals that need to organize and manage their complete RGB, CMYK and CMYK+N (CMYK plus any 4) prepress workflows, complete with new assurance validation and verification functions using digital standards. This includes a display QA function to check soft proofing for ISO (G7, SWOP, PSO, Japan Color) and a printer QA function to check print quality using ISO media wedges (IDEAlliance ISO Control Wedge or Fogra Media Wedge).
i1Photo Pro and i1Publish Pro include i1Profiler software, an i1Pro spectrophotometer, PANTONE Color Manager software, ColorChecker Proof target, mini ColorChecker Classic target, and ColorChecker Passport camera calibration software. i1Publish includes all of the above except for the spectrophotometer.
With the new i1Profiler software, X-Rite has developed a next generation toolset that combines the best features of its i1Match, ProfileMaker and MonacoPROFILER solutions. i1Profiler software offers an unprecedented level of flexibility to address the needs of digital imaging workflows. It features a number of unique color management capabilities, adding to users' power and control in creating professional quality profiles. Users can chose between a 'basic', wizard-driven interface; or an ‘advanced', user-driven interface to create high quality, precise, custom color profiles for monitors, projectors, printers, and presses.
At the core of i1Profiler is X-Rite's i1Prism engine, whose unique profiling technology lets users build printer profiles for up to eight-color workflows (RGB, CMYK and CMYK plus any 4). This reliable, iterative technology is extremely robust, allowing for further profile optimization based on any combination of images, spot colors or captured colors. Users can select from any of the included PANTONE color libraries, including the new PANTONE PLUS SERIES and PANTONE Fashion + Home. This results in the best possible image quality and color accuracy.
Using just one software tool, users can optimize their profiles, build profiles with ambient light measurements, compensate for optical brighteners in their papers, and utilize simple yet advanced controls for black separation. i1Profiler lets users save and reuse assets or preferred settings with drag-and-drop functionality - meaning profile generation workflows can be created or shared with others quickly, easily, and efficiently. This exchange functionality also allows users to communicate palette information and other color data across the office or around the world using X-Rite's Color Exchange Format (CxF) for the most comprehensive digital color data exchange.
PANTONE Color Manager will dynamically keep all digital PANTONE libraries up to date, accurate and ready to use in Adobe and Quark creative applications. The tight integration of i1Profiler with PANTONE Color Manager swatch bridging software gives users seamless access to all PANTONE colors for precise spot color matching, and unparalleled accuracy of spot color reproduction. It also makes multiple color space selections simple for easy color translation to multiple applications and is ideal for photographers that need to shoot corporate ID images.
PANTONE Color Manager includes a unique new feature, which simplifies the creation and distribution of corporate brand style guides. Designers can include palette information, digital color data, and output profiles to ensure that their brand color is faithfully reproduced in any print production process around the corner or across the globe.
To help users perform a visual color evaluation of their results using physical standards, i1Photo Pro and i1Publish Pro solutions include the new ColorChecker Proof, a 24-patch ColorChecker Classic target precut for direct viewing against a printed target. When used in proper lighting conditions, this offers a much more precise visual verification of output quality, so that the user can quickly determine if any adjustment is needed.
With the ColorChecker Passport Camera Calibration Application and Lightroom Plug-In, users can quickly and easily build DNG profiles for Adobe Imaging solutions including Lightroom, Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, Camera Raw (ACR), and Adobe Bridge. This advanced profiling technology, which has become widely adopted in RAW workflows since its launch in September 2009, provides excellent results with just the small 24-patch ColorChecker Classic target included in both i1Photo Pro and i1Publish Pro. It produces DNG profiles that work exceptionally well, even in unusual or artificial light sources. Plus, software auto-detection will locate the target automatically. Whether shooting with just one camera or multiple cameras, photographers can easily establish an accurate color foundation and maintain control of their colors.
The new i1 Professional Color Management Solutions will be available in October 2010 from X-Rite's online store (North America and Europe), and also from the company's worldwide network of resellers. i1Publish will also be offered with two upgrade options based on original solution purchased.