Displaying images in galleries

[kymaera]

Btw, Krafty...
you forgot the "Get to work on it instead of posting about it!" option

[wELCOME cONSUMER]

I go the "scan and fix" route personally. Scanning everything in bulk, then
editing them on later days as I decide to upload (one a day maybe...).
Like some others here, I enjoy the digital aspect a LOT. I scan my
images in HUGE and take care in correcting them. Adjusting the contrast,
brightness, color balance does justice to the cel and places it in better
context of the anime in which it was originally presented. Scanning alone
will simply wash out the image, making it look quite dull and rather lifeless.

I compare the original presentation and the actual cel in my hand (how
it looks to the naked eye) and then adjust digitally to match. I never go
beyond what it "should look like." If I plan to keep the cel forever, I crop
and fix accordingly. If I don't intend to sell the cel (I rarely sell anything),
then I don't see any reason why I shouldn't clone out imperfections, if
it makes me happy. I want the item to look as good as possible for my
own enjoyment anyway. I have a couple of cels with minor problems that
have been erased with photoshop magic But I don't zoom or crop the
cel to appear better than it is (like taking a cel with a character in the
corner and turning that into a portrait cel).

Now, if I am eBaying or selling a cel, I scan and adjust but not beyond the
merits of the cel. If there is an imperfection, such as line fade, I do not
hide it because the buyer will want to know that. Same with paint chips
and scuffs. I've had my own problems with sellers who digitally correct
a cel and mislead their buyer. So, in that respect, digitally fixing a cel
should be honest, don't misrepresent the cel (I even prefer the sequence
number showing, just so the buyer can see the actual size of the image).

As for pictures taken with a digital camera, it can be done right. If you
have a very nice camera, with proper lighting and perspective, you can
take a great photograph that is clear and does justice to your oversized
cels. I would use at least a 6 megapixel digital camera or higher for
the best results. You actually can get scanner quality pictures if it is done
correctly.

**feeling very nerdy over her excitement of this thread**

[vapalla]

I chose option 2 but after option 3 was clarified, I really do option 3. My scanner tends to darken scans plus it tends to add too much red. I scan it in Photoshop then hold the cel up to the scan and try to adjust the colors to best match the original. I may clean a part of the cel, like a spot of dirt that accidently stuck to the scanner bed, but I don't clean up the image to look a lot better better than the original. I usually trim in to crop the outside where it isn't painted, but I try not to crop in drastically. Otherwise, I try to make the final image as close to the original as possible.

[Not Sir Phobos]

I just don't feel it's right to adjust brightness or contrast in that context. I want my customer to know exactly how it looks when scanned, that way there is no surprises on their end.

If you only adjust brightness or contrast to match how the cel looks in
person, I think that's perfectly valid. Customers should care how it looks,
not how the scan will turn out.

That's kind of what Marie says too. I'm just not comfortable altering them. So it is just me then

I just realized something kinda funny...

Most people here go for the "adjust the color layers untill it looks like it does to the naked eye" approach.

Here is the funny part, monitors have their own color and contrast settings. So basicly your cell will never look right on any monitor but the one you did the work on.

Am I right? Please don't hate me

[kymaera]

Too late. I already hate you!

Well, you're right, but...
1) If you adjust to the monitor that you have, that's the one that you care
about the most.
2) If you adjust it, other monitors should be closer to the true look as well.
If others are viewing on a screwed up screen, that's their fault.

[Not Sir Phobos]

Too late. I already hate you! :

Turkey to falcon
Turkey to falcon
Come in falcon

Phase one complete

Over and out.

[kymaera]

Somehow, "Turkey" as your codename seems so apt.

Be careful not to drown when it's raining out

[SETSUMEI]

kymaera

are you really a japanese porn star? surely they can't do it till 99 wtf

[sensei]

Here is the funny part, monitors have their own color and contrast settings. So basicly your cell will never look right on any monitor but the one you did the work on.

What's worse, I have a color vision anomaly, and while I see all shades, I see them in different intensities than "normal" sighted people. Red lettering on a black background is impossible for me to read because of this. So the colors I see in my cels are different from the colors that other people see, and so when I adjust my scans to what I see, it's quite possible that I'm creating an entirely new color scheme. Of course, what I see on the screen is also subject to the same color vision anomaly, so my guess is that it all evens out. But let's face it, the world we all "see" is an internal construct based on how our individual sensory systems are wired up.

[wELCOME cONSUMER]

Yeah, even if someone is color blind, they see a distinct color scheme when
they look at a cel and watch the anime it originates from. If you adjust
accordingly to what you perceive, then it will match what the rest of us see comparatively.

However, there are other things that bother me. Compression and pixelation.
I honestly don't know if everyone can see compression or they just don't
care. If you use Photoshop to resize your cels, please don't use "Image Size..."
The results drive me insane.

It is a shame that most people do not calibrate their monitors. Most CRT
monitors have lots of options and require more work to adjust, which some
people don't do or don't do properly. (same goes for your TVs!)
Luckily, flat screen LCD monitors are generally good to go out of the box.
The brightness needs to be turned down, but that's about it really.

[aernath]

But let's face it, the world we all "see" is an internal construct based on how our individual sensory systems are wired up.

Dude, pass me some more of that animation-specific weed there.

I can understand that. So, basically, moot point, do it how you want it, because everyone else has already adjusted their sets.

And NSP: YOU HAVE A STORE???!!! *faints*

Oh, back to the question...
Now that I've learned how to Photomerge with our version of Photoshop, I like to get the whole thing in there. But I'm still experimenting and deciding where/if to crop. I've got a pipe dream of some day (more like dayS), going through and rescanning the whole schlameel so that every image is presented consistantly.
...but not today.
Clean up? That's still beyond my humble abilities. I can smudge. But that sometimes has disasterous outcomes, so I avoid it. I'm still a n00b.

[Ashura]

kymaera

are you really a japanese porn star? surely they can't do it till 99 wtf

LOL.....yeah Kymaera, are you really a Japanese Porn Star?

[kymaera]

LOL.....yeah Kymaera, are you really a Japanese Porn Star?

I'm hurt and insulted, Ashura. While I'm quite sure that it's impossible for
you to remember EVERY one of your co-stars by now, I thought that you'd
have at least remembered me

[sensei]

But let's face it, the world we all "see" is an internal construct based on how our individual sensory systems are wired up.

Dude, pass me some more of that animation-specific weed there.

No prob, man, I'll fax ya another nickle bag just as soon as I take this here red pill my new friend just gave me.

[Blackmegabyte]

I'm very lazy when it comes to scanning---- I usually take the scan the seller provides, heck ill even take photos of the cel itself.... but i would ideally like to see nice scans, yes.