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Colorcam and Linocolor Cam – the complete workflow in digital photography

Donnerstag 06. April 2000 - On the occasion of CeBit 2000, Heidelberg unveiled the Colorcam digital camera back and the newly developed LinoColor Cam software.

This combination of hardware, software and color know-how was well received because it provides photographic studios and graphic arts businesses with a complete imaging workflow that takes in everything from capture to ready-to-print data record.

Heidelberg Colorcam is a professional, high-resolution camera back for medium-format and professional cameras. Due to the one-shot technology, the Colorcam back is not restricted to still life shots, but can be used for all types of work in professional studio photography – whether people, portraits or fashion. Active and passive cooling of the CCD sensor means that the spectrum of possible exposure times can extend between 1/1000 and 30 seconds.

With a resolution of 6 million pixels and a color depth of 16 bits per channel, the Colorcam back produces data quantities which offer sufficient reserves for almost all print formats. Thanks to the extreme precision of color capture, the image data can be magnified with very good results.

Imaging workflow
Unlike in the early days of the digital photography, fewer and fewer advertising clients are satisfied with straightforward RGB data, but want photographers to present them with ready-to-print data which has already been color-separated. LinoColor Cam makes this functionality available when the photograph is actually shot – and does so in the LinoColor quality acknowledged throughout the industry.

LinoColor Cam controls the camera back, but can also be used as a stand-alone program. The functionality supported by the LinoColor software has been expanded to include the complete range of functions required for monitoring the camera and the capture process. The live preview function gives the photographer the means to set the camera precisely to the motif and the camera back is specifically calibrated in advance to the selected lighting. If the lighting is incorrect when taking the shots, a visual warning system comes into play and the areas where detail has been lost due to over – or under-exposure are identified by use of color.

Once the picture is „in the bag“, the photographer can view the image data on a monitor in the form of a soft proof – either in RGB, CMYK or grayscale mode. This is where we can see the greater benefit of digital photography with direct data transfer. As you will know, it is generally usual when taking fashion or textile shots to send a sample of the fabric to the production department in order to ensure absolute color matching. Thanks to Colorcam, the Linocolor Cam software and Heidelberg’s integrated Color Management, all this can now be performed quickly and easily.

Image data processing with Linocolor
The image data is now processed with Linocolor and its many advantages – Color Management and calibration, intuitive image manipulation in the device-independent CieLab color space, retouching work, silhouetting operations or separations performed under visual control. All of this is backed up by the highly intelligent Color Assistant and other useful assistants. Linocolor makes the image data ready for print and transfers it to the image database when necessary.

Another major benefit which will not go unnoticed by professional photographers is the ability to use Linocolor Cam to output both color-separated CMYK data and optimized RGB images. Both transparency material and photographic paper can be imaged – with perfect images guaranteed thanks to Linocolor.