User manual

18 • GRADATION (TONAL DISTRIBUTION)
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ColorQuartet 5.0 Pro
18•Gradation (tonal distribution)
Gradation
What it is
A gradation curve is a graphic representation of the relationship between the tones in the origi-
nal image and the desired tones in the reproduction. By changing the shape of the curve, you
can change this relationship and thus increase or decrease the amount of tonal detail (differen-
tiation) in different parts of the image.
The gradation curve can also be used to change the overall lightness or darkness of the image.
Gradation in ColorQuartet
• ColorQuartet’s Gradation window lets you create, save and retrieve gradation curves and apply
them to your scans.
• It also offers a Saturation Limit function to prevent colorful parts of the image from becoming
too light or too dark when the gradation is changed.
• An alternative way of changing the gradation is by directly manipulating the CMYK Curves or
RGB Curves.
• You can also let ColorQuartet adjust the gradation automatically by using the Guide function
or Auto Setup function in the Gradation window or by activating Gradation in the Auto Func-
tions section of the Magic
Touch window.
• When you work with gradation curves and gray balance adjustments, be sure to apply the gra-
dation curve to the image before making any gray balance adjustments. This will ensure that
the color adjustments are made on an image that has the correct tonal range, with a smooth
distribution of tones.
Changing gradation manually in the “Gradation” window
1 • Open the Gradation window from the Color menu or the tool bar.
• The Gradation window displays a neutral (linear) default curve that pro-
duces a good overall match of tones between the original image and the
reproduction.
• The gradation curve is defined in terms of L*
values, where 0 is black and 100
is white.