Hot take: I wasted a full day trying to match a specific shade of blue from a photo

Client sent a reference image and said 'just get the blue right'... sounded easy. I spent 4 hours in Photoshop just sampling and adjusting, but the print proof looked totally wrong. Turns out the photo was taken under warm indoor light, so the actual color was a cooler cyan. Had to find the original object and scan it, which took another 3 hours. Anyone else get completely derailed by bad reference images?

4 comments

4 Comments

casey8183mo ago

I once spent a whole afternoon trying to match a pink from a sunset photo... the client's logo was actually neon magenta.

the_jenny3mo ago

Ugh, bad reference pics are the absolute worst, I feel your pain.

sarahpark3mo agoMost Upvoted

Yeah, "bad reference pics" can totally ruin the whole vibe of a project.

quinn16118d ago

A solid color calibration card is worth the investment. You can pick one up for like fifteen bucks and it saves hours of guesswork. I keep one in my bag and take a quick reference shot before anything else. Solves the whole "is this pink or neon" debate before it starts.