I submit a first problem found using RT.
In Photoshop I was used to using the AdobeRGB color profile.
I downloaded the latest version of RT (RawTherapee_dev_win64_release) and AdobeRGB is NOT included in the output ICC color profiles.
I tried to click on āICC profile creatorā and I followed the procedure by choosing āAdobeRGBā (are the values presented the right ones for AdobeRGB?).
Then I saved it in the āprofilesā folder of RT.
However, AdobeRGB still does not appear in the list of available āoutboundā profiles.
How do I add it?
You need to add that profile to the directory/folder that holds the other output profiles.
Iām a Linux user so I cannot point you to the Windows place. Look for one of the profiles mentioned in the list, say RTv4_sRGB.icc. It probably resides in a folder/directory called output. Place it there and restart RawTherapee if it was still open.
The v4ās are the modern version (compared to v2), but some external viewers might not handle these correctly (yet). Havenāt run into that myself to be honest, but if you do use the v2 version instead.
As always, it is a bit more elaborate, have a look here for more info:
This part of the process is currently NOT user friendly since the only location that is searched for output profiles is not writable by mortals. (e.g. writing to it requires sudo/admin privileges). A lot of things can search in a user-specific directory, but as far as I can tell unless Iām missing something (including missing something when reading through the code to load output profiles), output profiles isnāt on that list.
Making it easier to install output profiles is on my list of post-5.9 tasks that I want to take on. IMO the ICC profile generator is greatly diminished in usability by how hard it is to actually USE one of the profiles. It should, IMO, default to writing to a user-writable directory that is searched by the output profile code. For example, the current setup makes it MUCH harder to export linear TIFFs than it should be.
To be honest I wouldnāt know if it is(nāt) on a Mac or a Windows machine, Iām on Linux and know my way around
I run 4 different RawTherapee versions; 1 for my own personal stuff and 3 for testing (latest self build development, stable 5.8 and the latest appimage).
What all 4 have in common is a shared directory (/data/Images/Shared/Color/profiles) that, among other things, holds a directory called output (readable/writeable by 2 normal users).
I point to this location using Preferences ā Colour Management ā Directory containing colour profiles. I copied all the profiles that I use to this directory and it also holds the monitor calibration profiles created by DisplayCal.
You can only set one base output profile in the preferences section. Being forced to have the monitor profiles in the same directory, and thus showing up as an output profile that I can choose in the Colour management tab, bothers me to be honest. Strictly speaking all of them are output profiles, but output to monitor or file (or arguably printer) are rather different things.
Thatās a rather good idea. If at all possible try to leave the default behaviour in tact for the default profiles. You do not want a user to inadvertently delete those.
It should be for the ones that are added by user, the default ones that come with RawTherapee should be protected (see my previous remark).
Anyway: I fully agree with what it is you are proposing/working on.
The problem here is that by default, itās not writable by mortals until someone with higher privileges (which is often us invoking the power of sudo) gives us those privileges.
Also, as you point out, that also allows a user to accidentally clobber profiles installed by RT.
Unless thereās some way to have separate system and user profile directories for output profiles that Iāve missed, I think thereās some work to be done.
Other datasets do appear to have separate system and user directory definitions, output profiles seem to be the odd one out unless Iām missing something.
There should be the āload profileā option from within the program, without having to copy the profile from one folder to another.
I have Windows, Iāve done it and it works, but I understand that not everyone can do it.
Another related problem.
If I place the AdobeRBG output profile that I uploaded for the photo I am working on, this remains only for the single photo.
For the next time I open and want to save I find the RT profile again (for example RTv4_sRGB).
Each photo I have to go to set the output profile.
I havenāt found an option in the āpreferencesā that allows you to fix it once and for all.
It would be very useful!