Procreate Exported Images Very Dark

[AnumC]

I find that if you add a light colored layer on top of the image and set it at light or overlay that seems to help. Even if you set the layer at normal and lower the opacity it helps the colors come out brighter when I check it on my phone. Hope this helps!

[Griffin McPherson]

@KimberScott this is really odd, I’ve never heard of an issue with like this with just exporting an image. With print it’s common but this doesn’t make sense to me

[Coreyartus]

So different color profiles do different things in Procreate.

P3 is the default color profile for Apple products. It is a color profile that has robust reds/yellows/oranges and was created specifically for Apple products. It was originally invented for digital movies so they'd look better on Apple products. As an aside, Adobe also has their own proprietary color profile called AdobeRGB, which has more vivid blues and greens.

@Mia-Clarke and @KimberScott , please know that CMYK in Procreate isn't actually CMYK. It is a color profile that Savage Interactive (the makers of Procreate) invented to emulate CMYK. It's actually RGB, but eliminates specific hues and tones that are most likely un-printable. It may say it's CMYK, but it's not. People saving CMYK images as Photoshop files will notice that it opens in Photoshop as an RGB file. This is a known bug that Savage Interactive knows about and can't fix in the current iteration of Procreate. It has been an issue for years now. With every new update version that is released people hope that it's fixed but Savage Interactive can't do so without making the app significantly heavier than it is currently. It is best to NOT use the CMYK profile in Procreate, and use a sRGB IEC61966-2.1 instead. That is the current and long-time international standard for light-based color on electronic devices. Then you can translate them to CMYK in Photoshop and make adjustments there.

sRGB files will always print darker than CMYK files if you're printing directly without adjustments, and on the iPad almost any image will always appear brighter than on other monitors because of Apple's advanced iPad display that features their color profile specifically. It's literally made to display richer and brighter colors than are capable on most monitors and certainly more than anything printed. There's really no way around it--you just have to adjust any images upward in value around 10% (or more) before you can print them, and know that on most other monitors and phones that aren't Apple-made your images will appear less vivid and robust and darker, regardless of how bright/dark you've got your screen set to.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. This quandary comes up periodically, and there's no way to not disappoint people... Better to know than not.

[Mia Clarke]

@Coreyartus omg, thank you for this! I had no idea!

[ArtistErin]

@Coreyartus Wow thank you for this helpful insight. I don't have an iPad or Procreate yet it was helpful to understand the RGB/CMYK Photoshop connection. I just bought Rebelle 6 Pro, becoming familiar with the tools and figuring how to set my canvas. Do you know anything about this application?

[KimberScott]

@AnumC Thanks! Will give that a try.

[KimberScott]

@Coreyartus Thanks for the great information. My problem is not with the printing, at the moment, but with simply exporting of the image to jpeg, png, pdf, etc. I should note, I did not have this problem a couple of years ago on the same iPad, same settings. I've tried to simulate it here. The first image I have brightened after export to approximately what it looked like in Procreate. The second two are jpg and tiff as they were exported. The other formats look the same - pdf, png, and even psd - as the last two.

Thanks again, for your help.

[Coreyartus]

@KimberScott You might download another art app to your iPad and save the images using it to see if it's specific to Procreate or your iPad in general.

Also, you might check to see if you have activated True Tone or Nightshift on your iPad. Sometimes those force visual adjustments on the screen that aren't accurate in your image... If all the formats are turning out the same way regardless of app, it might be a setting on your iPad that's screwing things up for you...

I, too, have a Macbook Pro, and you can actually change the color profile in your System Settings under "Displays". You might set your color profile to the same as your iPad, which is Display P3 if I recall correctly... Mine own is currently on Color LCD...

If those things don't work, I'm not sure what the issue might be... I'm so sorry.

[KimberScott]

@Coreyartus Thanks! Will try all of that. I do have True Tone turned on on my iPad. Will turn that off first and go from there. I appreciate your help!

[KimberScott]

@ArtMelC The brightness level was the problem. Thank goodness. Such a simple fix. I started working at 50% brightness and that did the trick. Thanks!

[jack william 0]

*Different color profiles in Procreate serve specific purposes, particularly in the context of digital printing.

The P3 color profile, which is the default for Apple products, emphasizes robust reds, yellows, and oranges. It was initially developed for digital movies to enhance their appearance on Apple devices. Conversely, AdobeRGB, another proprietary color profile, focuses on vivid blues and greens.

In Procreate, the CMYK profile is not a true CMYK representation but rather an emulation created by Savage Interactive. It functions as an RGB profile that removes specific hues and tones that are likely unprintable. Although it is labeled as CMYK, when a CMYK image saved in Procreate is opened in Photoshop, it opens as an RGB file. Savage Interactive is aware of this issue but cannot currently resolve it without significantly increasing the app's size. Hence, it is advisable to utilize the sRGB IEC61966-2.1 profile in Procreate, as it is the established international standard for light-based color on electronic devices. Subsequently, the file can be adjusted and converted to CMYK in Photoshop for digital printing purposes.

It's worth noting that when directly printing sRGB files, they may appear darker compared to CMYK files without adjustments. Moreover, on the iPad, images may seem brighter due to Apple's advanced display technology and specific color profile, which is designed to showcase richer and brighter colors than most monitors or prints can reproduce. To compensate, it is necessary to increase the brightness of images by approximately 10% or more before printing. Additionally, it's important to recognize that when viewed on non-Apple monitors or phones, images might appear less vibrant, darker, and lacking the same visual impact, regardless of screen brightness settings.*

[kayleenartlover]

@Coreyartus Oh really?! So would RGB be best option or do we need to find a way to turn it into CMYK on another program?

[NessIllustration]

It's definitely because of the maximum brightness of your iPad. You think the color you picked is light, but it's actually really dark and only appears light because your iPad be shining like a lighthouse! I had the same problem and lowered the brightness of my screen. BOOM, fixed! My eyes also get less tired now, win-win!