[englandmademe]

Hi

Someone scanned in around 40 images for me using 'Imaging' in Windows 2000 and all the images were scanned in as tiffs using sRGB color space.

Now on my Mac nothing will open these files because 'the tiff file uses an unsupported color space" !

I've tried Graphic Convertor and Photoshop on my Mac and Photoshop on my PC and the files won't open, but they will open using the Imaging application on a Windows machine. I thought I might be able to re-save as another format or change something to do with the color space but there are not exactly lots of options in this app.

If anyone could offer some advice I'd be grateful since my client won't fancy scanning everything in again!!

[chris v]

I really don't know personally, as I've never seen that, but you might try the Photoshop forums over at Adobe:

http://www.adobeforums.com/

[larkost]

The problem is probably that the files are in one of the degenerate versions of jpeg-in-tiff that seems so popular with windows shareware. The jpeg-in-tiff standard was never never ratified because everyone thought that it was a bad idea after all.

The best solution is to find a Windows app that will convert it to jpeg, or seeing if you can get libtiff compiled with the jpeg extensions (not that it will necessarily work), and see if imagemagic will work.

[aaanorton]

It doesn't sound like a color space issue to me. Try duplicating one of the files and altering the extension on the copy in the Get Info window. Make sure the name ends with .tiff.
Or... Did you specify TIFFs when you ordered the scans? If so, go back to whoever did the scans and demand them be redone free of charge (and never, ever use that person/service bureau again).

[tooki]

The sRGB color space and the "unsupported color space" the programs are complaining about are two different things.

sRGB is a color management color space -- a defined part of the full visible color space. It should perhaps be called the sRGB gamut.

The programs are probably referring to color space in the sense of the method of defining color -- RGB, CMY, CMYK, Lab, etc.

See what happens if you change the file type to .jpg, to see if any of the apps are smart enough to try and run it through their JPEG decoder.

You should also definitely talk to Thorsten Lemke (the author of GraphicConverter) about the files -- he encourages people to send sample files from unsupported formats so that he can add support.

tooki

[aaanorton]

While trying to trick PS to see them as JPGs is worth trying, it is safe to say that SOMETHING is broken here. SRGB is sRGB. It doesn't matter if it is defining a JPG or TIFF. But if it is sRGB, it can't possibly be CMYK or LAB...
An sRGB TIFF should open in Photoshop. Period. Get your money back or have them do it again (but correctly this time).

[larkost]

I gave the answer some time ago... and so here is more information. One of the bastardizations of this non-ratified (and retracted) "standard" is being used. There seems to be a bunch of code for doing this this way floating on the windows developer sites... and it should all be sent straight to the bit bucket, but people keep using it to product "tiff"s.

Trying to send it though a jpeg decoded will not get you what you want because the shell around the data is tiff, and the color tables are almost in a tiff setup.

The real solution is exactly what I said... have that windows program change it to true jpeg... because you are not getting any of the benefits of tiff anyways.

[aaanorton]

Originally posted by larkost:
The real solution is exactly what I said... have that windows program change it to true jpeg... because you are not getting any of the benefits of tiff anyways.

I'm with ya, bud. I am not at all familiar with this issue, but it sounds reasonable. However, I would have the original scanner redo them as TIFFs, not JPEGs. If that's not possible, I'd get my money back.

[SS3 GokouX]

I'm not familiar with that program either, but as a last resort, if that "Imaging" program doesn't let you save/export to another format, try making screen shots of it and then reassemble it in Photoshop.