White Balance
Friday, January 9th, 2009
I did some White Balance (WB) testing with my Canon 40D to confirm and answer a question I had;
Does it matter what WB I shoot in with RAW ?
Below I provide some information on WB and step through my test results.
Information About White Balance
As we all know, photography is about light. Correct white balancing is about getting the white light right.
Our eyes are good at judging what is white under different light sources, so a white object looks white no matter what type of light we are in. However, digital cameras have difficulty with Auto White Balance (AWB). We therefore need to tell digital cameras how to interpret the colour of light so it produces the most natural looking colours in a photo. By selecting a certain WB, the software in the camera adjusts the colour temperature to make those white areas look white in the photo.
An incorrect WB can create incorrect color casts, which are unrealistic and unnatural. Understanding digital WB can help you avoid incorrect color casts created by your digital camera’s auto white balancing.
A digital camera’s AWB may obtain the correct white balance, but not all the time. So it’s important to recognise the light you are in and adjust the WB accordingly.
Proper camera WB needs to take into account the color temperature of a light source, which refers to the relative warmth or coolness of white light. Examples of WB are tungsten (lighting from warm incandescent globes), Daylight (light from a sunny day outdoors), etc.
Cameras allow you to select the WB, giving you the freedom to get close to the correct colour temperature of the light you are in. This process will remove the unrealistic color casts so objects which appear white in real life will be white in your photo. Some cameras allow you to manually select the exact colour temperature by photographing a white object and recording that data to use as a custom white balance.
In some situations you may need this WB to be very accurate. For example, fashion and advertising photography where a designer will want the colours accurately recorded. And portrait and wedding photography where accurate skin tones are necessary. In these cases the use of a target and custom white balance may be essential because the WB selections available in camera are only approximations.
The table below is taken from the Canon user manual, showing the approximate colour temperatures for certain lighting.
| White Balance Mode | Colour Temperature (Approx. K (Kelvin)) |
| Auto | 3000-7000 |
| Daylight | 5200 |
| Shade | 7000 |
| Cloudy, Twilight, Sunset | 6000 |
| Tungsten light | 3200 |
| White fluorescent light | 4000 |
| Flash | 6000 |
The chart below shows the path that a black body color will take as the black body temperature changes. Lines crossing the locus indicate lines of constant correlated color temperature. (for a technical explanation, see the source from wikipedia).
In layman’s terms, the chart shows the colour cast of a certain light temperature.
Eg; Tugnsten light (approx 3200K) is a warm light and has a yellow cast, the chart shows it will follow a path having a yellow colour.
Now for Some Test Results
Getting back to the question,
Does it matter what WB I shoot in with RAW ?
The first 3 test photos shown below are taken with the same settings, on a cloudy evening at sunset, but for each photo, a different WB was used. You can see the obvious difference in colour.
Test Photos – Different WB, Displayed “As Shot”
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| Cloudy | Tungsten | Fluorescent |
I modified the temperature of the RAW images during post processing to check if shooting in a certain WB had any effect. The 2nd set of RAW images below, are the same photos shown above, but set to “Cloudy” WB set during post processing.
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| Shot @ Cloudy, WB set to Cloudy | Shot @ Tungsten, WB set to Cloudy | Shot @ Fluorescent, WB set to Cloudy |
You can see that the colour temperature is identical in all 3 RAW images.
Conclusion
Benefits of Shooting in RAW
Results show that the best white balance solution is to shoot using RAW.
This allows you to set the WB after the photo has been taken, not having to worry about setting the WB on shoot.
However, some people like to shoot in JPEG, (i.e if they are restricted with space, or want to easily transfer photos or don’t have the time to post process), and some people don’t have a choice to shoot in RAW if their digital camera does not support it. In these situations, WB selection is essential for good, realistic results.
It may also be essential to get the WB right on shoot as mentioned above (e.g. fashion and advertising photography and portrait and wedding photography) where the colours and skin tones need to be accurately recorded.
So, if you can, always shoot in RAW to take advantage of the benefits and it is probably also good practice (depending on your situation) to set the WB correctly and get it right first.
Website Launched
Sunday, December 14th, 2008
Hi Everyone,
My new website is now launched !!
My homepage photo is titled ”Unknown”, one of my favourite photographs.
“Unknown” – Campbells Cove, Werribee South beach at dawn
Cape Schanck, VIC – Seascape
Sunday, November 30th, 2008
I was down at Cape Schanck on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula with Neil, Rob & Simone, plenty to see and photograph.
Below is a track of our hike over the 6 hours we were there and one of many photos.
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Me as The Intrepid Photographer
Saturday, November 1st, 2008
🙂
intrepid
adjective
invulnerable to fear or intimidation; “audacious explorers”; “fearless reporters and photographers”; “intrepid pioneers” [syn: audacious]
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
Yep, we’ve been at it again….the things we do ~ but boy it’s fun !!
Neil, Lee and I went to the ocean beach again for sunset shots on the rocks….and Neil has posted a fantastic shot of me as the waves were crashing in over the rock shelf that you’ve got to see…
“The Intrepid Photographer 2” by Neil Boucher
The Things We Do For That Shot !
Thursday, October 23rd, 2008
Yep, it’s me….well it was me… 🙂
…with the remote shutter release @ Cowrie Beach on Phillip Island.
A good reminder to be careful when you’re on the coast for the unpredictable waves.
Recovering Your Deleted Photos
Monday, September 1st, 2008
Hi Everyone,
Just wanted to share some knowledge and the ‘how to’ for those who didn’t realise how you can recover your deleted images off your memory cards.
On the weekend I stupidly, but accidentally deleted my early morning long exposure photos off my 8GB CF card, including my ‘Point Lonsdale Pier at Dawn’, but here it is recovered:
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Best practice I’ve found (learning from mistakes) is summed up here:
1. Format your memory card before any shoot, that way you’ll start from a clean/empty card and you won’t have to worry about going back and deleting old images (and then delete the wrong ones like I did)
2. If you do accidently delete your shots, don’t stress, remove your memory card from your camera straight away – this is the most important part – don’t take any more shots on that memory card – you could overwrite your deleted photos.
3. There are many programs you can download (most you have to pay for), but you can download a freeware program called “PC Inspector Smart Recovery” from Snapfiles here
For those with SanDisk Extreme memory cards, SanDisk distributes software with their Extreme media called ‘RescuPRO’ which can also be used to recover your files. Pays to check out the little disks that come with your memory cards…who would have thought ! 🙂
4. Install and recover !
Other Notes
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* I’d also recommend installing the software on your laptop, so if your on the road/away you can recover on the go and not wait till you get home
and
* Take a spare card with you so you can still keep shooting.
Hope this helps !
Jared
St Pauls Beach – Sorrento
Sunday, August 31st, 2008
St Pauls Beach photo shoot with Neil.
St Pauls beach is accessible via St Pauls road in Sorrento, VIC.
Bridge Water Bay – Blairgowrie
Saturday, August 30th, 2008
Bridge Water Bay Photo shoot with Neil.
Off St John Woods Road in Blairgowrie, VIC.
This is not the easiest and accessible place to go, but boy it’s worth it.
The rocks are so sharp – if you go, make sure you wear your waterproof hiking boots and be prepared to climb !
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Sorrento Trip (The Intrepid Photographer)
Saturday, August 16th, 2008
Hi Everyone,
If you’ve got a sec, you can check out Neil Boucher’s shot of me in action down at Sorrento, VIC over the weekend – just after I went knee deep in the water hole !
We had a great weekend, and boy were there some amazing rock formations and sea scapes to see !
“The Intrepid Photographer” by Neil Boucher
Geocoding Your Photos
Friday, August 1st, 2008
Hi Everyone,
For those interested in Geocoding their images, I thought I’d put together some information which may help.
I like to geocode my images with coordinates for a couple of reasons:
- I know exactly where I took the shot if I ever want to return; and
- I can add them to map applications like Google Maps as waypoints/points of interest, etc.
How to do it ?
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1) As long as you have a GPS device capable of recording your track it’s pretty easy from here.
2) I turn my GPS on before I start shooting and have it recording my track until I finish. So long as your able to create a GPX file afterwards, you can go to the next step.
3) Google have developed a geocoding tool which actually writes to your cameras raw files (*.CR2). I have not trialed a better app than this one – most only write to JPGs. Google’s product is free to download and use (as all great Google products are !!). You can download GPicSync here
4) If you do use the tool, just be mindful of time difference, i.e. GPS devices usually record tracks in UTC times, whereas your camera will probably set to your local time. The GPicSync application can be set to adjust for this in the configuration.
Hope this helps for those who are interested, enjoy.
Jared
Perfect day for a boat trip..
Tuesday, July 15th, 2008
I’m out on Western Port Bay at the moment for work, currently between French Island and Lang Lang on the mainlaind of Vic.
The water is beautiful and still (much better than last time when we had huge winds and swells) but it’s very cold !!
Autumn in Bright – Landscape Photography
Sunday, April 27th, 2008
There is nothing like Autumn in Bright, Victoria.
Bright is just one of those places that you have to see to believe in autumn.
The deciduous trees leaves turn to vibrant red and yellow in this gorgeous old town in Victoria’s alpine region.
Autumn brings many to the region to see the landscape and enjoy the seasonal festivities such as the Bright Autumn Festival.
The town has a buzz about it which the colours seem to enhance.
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There is plenty to do and see around the region.
A great place for families to visit is the Buckland Valley Alpaca Farm. The farm offers talks and tours, and kids can get up close and personal with these beautiful and inquisitive animals. You can enjoy a locally roasted coffee during the afternoon on the farm and browse or purchase some of their alpaca fleece products.
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Wine lovers can enjoy touring and tasting the exquisite wines from the King Valley and Alpine Valley region. Autumn offers amazing views and scenes from the wineries, as well as a perfect place to have alfresco lunches.
King Valley wineries include the well known Brown Brothers, through to smaller plantings which also welcome visitors to their cellar door. Italian red wine varietals, such as sangiovese, nebbiolo and barbera flourishes in the region.
Alpine Valleys region produce mainly chardonnay and pinot noir. The region’s high altitude, hot summers days and cool nights allow its small vineyards to make beautiful, distinctive wines.
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The town offers so much, anything from shopping, dining and picnics. There is no shortage of accommodation or dining options, something for every mood.
Ovens river runs through Bright. In the summer the water hole is a popular spot for swimming, in autumn it is a wonderful location for a family picnic, with a large park, local wildlife and beautiful autumn views.
Beer connoisseurs will love the local brewery, Bright Brewery. The brewery use fresh mountain water, quality ingredients and craft brewing techniques to brew their trademark “MountainCrafted” beer.
In the heart of Bright, right next to the water hole and park, it’s a great spot to have a beer and relax.
