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White balance
- Thread starter DanHD
- Start date
Dan -
the way I set WB depends on the shoot and the camera.
in mixed light, run and gun:
Canon XLH1 - This cam has a color viewfinder which I calibrate to match the output monitor. It has a dial for the color temp, and the ability to store custom presets. So I set WB the way I would on a DSLR: pick the nearest preset, check the result, adjust to taste. If part of the mixed light is fluorescent I'll check AWB - some fluorescents are shifted along the green-magenta axis, and this is more difficult to identify than the color temp (red/blue).
TIP: The WB button on your camera doesn't just adjust for temp. A fluorescent light may be 32K and still have too much green or magenta.
If you have a B&w viewfinder that method won't work. It's also not so reliable if you are using an LCD where differences in ambient light, and angle of view can easily fool your eye.
TIP2 - just because an image has a color cast does not mean you need to "fix" it. If you shoot at the golden hour, if you shoot deep inside a forest etc the AWB is going to remove the color cast that made you hit record in the first place.
HTH
the way I set WB depends on the shoot and the camera.
in mixed light, run and gun:
Canon XLH1 - This cam has a color viewfinder which I calibrate to match the output monitor. It has a dial for the color temp, and the ability to store custom presets. So I set WB the way I would on a DSLR: pick the nearest preset, check the result, adjust to taste. If part of the mixed light is fluorescent I'll check AWB - some fluorescents are shifted along the green-magenta axis, and this is more difficult to identify than the color temp (red/blue).
TIP: The WB button on your camera doesn't just adjust for temp. A fluorescent light may be 32K and still have too much green or magenta.
If you have a B&w viewfinder that method won't work. It's also not so reliable if you are using an LCD where differences in ambient light, and angle of view can easily fool your eye.
TIP2 - just because an image has a color cast does not mean you need to "fix" it. If you shoot at the golden hour, if you shoot deep inside a forest etc the AWB is going to remove the color cast that made you hit record in the first place.
HTH
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Well, I understand your method of run and gun white balancing, but how would a Dp using film stock go about this? I mean, film is balanced for 1 color of light and 1 only, so cant use "white balance" to create certain looks..they have to use lights with temperatures either above or below the balanced color temp to get different casts right??
And that brings me to this question. The temperature of a lamp is sort of relative to the whitebalance/film stock balance right? I mean, if you're tungsten balanced and you want a blueish light, say to simulate moon light, you'd maybe use a 5600k light, whereas if you're daylight balanced that light would just look white??
And that brings me to this question. The temperature of a lamp is sort of relative to the whitebalance/film stock balance right? I mean, if you're tungsten balanced and you want a blueish light, say to simulate moon light, you'd maybe use a 5600k light, whereas if you're daylight balanced that light would just look white??
The temperature of a lamp is sort of relative to the whitebalance/film stock balance right?
No; color temperature is measured on the Kelvin scale, which is absolute (that is, 3200K is a particular band of the spectrum, it doesn't change, while 5600K is a different section of the spectrum, which likewise does not change).
I mean, if you're tungsten balanced and you want a blueish light, say to simulate moon light, you'd maybe use a 5600k light, whereas if you're daylight balanced that light would just look white??
Yes.
OK - the scene is lit with 32K lights. So you load your cam with tungsten-balanced film. They then gel all the lights - you take a light reading - and get back 56K. What do you do - change to daylight film?
Of course not.
If you EWB do it before the "color cast" is applied.
Of course not.
If you EWB do it before the "color cast" is applied.
you got it.
But if you just want an overall warmer/cooler look, you can also finesse the image in the camera. You don't need to gel all the lights.
With video you can tweak the white balance with manual controls, warm cards etc.
With video & film you can use colored filters on the camera lens - just be sure to set white balance before adding the filter.
TIP3 - color temp is a confusing term. First because the higher temps refer to cooler colors, and second because the scale is logarithmic. The difference between 7000K and 7500K is hardly noticeable - the difference between 2500K and 3000K is major.
But if you just want an overall warmer/cooler look, you can also finesse the image in the camera. You don't need to gel all the lights.
With video you can tweak the white balance with manual controls, warm cards etc.
With video & film you can use colored filters on the camera lens - just be sure to set white balance before adding the filter.
TIP3 - color temp is a confusing term. First because the higher temps refer to cooler colors, and second because the scale is logarithmic. The difference between 7000K and 7500K is hardly noticeable - the difference between 2500K and 3000K is major.
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