White balance

White balance (WB) is a critical concept in photography to ensure that the colors in your image look natural and accurate. White balance compensates for different lighting conditions, making sure that whites appear white and other colors remain true.

What is White Balance?

Different light sources emit light of varying "color temperatures," measured in Kelvin (K). This color temperature can affect how colors appear in your photos. For example:

• Daylight has a color temperature around 5500-6500K, resulting in a neutral light.

• Tungsten (incandescent bulbs) emits a warm light, around 2700-3000K, which can make whites appear yellow.

• Fluorescent lights can give off a greenish cast.

The Role of White Balance

By adjusting the white balance, you're essentially telling the camera how to interpret the color temperature of the light in the scene so it can render whites correctly. This ensures that all the other colors in the image look accurate too.

Common White Balance Presets

Most cameras and editing software offer preset WB options, and they cover the most common lighting scenarios:

• Auto (AWB): Camera automatically detects and adjusts WB.

• Daylight/Sunny: For outdoor shooting under direct sunlight (~5500K).

• Shade: For shadowy areas, which tend to be cooler (~7000K).

• Cloudy: For overcast skies, slightly warmer than daylight (~6000K).

• Tungsten: For incandescent light, adds cool tones to counterbalance the warmth (~3200K).

• Fluorescent: Adds warmth to counter the greenish cast (~4000K).

• Flash: Typically similar to daylight, but sometimes needs slight warming (~5500K).

• Custom (Kelvin): Manual control over color temperature, allowing you to set a specific value.

How to Adjust White Balance in-Camera

1. Find the WB settings in your camera menu. It's often labeled "WB" or "White Balance."

2. Select a preset that matches your shooting environment. For example, if you're indoors under incandescent lights, choose the Tungsten preset.

3. For more control, some cameras allow you to manually set the color temperature in Kelvin. This can be especially useful when you’re in mixed lighting conditions.

Adjusting White Balance in Post-Processing

If you shoot in RAW, you have a lot more flexibility in adjusting WB during post-processing. Here’s how you can fine-tune it in software like Lightroom or Photoshop:

1. Use the White Balance Tool: This allows you to click on a neutral part of the image (something white or grey), and the software will automatically adjust the colors.

2. Manually adjust the Temperature and Tint sliders:

   • Temperature slider: Adjusts the color temperature from cool (blue) to warm (yellow).

   • Tint slider: Adjusts the green-magenta balance, useful when fluorescent lights add a greenish tint.

Custom White Balance

1. Take a photo of a white or grey card in the same light you’ll be shooting in.

2. Go to your camera’s Custom White Balance setting and select the photo of the card.

3. The camera will now use this image to set the WB for your shots in that specific lighting condition.

Practical Tips

• Always shoot in RAW to preserve the most color information, giving you more room to adjust WB in post.

• If you’re unsure of the correct WB, shoot in Auto WB and adjust later in editing, especially if you’re in a mixed lighting environment.

• For consistent color, especially in professional shoots like weddings or portraits, use a grey card or white card for custom WB.

Example:

If you're shooting a wedding indoors under incandescent light, the scene might appear too warm. You would set the WB to Tungsten, and the camera will introduce cool tones to balance the warmth.

Here are a few examples of how white balance settings can dramatically change the appearance of your images in different lighting conditions:

1. Wedding Portrait Under Tungsten Light

Let’s say you’re shooting a wedding inside a dimly lit reception hall, and the primary light source is tungsten (incandescent) bulbs. This light has a warm, yellow/orange tint. Here’s how the white balance settings would affect the image:

• Auto WB: The camera tries to neutralize the warmth, but may not completely remove the yellow tones.

• Tungsten WB (3200K): This preset adds cooler tones, balancing the warm light, and making whites appear true white.

• Daylight WB (5500K): This setting would keep the warm tones, making the image look overly yellow and unnatural.

Best Choice: Use the Tungsten WB setting to ensure the couple's attire, especially white dresses and tuxedos, looks neutral instead of yellow.

2. Outdoor Maternity Shoot in Shade

For a maternity session shot outdoors under a tree canopy, you might encounter cooler, bluish tones due to the shaded environment. Here's how different WB settings affect the shot:

• Auto WB: The camera may lean towards cooler tones, leaving the skin a little pale or bluish.

• Shade WB (7000K): This setting warms up the image, adding a golden tone to skin and foliage, making it look more vibrant.

• Daylight WB (5500K): This might leave the photo slightly cooler than you'd want, with the skin tones looking a bit cold.

Best Choice: The Shade WB setting will provide warmer, more flattering skin tones and vibrant colors in outdoor environments.

3. Flash Photography for Wedding Reception

During a wedding reception, you often use an external flash in low-light environments. Flash has a neutral light temperature, similar to daylight.

• Auto WB: The camera generally does well, but might not perfectly balance mixed light sources in the environment (like a mix of ambient light and flash).

• Flash WB (5500K): This adds a slight warmth to the image, balancing the cool, harsh light from the flash for softer skin tones.

• Tungsten WB: If the reception hall has warm tungsten lights, this setting will make the entire scene unnaturally cool, creating a blue cast.

Best Choice: Use Flash WB for most shots or customize with a grey card for mixed lighting situations.

4. Sunset Wedding Ceremony

Shooting during golden hour or sunset introduces beautiful, warm light. Here's how white balance settings could alter your image:

• Auto WB: The camera may try to neutralize the warm, golden tones, resulting in a cooler image than you want.

• Cloudy WB (6000K): This enhances the warmth of the scene, intensifying the golden light for a dramatic effect.

• Daylight WB (5500K): This will capture the scene with a neutral white balance, maintaining the natural warmth but not exaggerating it.

Best Choice: For sunset shots, the Cloudy WB setting will amplify the golden hues and make the scene more romantic and dramatic.

5. Indoor Maternity Shoot with Natural Window Light

When shooting indoors with natural window light, especially during cloudy weather, you might encounter cooler light. Here’s how different WB settings affect the image:

• Auto WB: It can work decently, but might not perfectly balance out the cool light.

• Daylight WB (5500K): This neutral setting may still leave the image looking slightly cool, especially if the light coming through the window is bluish.

• Cloudy WB (6000K): This adds warmth to the image, giving skin tones a healthy, warm glow and making the atmosphere feel cozy and inviting.

Best Choice: Cloudy WB will help balance the cool natural light, creating warm, flattering skin tones for the mother-to-be.

Recap:

• Tungsten WB (3200K): Use indoors with tungsten/incandescent lighting to cool down warm colors.

• Shade WB (7000K): Adds warmth to counteract the cool tones of shaded or overcast environments.

• Flash WB (5500K): Neutralizes harsh flash lighting and adds a little warmth.

• Cloudy WB (6000K): Enhances warmth, great for sunset or cloudy days.

• Custom WB: For the most accurate colors, use a grey card or set the temperature manually in tricky lighting.