Comments on: white balance settings – my approach http://neilvn.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/ photography by Neil van Niekerk Thu, 18 Mar 2010 00:23:52 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Neil http://neilvn.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-118 Neil Sat, 25 Jul 2009 07:34:24 +0000 http://planetneil.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-118 <blockquote>Rob, currently I use the <strong><a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/525541-REG/Datacolor_S3EL100_Spyder3Elite_Display_Calibration_System.html/BI/2096/KBID/2822" target=_new" rel="nofollow">Spyder 3 Elite</a></strong> to calibrate my monitors. Neil vN</blockquote>

Rob, currently I use the Spyder 3 Elite to calibrate my monitors.

Neil vN

]]> By: Rob http://neilvn.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-117 Rob Wed, 22 Jul 2009 22:32:51 +0000 http://planetneil.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-117 Neil, what product do you use to calibrate your monitor? Neil, what product do you use to calibrate your monitor?

]]> By: Neil http://neilvn.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-115 Neil Tue, 30 Sep 2008 08:44:35 +0000 http://planetneil.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-115 <blockquote>David .. As a wedding photographer I'm quite lucky in nearly always having a white (or close to white) surface in any sequence of images, where I can click on the white to get closer to a pleasant WB. Other than that, I quite often just look at the image on my calibrated monitor. I know .. not very scientific, and there is a large margin for error in getting a correct WB this way .. but quite often I am after <strong>a pleasant WB</strong> more than a very specific correct WB. (Our eyes are accepting of quite a wide range of tones as being acceptable.) Neil vN</blockquote>

David ..

As a wedding photographer I’m quite lucky in nearly always having a white (or close to white) surface in any sequence of images, where I can click on the white to get closer to a pleasant WB.

Other than that, I quite often just look at the image on my calibrated monitor. I know .. not very scientific, and there is a large margin for error in getting a correct WB this way .. but quite often I am after a pleasant WB more than a very specific correct WB. (Our eyes are accepting of quite a wide range of tones as being acceptable.)

Neil vN

]]> By: David J http://neilvn.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-116 David J Sun, 28 Sep 2008 23:05:25 +0000 http://planetneil.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-116 Hi Neil My question is where do you place the eyedropper, when you are trying to located the best area of a photograph, for a good wB. Is it placed on the whites or on a neutral area? Also how is a neutral grey area found in raw. Hi Neil
My question is where do you place the eyedropper, when you are trying to located the best area of a photograph, for a good wB. Is it placed on the whites or on a neutral area? Also how is a neutral grey area found in raw.

]]> By: Neil http://neilvn.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-114 Neil Fri, 14 Dec 2007 03:01:38 +0000 http://planetneil.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-114 <blockquote>Hi there Rob. No, I don't have an Expo Disc. It would make sense for me under a static scenario, such as studio photography. But in most of my work, I am moving around a lot, and bouncing flash behind me or to the side of me. In doing this, the light picks up all kinds of different colour .. which sounds like an Expodisc would actually be an ideal solution to the WB problem. However, as I move around, the flash light is bouncing off different areas all the time - different parts of the walls and ceiling, and of different objects. Therefore the WB changes often. So instead of driving myself nuts taking custom WB readings, I just adjust the WB afterwards as part of my general raw workflow. Much simpler, imho. Neil vN</blockquote>

Hi there Rob.

No, I don’t have an Expo Disc. It would make sense for me under a static scenario, such as studio photography. But in most of my work, I am moving around a lot, and bouncing flash behind me or to the side of me.

In doing this, the light picks up all kinds of different colour .. which sounds like an Expodisc would actually be an ideal solution to the WB problem. However, as I move around, the flash light is bouncing off different areas all the time – different parts of the walls and ceiling, and of different objects. Therefore the WB changes often.

So instead of driving myself nuts taking custom WB readings, I just adjust the WB afterwards as part of my general raw workflow.

Much simpler, imho.

Neil vN

]]> By: Rob Oresteen http://neilvn.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-113 Rob Oresteen Thu, 13 Dec 2007 18:09:33 +0000 http://planetneil.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-113 Neil - do you ever use an Expo Disc for white balance? If so, how. If not, why? Thanks, Rob Neil – do you ever use an Expo Disc for white balance? If so, how. If not, why?

Thanks,

Rob

]]> By: james toal http://neilvn.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-112 james toal Thu, 15 Nov 2007 03:07:39 +0000 http://planetneil.com/tangents/2006/10/25/white-balance-settings-my-approach/#comment-112 Neil, Thank you for the comment regarding fluorescent lighting and using a shutter speed of 1/60 or slower. I do weddings in churches where there is fluorescent in the seated section, tungsten floods over the stage and natural light fron the windows. Yes, I shoot RAW but because I use a shutter speed of around 1/100, the colors are all over the place. I'll take 3 or 4 bursts of the same scene and all 4 are different. your advice will be used this Saturday, and as usual, i'm sure your advice will be stellar. thank you for this tremendous recource. James Toal, CT Neil,
Thank you for the comment regarding fluorescent lighting and using a shutter speed of 1/60 or slower. I do weddings in churches where there is fluorescent in the seated section, tungsten floods over the stage and natural light fron the windows. Yes, I shoot RAW but because I use a shutter speed of around 1/100, the colors are all over the place. I’ll take 3 or 4 bursts of the same scene and all 4 are different. your advice will be used this Saturday, and as usual, i’m sure your advice will be stellar. thank you for this tremendous recource. James Toal, CT

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