What exactly is white balance?

[exe163]

I am still new to this. I am wondering what exactly is white balance? I know that it messes with the temperature of the picture, but why? I don't see it with films. Wouldn't it be easier for the camera to record accurate color as seen with human eyes?

Am I missing something?

[pommie]

The human eye is a remarkable instrument when combined with your brain, you are going to see white when you look at what you know to be white, in direct sunlight or under tungsten light (the common light globe), whereas when under the tungsten light it is actually a light shade of brown/orange.
However the humble camera just shows it as it is, unless you tell it what white balance to use, hence the white balance settings.
Flouro's have a few colour tint's green, pink and yellow are some I have come across, again you have to tell the camera what should be white, this is the purpose of a Grey card.
I use raw and leave mine in cloudy and adjust the temp in pp

Cheers David

[Dirk]

Digital Photography Tutorial: Understanding White Balance - Photoxels

Understanding White Balance

Introduction to White Balance

just to add a few from google ..

Exe 163 a good tip.. try to buy the book from Bill Cotbett introduction to digital photography , i can recommend it


Translated..

"With analogue camera's , the lightning conditions define what film has to be used.. For Digital camera's , the camera is set predefined or offer a possibility to adjust it to different lightning conditions"

[Dirk]

a even better book: Encyclopedia of Digital Photography by tim daly .. much more adult written , much deeper handeling of techniques..

if you are 8 - 18 years old buy bill corbett, otherwhise buy tim daly 's book


@ bill

Thanks for the K.. i help every body when i can ..

[WayneF]

Originally Posted by exe163

I am still new to this. I am wondering what exactly is white balance? I know that it messes with the temperature of the picture, but why? I don't see it with films. Wouldn't it be easier for the camera to record accurate color as seen with human eyes?

Am I missing something?

Yes, you are missing the film is not adjustable. We have to buy daylight film, or we buy tungsten light film, and after we put that film in the camera, that is our only choice. It is not adjustable.

Digital is adjustable, we set it any way we want it, at every new frame if we choose.

The digital camera does have an Auto White Balance setting, where it can try to adjust the color response, but it is too dumb to do it well. It does not know know if the light is reddish (and should be corrected), or if we are photographing something that is truly reddish (and should be left alone). Computers are simply too dumb, but the human brain can sense these gross choices much better. We KNOW it is a red subject, or that it is a tungsten light. Computer has no clue. It only sees a red result, without knowing why.

[exe163]

I see... Thanks for all the explanation and advice, I will look into the books as well .

[Dirk]

especially tim daly's book is very good, bill corbett wries it down more childish (8 year old should understand style) tim daly clearly writes a more adult way ..

[migy28]

=)