Colors turning out grey or white!!

[Sabre]

Hi again,

Just thought I'd mention that I've tried doing several shots with different exposures and they all come out with washed out colors.

 

[Hertz van Rental]

What light meter are you using?
If it is in the camera, when did you last change the battery?
What bulbs do your studio lights use? Please give all the details you can. Some studio tungsten lights run at a different colour temperature to what tungsten film is balanced for.
Tesco processing is usually OK - do you have it done in-store or do they send it to Kodak? Find out. Kodak Northampton is notorious for screwing up films.
Try using a different processor - get Boots to do it in-store for example - and see if it persists.
Have you checked your lens to make sure it's clean? Also if where you shoot is cold, do you allow time for the film and camera to aclimatise? Do you use a lens hood?
The problem you are experiencing could be due to a combination of things. We need to start eliminating possibilities.

 

[Sabre]

Hi, thanks for your help.

>What light meter are you using?
>If it is in the camera, when did you last change the battery?

I haven't changed the battery since I bought the camera several years ago. But, the camera manual says if the 'little green light' remains constant, then the battery is fine - the little green light is constant, so I haven't changed it. But, the battery will only affect the light meter, right? And I've tried lots of different exposures, from extreme underexposure to extreme overexposure.

>What bulbs do your studio lights use? Please give all the details you can.
>Some studio tungsten lights run at a different colour temperature to
>what tungsten film is balanced for.

The bulbs came with the kit I bought. The details of the kit are at:
http://www.jessops.com/search/viewproduct.cfm?PRODUCT=POR@DL1000K&BRAND=&CONTINUE=false&FEATS=&FIRSTPRICE=&KEYWORD=&LEVEL=&MODELNUMBER=&NEWQUERY=True&NODE=0&NODE_PATH=0&ORD=ASC&ORDERBY=&QUANTITY=10&RECENT=0&REFINE=&SEARCH_FOR=dl1000&SEARCHNODE=0&SEARCHURL=dointellisearch.cfm&SECONDPRICE=&SHOWCASEID=&STARTROW=1&SUBS=&WORD_SEARCH=Y&

It says the colour temperature is 3000K, so I also use a Hoya 82A filter to match the tungsten film exactly.

>Tesco processing is usually OK - do you have it done in-store or do they
>send it to Kodak? Find out. Kodak Northampton is notorious for screwing
>up films. Try using a different processor - get Boots to do it in-store for
>example - and see if it persists.


I have it done in-store. I've tried two different Tesco stores (both of which do it in-store and do not send it off).

>Have you checked your lens to make sure it's clean?

Yes, the lens is clean. I also tried a 100-300 zoom lens (the only other lens I have), but the problem persists.

>Also if where you shoot is cold, do you allow time for the film and
>camera to aclimatise?

Hmmm, I hadn't thought of that. How long would I need to leave it? The place that I work is quite cold. It usually takes about half an hour to set up the equipment before I shoot - would this be long enough?

>Do you use a lens hood?

No, I don't use a lens hood. I had a problem with lens flare before and I tried making a lens hood from a piece of card, but I could see the lens hood in the viewfinder! I couldn't imagine it being any different with a bought lens hood? So, I decided not to go with a lens hood and placed some boards each side of the camera to block out any stray light. Before this I had just used my hand to block out any stray light.


Sabre

 

[Hertz van Rental]

Hmmm, I hadn't thought of that. How long would I need to leave it? The place that I work is quite cold. It usually takes about half an hour to set up the equipment before I shoot - would this be long enough?

Might not be.
I'm thinking along the lines of condensation on the film, or possibly on the back element of the lens. Could cause the problem - and explain why it still happens when lots of other factors are changed.
You get condensation problems when you go from warm to cold or from cold to warm.
Either heat your studio area up - or try leaving the camera and film in there for at least 6 hours prior to using. You have to wait for not only the camera and film to reach ambient, but for any condensation to evaporate.
I would also strongly advise buying a proper lens hood. It's the first line of defense against flare - and using flags isn't 100% effective.

 

[Lumix]

Hi I just downloaded your picture and run it through Picasa came out spot on. Picasa is downloadable free from Google. Give it a try and you will find Rob is right, ie overexposed.

 

[Sabre]

Hi Hertz van Rental,

Thanks for your help with this. I'll try leaving the camera and film in the studio for at least 6 hours as you suggested and look into getting a lens hood aswell.


Hi Lumix,

Any chance you could post your result? I'm a bit skeptical about it being overexposed as I've tried lots of different exposures and they all bring the same results. Thanks.


Sabre

 

[Hertz van Rental]

Meant to add that you should change the battery in your meter at least once a year - whatever the test button tells you.

 

[Lumix]

Sorry I don't know how to post attachments to this forum, but Picasa only take a few minutes to download and is very easy to use. Give it a try and I'm sure you will get the results you want. Or I can e-mail it to you. I'm **e-mail address edited by Moderator**

 

[markc]

The white point and black point were pretty far off, which I'm guessing happened when you scanned. After doing a levels and curves adjustment, I got this:

Adding red and removing some blue (adding yellow) resulting in this:

Does your print really look as washed out as the image you posted?

 

[Sabre]

Hi markc,

Your result is pretty much what I got after I'd played around with it in PSP - furniture is alright but beige carpet (on floor and for backdrop) is a mile off.

>Does your print really look as washed out as the image you posted?

I don't bother with prints for my work anymore - I have my pictures put straight onto CD, so there is no scanning involved. The image I posted came straight from the CD.

Thanks for your help.

Sabre

 

[markc]

Yeah, somethin's funky. Are the negs washed out? If so, fix the meter/camera/battery/condensation first before trying to figure out the colors. If they are good, try prints/scans at a different lab from the same negs.