Fresh of the press first from my E-500

[parthiv91]

Hi,
i thing the scene and the light are not right to check the colors of the camera. I will suggest to take picutres of something colorful in bright light... and then see how the colors look. Also when you are looking at color its importont that you have right white balance... Often the camera automatic seetings don't work well if it does'nt have a good white object in the image.


regards,

 

[Tyson]

Hi,
i thing the scene and the light are not right to check the colors of the camera. I will suggest to take picutres of something colorful in bright light... and then see how the colors look. Also when you are looking at color its importont that you have right white balance... Often the camera automatic seetings don't work well if it does'nt have a good white object in the image.


regards,

How do I check my white balance without any white in the scene?

 

[newrmdmike]

haha, ok.

white balance controls vary per color, not exposure, and a white will only exist in a photo as a tool of exposure. however, the tones will have a certain color cast to them, measured in degrees kelvin. your camera will allow you to scroll through different light sources of different temps. sunlight, shade, clouds, incandescent, flourescent, flash etc.

you should adjust it to match the type of light your under.

 

[newrmdmike]

all of those different colored light sources produce color casts, and if you try photograph somthing with the incandescent settings under flourescent light, you'll get a nasty green cast. white balance is, well, a way to balance that cast.

 

[britonk]

This is what I got through changing the colour - I think it gives the picture a little more depth?

As to your question of photoshop my opinion is that you do your best to take the best picture you can - nothings better than taking the best pic at the time - but whatever you can improve once you get the pic home you should...

 

[The_Traveler]

Another way to understand both white balance and why DSLR photos often need post-processing is to realize that your camera and you see colors in different ways. The human eye/brain combination will extend contrast in a flatly lit scene so that you can see subtle shapes and color shifts. It will do the reverse in brilliantly lit scenes, ignoring highlights to look at the interesting parts. It will integrate detail at various distances within your brain to create the perception of huge depth of field - or, at your choice, do none of those things.

Cameras of any sort are limited by the sensitivity and adaptability of their sensors and the firmware that drives it. Whereas P&S cameras are usually driven to provide a printable image directly from the captured file, DSLRs are calibrated to provide as much detail at all levels of exposure as possible, this often entails keeping the highlight details by underexposing.

Thus files from a DSLR often/usually profit from some touchup in a post-processing application. This is conceptually the same process that film labs go through when filters, different grades of paper or dodging/burning are done.

Where the white balance is concerned, the brain compensates for most slight white imbalance, after all you barely notice the reddish cast of tungsten bulbs in your home and your camera attempts to do the same when auto white balance is enabled.

If you shoot in raw you can manage the white balance to some degree. If you are intensely interested in perfect white balance take an extra shot of a white balance card, such as http://www.rawworkflow.com/products/whibal/purchase.html

I hope this was of interest.