White Balance...need help!

[jowensphoto]

I took a few quick shots of my daughter yesterday. I'm working on them in DPP now, but I am having issues with white balance. I know these leave a bit to be desired in terms of composition (and the pink pillow cover is wrinkled and distracting). I'd really like to concentrate on figuring out white balance, since the others are a relatively easy fix.


Here's SOOC (too "cool")

With spot white balance and a bit of highlight/shadow adjustmen (seems too "warm" to me)

 

[KmH]

A large part of your problems are: 1. The very bright color of the clothes are bouncing light of that color onto your subject. 2. The severe under exposure of the original.

Use a gray card or a color checker so you have known reference colors in at least one image.

GENUINE WhiBal G7 Certified Neutral White Balance Card - Pocket Card (2.1"x3.35")

X-Rite ColorChecker Passport Software

 

[jowensphoto]

I was thinking about a gray card as I was shooting!! I used one while working in one of those "studios," but for the life of me can't remember exactly how it works. Putting that on my to do list. The bright clothes didn't cross my mind.

I noticed the under exposure as well. The first couple shots, she was facing the other way, but the wind was really getting her!! I have a reflector, would that have helped here?

Here's another where she was facing the other way (again, notice the comp. issues... chopped limb, would have worked better landscape orientation). I do notice the pink hue in this, reflected off the dress and pillow case onto her face (mostly around the eyes). Is there a way to overcome this in the process of shooting rather than post? This was shot at 1/125 f/5.0, no flash.

 

[DiskoJoe]

Your baby is pale and thus going to reflect color a bit more. Its a Caucasian Problem, lol. But seriously it is. Nothing really wrong with it. You may have to adjust the temperature and the tint as well to get a better white balance. Turning down the saturation some would not hurt either. Most cameras tend to give more vivid the life color typically.

 

[bratkinson]

1 word response: Expodisk

I've been "fighting" white balance issues for way too long. The crowning 'disaster' was my step daughters' wedding 4 weeks ago. I wasn't even close and ended up with an orangish-yellow cast to everything due to the oddball incandescent lighting that I didn't get right in the camera and couldn't fully fix in post, either.

Then, about 2 weeks ago, either on this forum or elsewhere, someone mentioned Expodisk. I bought one and got 2 small opportunities to use it this past weekend. Both were inside. One was in a restaurant small banquet room with one side all windows, and inside, dimly lit, in the afternoon. The other was in a gymnasium with sodium or ??? lighting. Took a picture through the Expodisk per instructions, set the custom white balance to that picture, and what resulted was close to perfect white balance! As I had several shooting angles, I ended up resetting white balance a couple of times during each shoot. And when I went back to a previous angle, just set it to the previously taken picture.

No, I am not a paid Expodisk rep. I am a VERY satisfied customer! I only wish I could have found out LONG ago about Expodisk!

Edit: I wisely bought a 77mm Expodisk, as my lenses are 72mm, 77mm and 82mm and then bought a step down ring for the 72. I figured I'd NEVER need it on my 16-35 f2.8 82mm....WRONG! So I simply set the white balance using my 24-105 and then put on the 16-35. No need to buy one for each filter size.

 

[KmH]

IMO the Expodisc is way over priced for what it is limited to doing. Not withstanding they come in different sizes to fit different lenses, which is great for Expodisc, but not so great for photographers.

 

[TCampbell]

I use a collapsable gray card. Mine is a Lastolite EZBalance... at $25. A gray card can also be used to get accurate exposure readings.

 

[jowensphoto]

Thanks for the suggestions, everone!

My birthday is coming up, so I've got a few things on my list

 

[jowensphoto]

Your baby is pale and thus going to reflect color a bit more. Its a Caucasian Problem, lol. But seriously it is. Nothing really wrong with it. You may have to adjust the temperature and the tint as well to get a better white balance. Turning down the saturation some would not hurt either. Most cameras tend to give more vivid the life color typically.

LOL she's my little casper! Thanks for the tips.