White Balance
An Easy Method For
Custom Settings
ExpoDisc - The Digital White Balance Filter
Digital imaging should encourage photographers
to be more aware of their basic medium, the
light. Film users have always been
forced to think about the type of film color
balance needed to match the color of the
light being utilized for exposure. Film
choice was the first tier choice and small
incremental color correction filters were
the delicate refinements. Professionals
had to constantly tote two types of film
and a bag of filters to keep things correct. If
the photographer disregarded the notion to
match film to light, they paid the penalty
of warm and orange or Martian style, over
saturated blue images. Unfortunately,
the demanding attention and required baggage
was too much for most part time photographers. Things
just turned out the color they did. Digital
techniques make things far easier to control,
with just a bit of understanding.
Light is infrequently pure in color. Generally,
surroundings reflect various tints into the
light, clouds cool it down, and artificial
light and sunsets always warms it up. While
our eyes may be deceived by the subtleties
of color, camera sensors rarely are. For
this reason, most digital cameras feature
a “White Balance” setting
that enable the user to neutralize color
imperfections by reference, to a known tone,
or by in camera presets. I believe
all digital cameras presently also feature
the ubiquitous Auto White Balance (AWB),
which is an in-camera environmental color
monitoring system. With the ease of
correction and implementation contained within
digital cameras, White Balance corrections
should be given more regard.
It is a fact that there are
occasions where AWB may be outwitted and
the presets may be too course for a perfect
color match. When
those situations occur, the preferable method
becomes the reference matching, custom white
balance setting. To accomplish this
a digital picture is made of a known white
or gray tone under the existing photographic
light conditions. Then that image is
called up within the camera and set as the
new custom white balance for the particular
situation. One method is to carry a,
known and calibrated white or gray card for
photo calibration, everywhere you go. Some
find the methods and products, from the August
newsletter http://www.pictureline.com/newsletter/2004/august/colorchart.html,
too bulky and others think they are quite
satisfactory. If the 8x10 card method
isn’t for you try the ExpoDisc http://www.pictureline.com/digital/daccessories/expodisc/index.html. For
the convenience of all digital photographers
and digital videographers, pictureline now
stocks the ExpoDisc in 67 mm and 77 mm sizes. The
ExpoDisc is an 18 % calibrated filter looking
item. It is small, handy to travel
with and totally suitable for the job of
setting a custom WB. Slip it over the
lens, take a picture, recall the image in
preview mode and select it as the custom
white balance. It is so easy and fast
that there is absolutely no reason not to
be fully in control of your WB.
I have attached some additional information
about the product below for your perusal. I
have worked with the ExpoDisc and found it
an absolute pleasure to use.
Get accurate color in difficult lighting
with the patented ExpoDisc, the fast and
easy digital white balance filter. Simply
read and set white balance with the ExpoDisc
in place before shooting and you’ll
reduce or eliminate the need for post-capture
color adjustments.
Expodisc PDF Download
Get instruction sheets here
http://www.expodisc.com/products/expodisc/instructions.html
