White Balance - quick example

[Geoff Chandler]

I was messing around taking close ups indoors.
It is good to try out different White balance settings, I am starting
to mix and match what I use and when - often inside buildings
I leave the WB on Auto - but outside I usually select what I think
the nearest Kelvin value would be. (on mine an overcast day usually works OK on 5300K)
Sometimes, however, it is unpredictable.

Indoors taking a real close up of my Turntable pickup (Stereo stuff!)
I was using Auto WB and was suprised how wrong it was (nice - but wrong!)
I decided to use the Kelvin range - but was also suprised at the result (still not right)
Here is the difference shown below... (- it's not about my macro shot here
- just about the suprising difference.)
BTW - a typical Daylight setting might be 5200K - more overcast gets bluer and needs a higher setting to accomadate - but not so in this instance!!
I decided I liked the more red version anyway in the end.

[devin]

Yeah I hear ya. You just have to play around. I do like the warmer one better as well :). That's the beauty of shooting in Raw though... you can always play with the WB til your heart is content after the fact.

[Visual Reality]

Like devin said, in RAW you can change the WB and tint with sliders to perfect it in every shot so it isn't necessary to get it perfect in the camera.

Nikons are very accurate outdoors - I always leave it on Auto. Indoors can be a lot more difficult when you run into mixed lighting.

[Mark_48]

What an odd contrast. Has a high tech digital camera to capture images, yet still owns and appears to use a turntable to listen to old vinyl recordings :)

What kind of lighting was there for the images? The reddish one leads me to think it was incandescent or afternoon sun, or did you just balance it to appear so?

[devin]

Haha hey I also have a DSLR AND a turntable! :) I pick up rare vinyl on ebay all the time. Of course, a lot of the time I just end up dubbing it to MP3 so I can hear it in my car! :)

[SpecialK]

still owns and appears to use a turntable to listen to old vinyl recordings :)




With the right equipment, vinyl can sound "better" than digital because digital has finite steps in the tonal range made with just 1's and 0's.

The key is the right equipment :-)

I have CD's....

[Phill D]

I did some sunrise shots recently & forgot I'd left the WB on indoor setting. They all came out blue. I was equally suprised how dramatic a difference it made. I've still got a turntable too - don't use it very much though but it's nice occasionally. The kids can't believe it when I use it - what you scratch a piece of plastic to get that sound!!! - Geoff that turntable looks like the glass of a Rega 3 but the arm is different I think?

[Geoff Chandler]

I did some sunrise shots recently & forgot I'd left the WB on indoor setting. They all came out blue. I was equally suprised how dramatic a difference it made. I've still got a turntable too - don't use it very much though but it's nice occasionally. The kids can't believe it when I use it - what you scratch a piece of plastic to get that sound!!! - Geoff that turntable looks like the glass of a Rega 3 but the arm is different I think?

Bearing in mind I this is really about WB - I won't start loads of Turnatable shots. However, just for the record (HA!) it's a Michel Gyrodec (Borehamwood England) with a Rega RB300 arm and Ortofon MC25FL (moving coil) pickup.
Deck shown here: - http://www.dcresource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25920&page=876

I find Auto WB on the whole does a good job - but on grey days it seems a little too blue - so I use manual WB settings. I mix and match as I said before.
Indoor Auto is more often than not the best with my model especially with mixed lighting.
Manual WB appears to only operate the Red - Blue range
Fluoro has a preset bias in the Green Magenta range to compensate the green lighting - but the compensation works the Red - blue range on top of that.
Auto WB seems to be the only one (other than a full manual pre) to work both Red - blues and Green - Magenta.
The 'Pre' test shot that you use a white or neitral grey card for is very good - but no fine tuning if you want it a tad warmer (I guess use a slightly Blue white card if you want a slightly redder image.
I understand about RAW - but for now I am not going there - I have no conversion program and I have little time as it is without processinmg every shot. 90% of my pics I am happy with - I tweak a few and I am happy.

[Geoff Chandler]

This image shows the whole deck - it is in a darkish corner of our back room - furthest away from the window (approx 23 ft away)
The wallpaper is a sort of beige and there is reddy brown woodwork around
But essentially it is shade lighting (8000K apparently on my camera - but this was 4300K - so there is quite a lot of red coloured light around - not quite into the Tungsten range though - you can see a little of the outside bluer light on the r/h side

[Mark_48]

With the right equipment, vinyl can sound "better" than digital because digital has finite steps in the tonal range made with just 1's and 0's.

The key is the right equipment :-)

I have CD's....

With the right equipment, film can look "better" than digital because digital has finite steps in the tonal range made with just 1's and 0's. :D

I just couldn't help myself.....

....and I also still have a turntable and collection of old vinyl albums

[Geoff Chandler]

I Have a record deck - but I still play CD's as well
I have manual White balance - but I still use Auto WB as well

I took a Photo of my Record deck with my Digital camera ~
should I take a picture of my CD player with my Film camera???

Hey! it's good to diversify!!

[GaryS]

What kind of camera will you use to shoot your ipod? :)

[Geoff Chandler]

Now you are trying to catch me out!!
I don't have an IPOD.....I have a Sony MP3/4player/Radio/thingy
~which I listen to recordings of Records I made on that turntable on
(Aaaaarghh!!!)
I guess it should be a point and shoot film camera then?

[DonSchap]

Well ... I just added a new Theater Sound System, over the past couple days ... and there wasn't a "port" for a turntable ... HDMI1, 2, & 3 ... AV1, AV2, Digital Audio optical cable port, "wireless" rear speaker transmitter port ... and USB! And now get this ... a honest-to-God network port ... on the television! What's with that? A television with an IP Address? Geez Louise ... I give up. Talk about monitoring your viewing habits.

But ... no turntable port ... so, goodbye ol' scratchy "Abbey Road" & "The White Album" The vinyl days are in the final days.

[Geoff Chandler]

Well ... I just added a new Theater Sound System, over the past couple days ... and there wasn't a "port" for a turntable ... HDMI1, 2, & 3 ... AV1, AV2, Digital Audio optical cable port, "wireless" rear speaker transmitter port ... and USB! And now get this ... a honest-to-God network port ... on the television! What's with that? A television with an IP Address? Geez Louise ... I give up. Talk about monitoring your viewing habits.

But ... no turntable port ... so, goodbye ol' scratchy "Abbey Road" & "The White Album" The vinyl days are in the final days.
I am sorry to say you are probably correct in saying "The vinyl days are in the final days" I looked up my pickup and it is discontinued.. It is a darn good one too - UK price is £300= for an Ortofon MC25FL or I should say was!!> These days to plug in Vinyl you need an additional RIAA equalistion adaptor (used to be built into the amp) - so you plug it into the Aux (phono) sockets.
Scratchy? I would be lying if I said all records were clean. But many of mine, with that T/Table combi sound very clean - it's the shape of the stylus and the fact that once clamped on I effectively have a 1 inch thick record. Then of course there is the frequency range.... (more on records - with MC pickups extending a lot higher than conventional CD)
Ahh well - got to move on.
(one last pic - this is correct colour balance as seen on my monitor &
this is the deck in motion)

[jimr-pdx]

During the autumn season I popped into WB-bracket mode, and in many cases preferred the warm-biased shot with the autumn leaves :cool:. When in doubt, and if you don't like RAW (and your camera allows), it's a great option to have. Surprisingly, my A200 allows WB-bracketing when shooting RAW :eek: -- if you're shooting fast, this redundant option will fill your card in a hurry & slow down burst mode!