Mastering White Balance in Photography: A Step-by-Step Guide to Natural Colors

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white balance

Mastering White Balance

Have you ever looked at a photo and thought, “Why does everything look so yellow… or blue?” You’re not alone! Few things are as disheartening as capturing a beautiful shot only to find the colors completely off.

If you’ve felt like giving up on photography over this, trust me – you’re in good company. Color imbalances are a common struggle for photographers, from beginners to seasoned pros.

But here’s the good news: with a bit of guidance on white balance, you can take control of color issues and transform your frustration into confidence. In this guide, we’ll explore the essentials of white balance in photography, the impact of color temperature, and how to correct white balance in post-processing to achieve true-to-life colors in your images.

Why White Balance Matters

To understand white balance and why it’s so essential, you first need to understand color temperature.

Color temperature describes the many different colors of the light in the world around us, while white balance is how the camera—and later, editing software—deals with these different color temperatures once they’re captured.

In other words, color temperature is a natural phenomenon that can create issues for our cameras. White balance exists as a tool to handle this.

Let’s dive a little deeper into color temperature.

What Is Color Temperature?

Every light source has its own color temperature. For example, candlelight has a very different color temperature than daylight or a flashlight. The largest natural light source, the sun, also varies in color temperature depending on the time of day and weather conditions. Early morning light is cooler and blue, while midday sunlight is typically neutral.

Color temperature is measured in Kelvin, and here are a few examples:

  • Candlelight has a warm, yellow hue with a color temperature around 1000 Kelvin.
  • Daylight under the midday sun is generally neutral, around 5600 Kelvin.
  • Shade or cloudy skies often add a cooler, blue cast, typically above 7000 Kelvin.

You might be thinking, “I’ve never really noticed that.” And it’s true! Our eyes don’t detect all these changes in color temperature because our brain constantly compensates for them, allowing us to see “natural” colors instead of the color of the light itself.

Think of it as having a tiny Picasso in your brain mixing the colors so that you see white as white, blue as blue, and pink as pink.

White Balance to the Rescue

A camera doesn’t have this automatic color compensation. You could say that, when it comes to managing different color temperatures, a camera’s “brain” is its white balance setting.

The basic idea is simple: when a scene is too yellow (warm light), the camera adds a bit of blue to balance it out. If the scene is too blue (cool light), it will add some yellow. The goal is to make the image look as neutral as possible, without any obvious color cast.

White Balance Settings

Most cameras come with a variety of white balance settings to help you handle different lighting conditions:

  • Auto White Balance (AWB): The camera automatically adjusts the white balance based on the lighting in the scene. Great for flexibility, especially when shooting in RAW.
  • Daylight (around 5600K): Best for shooting in natural sunlight.
  • Shade: Slightly warmer to compensate for cooler, bluish shadows.
  • Tungsten: Designed for indoor lighting, which tends to have a yellowish cast.
  • Fluorescent: Neutralizes the greenish tint often seen in office or fluorescent lighting.
  • Custom: Set manually for precise control of your white balance in specific lighting conditions.

Natural Colors Without Overwhelm

Now I can feel a little panic attack coming on. Do I really have to deal with this in the middle of a shoot? I’m already a little overwhelmed by the exposure triangle, I don’t want to take my eyes off the scene because I don’t want to miss the moment, and I’m running around looking for the perfect composition.

Now you’re telling me I need to pay attention to the color of the light? Something I apparently can’t even see because of this amazing brain I have. 

Chill, I know how you feel. When I first got into digital photography and moved away from black and white film, I felt the same way. But I soon discovered that there is a simple solution to this problem.

You see, the wonderful thing is that when you shoot in RAW – and there is no reason not to shoot in RAW – you can adjust the white balance in post-production.

So, to get the perfect white balance without the overwhelm during shooting, you just need to take two steps.

The first step is to select the RAW file format in your camera’s settings, or if you’re not quite sure if it’s the right thing for you, you can select the RAW/JPEG setting.

The second step is to set your white balance to Auto or AWB. Now you’re ready to go and you can focus on the things that actually matter, like exposure and composition.

Isn’t that great news! 

And you have all the time in the world to adjust the colors just as they were and as you like them in the editing phase. 

Adjust White Balance During Post-Processing

Correcting white balance in post-processing is where the magic happens. Whether you use Lightroom, Photoshop, or another editing software, most post-processing tools offer a white balance adjustment function. Here’s how to make the most of it.

Start with White Balance Presets

Many post-processing tools offer white balance presets that can adjust your photo with a single click. Common options include:

  • Auto: Automatically analyzes the image and adjusts the white balance.
  • Daylight: Best for photos taken under natural sunlight.
  • Shade: Adds warmth to compensate for cooler tones in shaded areas.
  • Tungsten: Ideal for balancing the strong yellow tones of indoor lighting.

Experimenting with these presets is an easy way to find the right starting point. If none of the presets seem to fit perfectly, you can still adjust the sliders to refine the balance further.

Use the White Balance Sliders

A little more advanced to adjust white balance is by using the temperature and tint sliders. These tools allow you to fine-tune the balance between warm and cool tones, as well as green and magenta hues.

Temperature Slider: Moving the slider to the right adds warmth (yellow), while moving it left adds coolness (blue).

Tint Slider: Adjusts green and magenta hues. This is helpful when the image has an unnatural green or purple cast, often seen under fluorescent or mixed lighting.

Using these sliders is a good way to control and tweak your image’s overall tone. If your photo looks too yellow, moving the temperature slider left can balance it out. Similarly, if it has a greenish hue, a slight adjustment on the tint slider can neutralize the color.

Advanced Tool: The Eyedropper Tool

In advanced editing software like Lightroom, the eyedropper tool can make quick work of finding the correct white balance. This tool allows you to select a neutral area of your photo, usually something close to white or gray, and the software automatically adjusts the white balance to neutralize any unwanted color cast. Here’s how it works:

  1. Open the eyedropper tool (usually found in the white balance section).
  2. Click on a neutral part of the image, such as a white shirt, a gray wall, or a similarly neutral area.
  3. The software adjusts the white balance settings to balance out the color, based on the selected point.

The eyedropper tool is excellent for fine-tuning and can help achieve a balanced, natural look in your photos. If you’re not satisfied with the result, you can simply click on another part of the image.

Common White Balance Mistakes

Adjust in Batches:

While I understand that it’s convenient to do batch adjustments using presets or syncing your files, it’s not the best approach. This is because color temperature changes in the outside world can happen in an instant. Think about how the light changes when the sun and the clouds do a little dance. So my advice is to check each file for proper white balance and tweak if necessary.

Overcorrecting:

Going too far on either the warm or cool side can result in unnatural colors. And this actually happens more often than you’d think. You see, our eyes adapt and become less sensitive to certain colors, which can lead to “color fatigue,” making it harder to judge color accuracy.

Salty Peanuts

I don’t know exactly how it works, but it’s the same with our taste buds. Have you ever noticed how your first salty peanut tastes super salty, but after a handful, not so much? It is the same with our eyes. For example, after staring at a warm-toned image for a while, your perception will adapt to the warmth, making the image appear more neutral to you, even if it’s technically too yellow. 

The best solution is to take regular breaks or leave it for a day and come back to it with literally fresh eyes.

Overlooking Skin Tones:

When it comes to people in your photos, getting skin tones right can mean the difference between an image that looks natural and inviting, and one that looks unflattering or off-putting. 

Skin tones are often the most sensitive aspect of color correction, as even slight adjustments in white balance can make a person look too cool (giving them a bluish or pale cast) or too warm (adding an unnatural orange or yellow tint)

Conclusion

And there you have it! Your guide to mastering color in photography.

To recap: color temperature describes the color of light sources, and white balance helps your camera adjust for this variation, similar to what your brain does naturally.

By shooting in RAW and selecting AWB, you’ll give yourself flexibility to perfect white balance in editing, making your life as a fearless storytelling photographer a little easier.

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