Color Temp? - DPChallenge Forums

Tamron AF 18-270mm F/3,5-6,3 Di II VC LD Aspherical [IF] macro for Canon

04/21/2006 12:35:01 PM · #1

Can someone tell me where the color temp should be set at on my 5-D. I notice the higher the number, the more red it adds.

Right now its set on about 5,000. Goes up considerably higher and lower.

dahved

Canon EOS-50D

04/21/2006 12:36:44 PM · #2

Originally posted by CalliopeKel:

Can someone tell me where the color temp should be set at on my 5-D. I notice the higher the number, the more red it adds.

Right now its set on about 5,000. Goes up considerably higher and lower.

Where you set it depends on the type of lighting you have for your shot, and what kind of look you want to achieve. I believe 5,000 is the middle of the scale...someone jump in and correct me if that's wrong.

Message edited by author 2006-04-21 12:37:31.

Tamron AF 18-270mm F/3,5-6,3 Di II VC LD Aspherical [IF] macro for Canon

04/21/2006 12:37:59 PM · #3

Okay, well going higher will do what? and going lower will do what? does one make things warmer, the other cooler?

dahved

Canon EOS-50D

04/21/2006 12:38:37 PM · #4

I got this from Wikipedia:
Some common examples:

1200 K: a candle
2800 K: tungsten lamp (ordinary household bulb), sunrise and sunset
3000 K: studio lamps, photofloods,
5000 K: electronic flash, average daylight. A designation of D50 stands for "Daylight 5000K" and is the most common standard for professional light booths for photography, graphic arts, and other purposes.
6000 K: bright midday sun
7000 K: lightly overcast sky
8000 K: hazy sky
10,000 K: heavily overcast sky

Best thing would probably be to make some changes to the settings and take some shots to see the effects.

Message edited by author 2006-04-21 12:46:21.

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

04/21/2006 12:40:37 PM · #5

Originally posted by CalliopeKel:

Okay, well going higher will do what? and going lower will do what? does one make things warmer, the other cooler?

Higher will give an orange color cast and lower give a blue color cast. About 5200K is the norm.

Message edited by author 2006-04-21 12:41:21.

mirdonamy

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

04/21/2006 12:41:02 PM · #6

dahved, thanks! I am going to print that little list and carry it with me!

shanelighter

Canon EOS-500D Rebel T1i

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM

04/21/2006 12:41:17 PM · #7

Yes, 5,000 is considered "normal". I think some slide films use 5,500 as daylight though. Flash is also balanced towards 5,000. Here's a link, if you scroll down a bit it will give the different average temps for different conditions. The hardcores buy a colormeter.
//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_temperature

As a point of related interest, as far as I'm aware Magenta does not have a defined wavelenghth, as it does not naturally appear in the spectrum.

Shane.

shanelighter

Canon EOS-500D Rebel T1i

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM

04/21/2006 12:41:38 PM · #8

Too slow again.

blazingmoonlight

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

04/21/2006 12:41:49 PM · #9

This inquiry brings me to a similar question. If you set your Color Temp in the menu section of the 5D, does using white balance settings override your color temp? (unless of course you're using the "K" white balance setting)

cryan

Nikon D700

Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro for Nikon

04/21/2006 12:43:03 PM · #10

daylight is 5200K, so i've got my d200 set to 5300K. it seems to give very neutral tones.

dahved

Canon EOS-50D

Tamron AF 18-270mm F/3,5-6,3 Di II VC LD Aspherical [IF] macro for Canon

04/21/2006 12:44:43 PM · #11

Kelly, do you really want to use those color temp settings instead of using pre-set WB or doing it manually with a grey card?
And this is what I wrote about earlier, but clearer here (I edited an earlier post to remove what I said about temperature) (also from the Wiki article):
From these observations, it becomes clear that blue is the "hotter" color, while red is actually the "cooler" color. This is the exact opposite of the associations both colors have taken on, with "red" as "hot", and "blue" as "cold". The traditional associations come from a variety of sources, such as the fact that water and ice reflect the color of daylight, making them appear blue, and frostbitten flesh often appears blue. Plus, as is well known, metals heated begin to glow red, and fire is reddish. But the redness of these heat sources comes from precisely the fact that red is the coolest of the visible colors: the first color emitted as heat increases. A proof of this is that while incandescent bulbs glow a reddish to yellowish color throughout their lifetimes; when one blows out, the flash of light is noticeably bluish. The filament is hotter when it burns out (as evidenced by the scorch mark often left on the glass).

Message edited by author 2006-04-21 12:58:49.

Olympus 17.5-45mm f/3.5-5.6

04/21/2006 12:56:01 PM · #12

Originally posted by blazingmoonlight:

I don't think you can use two settings in conjuction with one another. You can only pick one from the menu:
Auto, Preset (Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten Light, White Fluorescent Light, Flash), Manual (Custom, or user-set Color Temperature)

If you select a Kelvin temp of 6500 or whatever in manual and then go back to AW, it will be set to AW not 6500. A different selection overrides the previous selection. All the settings in that menu represent different color temps anyway. It's more or less you letting the camera decide white balance based on the type of light or doing it manually yourself with the Kelvin temp settings.

kirsty_mcn

Olympus E-500 EVOLT

04/21/2006 12:58:26 PM · #13

Originally posted by blazingmoonlight:

As far as i understand it, the color temp is a method of setting wb, so yes, they will override wb settings.
its just that some people prefer to manually set wb as per the color temperature rather than a discrete range of settings which may not suit every situation.

Someone correct me if i'm wrong :)

edit: too late...

Message edited by author 2006-04-21 12:59:04.

04/21/2006 01:11:00 PM · #14

The first is a Kelvin of 2500(orange), the second is 10,000(blue)and the third is 5200(normal)

Message edited by author 2006-04-21 13:14:23.

04/21/2006 01:27:01 PM · #15

Those pics werent taken with the camera set at those different color temps obviously, so you did that in photoshop?

I really like the top photo. I think I need to go lower with my numbers to achieve the looks I like. Thanks for those examples.

04/21/2006 01:33:48 PM · #16

Originally posted by CalliopeKel:

No, I have some pelicans in my backyard that I keep for examples when I need them. Just kiddin ya!! Yes they were edited that way. I can change the temp in post anywhere from 2500 to 10,000. It's pretty much the same result you'll get by changing the settings in camera maybe not so harsh though.

04/21/2006 01:46:39 PM · #17

Need some help. I changed the color temp settings and notice no difference in the color. I suspect something is overriding my choice here, what do I need to do to stop the WB override?

sabphoto

Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+

04/21/2006 01:55:34 PM · #18

Originally posted by CalliopeKel:

Need some help. I changed the color temp settings and notice no difference in the color. I suspect something is overriding my choice here, what do I need to do to stop the WB override?

not sure if it matters but are you shooting RAW? Wonder if that overrides manual (mine doesn't) settings since you can adjust when converting.

custom white balance can be fun. I carry different colored paint sample cards with me and have played with different effects without having to use photoshop (my camera will let you save 4 custom white balances to use at any time)...these both were done in camera using cards to get custom balances.

04/21/2006 02:03:30 PM · #19

Hey, I never thought of the paint sample cards. That's a good idea. I'll have to grab some of those next time I'm at Lowe's or some place.

RAW is a good thought. Are you shooting RAW Kelly?

Message edited by author 2006-04-21 14:05:08.

yido