White Balance – The Basics

I’d like to start this post by pointing out that I’m not at all a professional photographer. At the moment I know surprisingly little to nothing about how my camera actually works. But I’m changing that. I’ve enrolled myself in a photography course every week as of last week and I can’t wait to start sharing all the tips and tricks that I’m learning.

Firstly, and very importantly, I’ve learnt the importance of White Balance and just how much it can affect your photos. To put it simply, white balance is the colours and tones that your camera perceives as white and is based around your lighting surroundings. In a way, white balance settings are almost like Instagram filters and can be just as easily changed. For example, a photo taken in direct sunlight can look completely different from a photo taken under fluorescent bulbs because of the white balance option chosen or ‘filter’.

It’s not an easy thing to visualize unless shown so I’ve taken the same shot on each white balance setting to show just how different each setting is and which one could be the best for you.

Fluorescent – This is usually the best setting when shooting under cool toned fluorescent bulbs as it counteracts the blue tones. Or equally can be used for adding a warm, rose tint to your photos.

Incandescent – Similarly, this is also commonly used for shooting under fluorescent lights but gives a cooler tint to your photos.

Shade – this is most commonly used when in the shade which could be outside or when shooting inside like many of us bloggers do. If you end up with a similar yellowish tint and wish for whiter photos then you can simply play about with the fluorescent and incandescent option as shown above. However if you are taking body/face shots outside then this gives a lovely warm glow to skin.

Direct Sunlight – Unlike the above, if you are shooting in direct sunlight then this setting may be the best for you giving a more neutral look to photos.

Automatic – This is the setting that is manually set unless you are altering the white balance and where the camera decided itself which is best for your shots. It’s what I’ve been using up until now and gives fairly neutral, cool toned look to photos.

Flash – usually the actual camera flash adds a lot of cool tones whilst taking photos however the Flash white balance setting gives a lot of warmth and gives a similar affect to Shade when shooting outdoors.

Cloudy – Lastly, Cloudy is of course used when shooting in cloudy areas, indoors or out. I often find this one the best for photos alike the above as the finish isn’t too warm but can easily be toned down in editing.

To change the White Balance on most cameras the steps are:

• Menu
• White Balance
• Whichever works best

It’s something worth playing about with like I did above so you can figure out which setting works best for you.

I hope that made enough sense, Id love to know if it’s something you’ve used/altered before?