I am learning so much about photography by being part of 365.
The one setting I have no idea about is the "evaluate White Balance".
It is on my point n shoot. I did a quick search and didn't really see anything to help me understand what it's for or how someone would use it.
Thanks in advance
Is that what you use for setting a custom white balance? That would be my guess since it says "evaluate". Or is there another menu somewhere for setting a custom white balance?
On a P&S it probably just means what kind of light you have. Outdoor,fluorescent, cloudy, incandescent. If you haven't been changing it, you probably sometimes get pics that are sort of browns or yellow tones.
@myhrhelper Cathy, for your camera it looks like it means you're selecting a custom White Balance setting. That option lets you review a white scene under your lighting conditions and then use the MENU button to lock in a setting. If you have the manual for your camera, it's on Page 68. If you don't have the manual, you can find one here: http://gdlp01.c-wss.com/gds/7/0300001857/01/PSA480_CUG_EN.pdf
And I promise that if you read this article thoroughly, you will learn everything you'd ever need to know about cats. You can never go wrong taking photos of cats. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat
@gurry Sorry Gary, I'm all out of slack today! People who are missing out on your Socks +1 pictures are missing out on life! I love me some Socks!
@rosiekind Gary et al have outlined it pretty well. I downloaded a copy of your user manual (I assume you are talking about your Canon Powershot) and studied everything about white balance in regards to your camera. If you have it on "Auto" all of the decisions are made for you regarding how the camera should interpret the light hitting the sensor (but you may get some off-tone photos). The other choices are manual inputs based on the actual light you are under.
@grizzlysghost I thought I would read up on white balance in general more for my Nikon & Lumix than my point and shoot Olympus that I've got - I've just copied the articles to read later
@myhrhelper - Check page 68 of your user manual. It tells how to set custom white balance.
Here is a graphic example of auto white balance vs custom white balance. The image on the left was done with auto white balance selected. The one on the right with custom white balance set. Note that I used an 18% gray card, but a bright white card will work too. Note how the one on the left is somewhat blue and the one on the right is warmer. The warmer one is spot on. It makes sense to use custom white balance any time you can.
@mtngal@mikehamm@grizzlysghost@rosiekind@gurry@kannafoot@tigerdreamer@mtngal@marilyn
Thank you all for your response.
When I started 365 everything was auto, but now I am trying to work with the various settings that I have and learn as much as I can. Eventually I want to upgrade and "graduate" out of the point n shoot but first I need to know the how to's of the features I have. I will read the information you provided and really appreciate what you have shared. I don't have my manual so I will now be able to use the one on line! I tried changing the white balance but didn't know how to make changes and why. So this will be very helpful.
@myhrhelper Honestly, 90% of the time, I leave my WB on auto. I'll only change it if the shot is looking exceptionally janky. I guess it's important to know what it is and how it works, but in most situations even if you get a shot with bad WB, you can fix it afterwards pretty easily.
@gurry I have been changing the settings to cloudy, sunny, etc. but not on a consistent basis. Then the last setting says custom white balance which always looks blue. If I have it on that setting, select the menu button it appears to make some adjustment but still is bluish, so I'm not sure what that one is all about. I enjoyed reading the article since it explained those settings and gave me more of an understanding. I'm still confused about the last option though.
@myhrhelper Hmm. Custom probably means that it's reading the current light and adjusting the balance, which is triggered manually. Just set it on auto and call it a day :)
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@rosiekind Gary et al have outlined it pretty well. I downloaded a copy of your user manual (I assume you are talking about your Canon Powershot) and studied everything about white balance in regards to your camera. If you have it on "Auto" all of the decisions are made for you regarding how the camera should interpret the light hitting the sensor (but you may get some off-tone photos). The other choices are manual inputs based on the actual light you are under.
Good luck!
Here is a graphic example of auto white balance vs custom white balance. The image on the left was done with auto white balance selected. The one on the right with custom white balance set. Note that I used an 18% gray card, but a bright white card will work too. Note how the one on the left is somewhat blue and the one on the right is warmer. The warmer one is spot on. It makes sense to use custom white balance any time you can.
Thank you all for your response.
When I started 365 everything was auto, but now I am trying to work with the various settings that I have and learn as much as I can. Eventually I want to upgrade and "graduate" out of the point n shoot but first I need to know the how to's of the features I have. I will read the information you provided and really appreciate what you have shared. I don't have my manual so I will now be able to use the one on line! I tried changing the white balance but didn't know how to make changes and why. So this will be very helpful.