Category: Photography Tips & Techniques

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The white balance

The white balance

Do you know what the white balance is? But you should, because after the three exposure values ​​( exposure time , aperture , ISO ), white balance is the most important in photography. The other values ​​deal with the brightness of the picture, this deals with the color.

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1 The white balance in digital cameras

2 Shoot RAW for better white balance

3 Adjust the white balance manually

4 When do I hire something?

5 The gray card

We need the white balance to compensate for the different light colors. You have probably already noticed yourself, the sunset or a lightbulb is very orange, we go into the cellar and turn on the neon tube, the light is very cold. Our brains can do that and that color difference doesn’t look that extreme.

The white balance is supposed to compensate for this and the aim of the white balance is to make white look white.

This color temperature is given in Kelvin and is very easy to remember with fire. The hotter the fire, the more bluish it becomes. Same with white balance. The hotter / higher I set the Kelvin number, the bluer the picture becomes.

The white balance in digital cameras

At the same time we had to change the camera film to change the white balance. Today a simple adjustment of the camera is sufficient. In many situations, the camera should give a good result with an automatic white balance. It automatically searches for the whitest (most color-neutral point). The camera finds this in most situations and can, if necessary, switch to the brightest point of the image if no suitable neutral point can be found. This point is then used as a reference to correct the color of the image.

Of course there are situations in which the automatic white balance just cannot work. If you photograph sophisticated subjects that do not offer neutral colors, for example, a color cast occurs. This is the case, for example, at night or with a picture that only consists of bright colors.

In all normal situations, the automatic white balance (also AWB) delivers great results. At least for normal demands. But I’ll get to that in a moment 🙂

Shoot RAW for better white balance

The RAW format offers something incredible. Because your camera does not apply color correction until after the photo has been created, we can change it in RAW format. The RAW format is a file that, uncompressed and unchanged, contains all of the information that the camera can capture. The white balance is set, but can be changed without loss in image processing with a RAW file. This does not work with a JPG (except for minimal changes).

Is RAW the solution

Isn’t the solution just to always shoot in RAW and do everything in image processing? Definitely NO. Although I have this option, I almost exclusively take photos using completely manual white balance. The pictures already look good in the camera and I can assess them directly and show them to the customer without editing them beforehand. Everyone gets a much better idea of ​​the result.

Adjust the white balance manually

Like the exposure, the white balance can of course also be set manually. I already said that the automatic does a great job, so why a manual white balance? This is especially important if you want to keep a constant visual style in a report. All images always have the same color scheme and do not change constantly because the camera is of the opinion that the color should now be 1000 K colder.

Furthermore, the coloring can be controlled much more finely. Each camera has its own color scheme. With 100 cameras, different models and manufacturers, you can set everything exactly the same (same exposure / AWB) and still get different results. This can be counteracted by manually setting the white balance. An example: If I take photos in a park at sunset and use the AWB, my pictures are significantly more yellow than with manual 5500 K. That’s why I take photos on 5500K to make the pictures look the way I would like them to. The closer I get to this result, while taking pictures, the less work I have in image processing.

When do I post something?

  1. If you are at the beginning of your photography and have not yet understood the concept, put the Karma on AWB and you will get 90% good results.
  2. As soon as you already know something better and want to experiment a little, you can apply the defaults or the completely manual value to different situations.
  3. If you want to film, you should definitely work with a manual white balance so as not to change the color in the middle of the film.
  4. If you want to get the most out of your pictures, deal with white balance in the long term and learn how to apply it to different situations.

The gray card

Now it is getting more professional, because with a gray card we offer the camera a neutral surface with which it can determine the white balance much better. We can say how the white balance should be measured and from where, and get a much more precise result.

Some write that you can have a sheet of white paper or just any white surface. I advise against that. Every surface has a specific color. The wall was painted in eggshell and not in white and it doesn’t work anymore. Who tells you that the sheet of paper is 100% white? Your own eye may even be wrong here. A gray card can help here, but the result will only be perfect with experience and you can get it by trying out 😉

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Full Frame vs. APS-C vs. Micro Four Thirds Camera Sensors

Full Frame vs. APS-C vs. Micro Four Thirds Camera Sensors

What’s the difference between full-frame vs APS-C vs Micro Four Thirds sensors? And how do these sensor distinctions affect your images?
Thinking about video camera sensors can get pretty confusing. That’s why I break all of it down for you in this article– and I provide plenty of examples to show the electronic camera sensor impacts.
If you want to know, when and for all, how sensor type impacts your images, then let’s get started.

What is a full-frame vs an APS-C (crop) vs a Micro Four Thirds (MFT) cam?


The sensor is the part of a camera that really catches an image. It takes in light, which it then converts to image information.
Now, different camera types provide different-sized sensing units, which’s the basic difference between full-frame, APS-C, and Micro Four Thirds video cameras.
A full-frame video camera contains a sensor size equivalent to 35mm movie (36 mm x 24 mm). This is the biggest sensor size marketed to photography consumers.
An APS-C camera, on the other hand, has a smaller sized sensor. The specifics depend upon the electronic camera brand, but the sensing unit size is generally around 23 mm x 15 mm.
There are Micro 4 Thirds cams, which consist of Micro Four Thirds sensors; these are even smaller than APS-C sensors, clocking in at just 17.3 mm x 13 mm.
Now, apart from the physical sizes, there are a number of important distinctions between full-frame, APS-C, and Micro 4 Thirds sensing units.
So let’s take a look at the factors impacted by sensing unit size, starting with:

Crop Factor

State you mount a 50mm lens on a full-frame video camera. When you press the shutter button, it catches a 50mm image.
Makes sense, right? A 50mm lens captures a 50mm image. Simple.
But what if you install a 50mm lens on an APS-C electronic camera? Will it capture a 50mm image?
The answer is no.
Because an APS-C sensing unit is smaller than the full-frame sensor, the sensor crops the frame, giving you an outcome that looks zoomed in-as if you took the image with a 75mm lens instead of a 50mm lens.
The effect is similar to taking an image with a 50mm lens, then heading house and cropping the image on your computer system. You’ll get a tighter shot, one that looks like it was taken with a longer lens.).
And that is what the term crop factor implies. It refers to the various crop results produced by different sensor sizes. A full-frame cam is the requirement; it has no crop element. An APS-C sensor (also known as a crop sensing unit), has a crop factor of 1.5 x (on Nikon and Sony video cameras) or 1.6 x (on Canon cams). The Micro Four Thirds crop element is even stronger: 2x.

Focal length

A crop element has a predictable affect on your lens’s focal length.
You see, the focal length measurement of any provided lens is based on the basic 35mm movie format. And since an APS-C video camera (and a Micro Four Thirds video camera) crop out the edges of the frame, you wind up with an “efficient” focal length that corresponds straight to the initial focal length increased by the crop element.
A crop-sensor cam such as the Nikon D5600 has a crop factor of 1.5 x. Thus, if I install a 35mm lens on my Nikon D5600, it would multiply the focal length by 1.5 x, efficiently offering me a focal length output of around 52.5 mm.
( But if you mount the same lens on a full-frame Nikon body such as the D850, it provides an output of 35mm.).
Likewise, if you install a 35mm lens on a Micro 4 Thirds camera– which has a crop factor of 2x– it efficiently doubles the focal length to around 70mm.

Depth of field

As with focal length, a multiplier effect gets applied to the aperture when using APS-C and MFT electronic cameras.
The aperture or f-stop is among a number of factors determining the depth of field. Thus, a Micro 4 Thirds camera offers us more depth of field when compared to a full-frame camera, assuming both video cameras are utilizing equivalent reliable focal lengths. Exact same with an APS-C cam compared to a full-frame electronic camera; you get more depth of field using the APS-C cam, assuming the effective focal length on both video cameras equals.
An image shot at f/1.8 on a Micro 4 Thirds video camera offers an output comparable to an image shot at f/3.6 on a full-frame electronic camera and f/2.7 on a crop-sensor video camera. This is assuming that the efficient focal length and other shooting conditions remain the exact same.


Full-frame sensing units are larger than APS-C and Micro Four Thirds sensing units.
As you can probably guess, full-frame video cameras tend to be far larger and much heavier than their APS-C and MFT equivalents.
For some professional photographers, this won’t matter much; if you shoot in the studio every day, a smaller sized Micro 4 Thirds cam will not use much of an advantage.
If you’re a travel photographer who needs to keep your gear as light-weight and compact as possible, a Micro Four Thirds body is a wonderful choice.
Plus, APS-C and MFT video cameras are more convenient. You can hang them on your neck or keep them in a knapsack throughout the day without seeming like you’re bring a brick.

Low-light Performance


Generally, full-frame cameras include superior low-light and high-ISO performance. This results in much better image quality than crop-sensor (or Micro 4 Thirds) electronic cameras can accomplish.
But why do full-frame cameras carry out much better in low light?
Full-frame cams have bigger sensing units and are therefore efficient in catching more light than their smaller-sensor equivalents, which lessens unwanted sound.
Micro Four Thirds video cameras do not perform well under low-light conditions where the ISO needs to be cranked up to, say, above 1600.
( Note that full-frame cameras likewise provide superior dynamic variety, which permits you to record more information in a single shot.).
For these factors, while full-frame cams can be costly, bulky, and frustrating to carry around, they are still the industry requirement and the preferred cams for nearly all expert photography work.

Full frame vs APS-C vs Micro Four Thirds: conclusion

Now that you’ve completed this article, you must hopefully have a grasp on the distinctions in between these sensing unit types– and why you may wish to choose one sensor over another.
Simply keep in mind:.
All three sensors– complete frame, APS-C, and MFT– are very capable of capturing spectacular photos.
Don’t worry too much about the distinctions.
Do you have a preferred sensor type? Which of these three sensors does your camera use? Share your ideas in the comments below!

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Shooting Action Shots in Low Light Conditions

Shooting Action Shots in Low Light Conditions

I enjoy getting out to sporting events both indoors and outdoors with my digital electronic camera. Just recently I went to view tennis and took a couple of hundred shots over the day.

Recently I have been getting a few demands to please help with quick action shots inside your home. I remember when I too was frustrated with not having the ability to get a reaction from expert photographers about this situation. They were constantly so elusive with how they conducted themselves out on the field and what they did to get a certain result.

Now I’m going to tell you about how to master this. Do you want to hear the good news or the bad news?

Okay, the good news is that yes, it is possible. Bad news is that you do require a good electronic camera with manual controls to do it. Now because you have currently read this I am assuming that you have either a point and shoot camera or a DSLR. In either case, it’s better than an inexpensive electronic camera that does nothing.

Okay good, so we got that developed.

The trick is this: the factor fast action shots look blurred is generally because they are taken in level of low light, such as an indoor basketball arena for instance. What occurs is the electronic camera, if left on automobile, instantly changes itself to low light levels, which means a slower shutter speed. A slower shutter speed takes place the cam requires time to get in as much light as possible due to this low level of light. Its great from the electronic cameras point of view, but really, it’s annoying and frustrating.

So what can be done about it?

Well firstly, boost that shutter speed. You may observe a boost in digital sound however it will only be slight so do not worry about it. After all it’s most likely worth it for that ‘golden’ picture you are trying to get.

It’s going to be hard getting more light into the cam, since usually you’ll be too far for the flash to work properly anyhow. This is why your shutter is the very first factor to consider.

Something that might help further is this: Shot one, take the shutter at a specific speed, then shot the second, increase the shutter speed one notch, shot third time then increase it again, and so on and so forth. If you have the persistence and inclination, write down on a note pad exactly what shutter speed shot 1 was at, what shot 2 was at, and so on.

So unwind and deal with what you’ve got. Increase the shutter speed or increase the light.