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WhiBal
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Thorste wrote in Fashion / Make up:
” Using the WhiBal, all you do is take a reference shot of the card in the same light as your subject. You can take this reference shot before or after you’ve taken the actual shot you want to have, it doesn’t matter, because you make the white balance adjustment afterwards in your raw converter. This method is really fast and very versatile and you can correctly white balance hundreds of images from the same shoot in very little time. I highly recommend it.”
I would like to know, do you do the white balance in the camera or in Photoshop or other software?Roberto wrote:
Thorste wrote in Fashion / Make up:
” Using the WhiBal, all you do is take a reference shot of the card in the same light as your subject. You can take this reference shot before or after you’ve taken the actual shot you want to have, it doesn’t matter, because you make the white balance adjustment afterwards in your raw converter. This method is really fast and very versatile and you can correctly white balance hundreds of images from the same shoot in very little time. I highly recommend it.”
I would like to know, do you do the white balance in the camera or in Photoshop or other software?The great thing about the WhiBal is that you do the actual white balance corrections long after you have taken the photograph. The pocket WhiBal which I use is too small to use for setting custom white balance in the camera, but even if you had the larger studio unit with which you could do it, that’s not the ideal way to use it.
What I do is place the WhiBal card in the frame and take a shot. I can do this before or after I take the “real” shot, if you know what I mean. The shot with the WhiBal card in it, then becomes the white balance reference shot. If you are shooting RAW, you then use the white balance eyedropper tool in your RAW converter to set the white balance for the reference shot. You then transfer this white balance setting to your “real” shot or shots, if you have more than one. This is really easy to do using DPP, because you save the white balance reading from the reference shot to the clipboard and then paste it from the clipboard to all the other shots that were taken in the same light as your WhiBal reference shot. There’s also a way to do this using Adobe ACR or Pixmantec RawShooter or whatever RAW converter you use.
If youre shooting JPEG, it’s recommended that you first set your camera to a white balance setting as close as possible to that which you are shooting in so that when you make your final white balance adjustment later in the software, you don’t end up having to modify the JPEG file too much.
Assuming your lighting conditions are constant (i.e. a studio environment when all the lights are finally set and won’t be moved and adjusted) then using a whibal is a great way for setting a constant, accurate white balance across a range of shots. Have your model hold up the shot for one photo and take the shot. In your RAW converter, use the eye dropper tool to read the white balance off this card in the shot, then simply apply the same setting to all your RAW files in the shoot. Job done.. quick, easy and accurate.
ciaran wrote:
Assuming your lighting conditions are constant…
This is the big advantage I find with the WhiBal compared to the ExpoDisc – if the light conditions are NOT constant, you simply take another shot of the WhiBal card each time the light conditions change. That’s so much quicker and easier than having to place an ExpoDisc in front of your lens and setting the cameras custom white balance each time.
Having used and still using the expo-disc its def the way when you are a photographer on the move from location to location say for example a wedding photographer.This is where the disc comes into its own as this is done there and then giving well balanced images for that particular area-pro’s of this is that it saves time post editing afterwards.
So would the whibal be a tool specifically for a studio assuming your stobes are fixed and set for consistent flash output? Or can you take an accurate reading at arms length with this device rather than metering(spot or centre weighted) where the bridal party holds the card for you(Now that would be funny kodak moment) only messin..
Benben wrote:
Having used and still using the expo-disc its def the way when you are a photographer on the move from location to location say for example a wedding photographer.This is where the disc comes into its own as this is done there and then giving well balanced images for that particular area-pro’s of this is that it saves time post editing afterwards.
So would the whibal be a tool specifically for a studio assuming your stobes are fixed and set for consistent flash output? Or can you take an accurate reading at arms length with this device rather than metering(spot or centre weighted) where the bridal party holds the card for you(Now that would be funny kodak moment) only messin..
BenI’m not a wedding photographer, so the following might never happen, but I’ll use it to illustrate a point. Suppose you’re at the wedding and you’re shooting the couple in the church. You’ve used your ExpoDisc to get the white balance correct in the camera. The wedding ceremony is over and the happy couple proceed down the aisle to exit the church. You photograph the couple as they come down the aisle, still inside the church. Suddenly, you find yourself outside, and the couple are getting their champagne or getting ready to greet the other guests coming out of the church, or whatever it is they do (been a while since I’ve been to a wedding!). So what do you do? Do you ask the couple to stop everything while you pull out your ExpoDisc, attach it to the front of the lens, take your white balance shot and adjust the camera for the new custom white balance setting? Or, do you keep shooting, safe in the knowledge that you are shooting RAW and can take another WhiBal shot a few minutes later when all the hustle and bustle has died down (having earlier taken a WhiBal shot for the intereior shots)?
I know what my prefered option would be? And yes, it is sufficient to take a shot of the WhiBal cards at arms length and they don’t even need to be in focus – the only criteria is that they are in the same light that your subject is in. WhiBal is the ideal solution for the photographer working in a fast changing environment. I know I probably sound like a WhiBal advertisement at this stage but that’s only because I’ve used the product myself and know just how incredibly easy and fuss free it is to use. I simply couldn’t imagine having to take a shot with an ExpoDisc and then going through the menus to set up a custom white balance each time the colour temperature of the light changes.
Whibal at a wedding is a Godsend. You don’t have to be right next to your subjects, just in the same (or close-enough-similar light). If the worst comes to the worst you can always calculate some reference points (the colour of the groom’s tie etc) from a balanced shot and then make colour adjustments on other batches later. The key is to have a known reference in at least one of the shots.
If shooting RAW, you have to do this before shooting, with RAW, as Thor says, you can do it anytime.
Si
10/10 for the sales pitch Thor! Using the disc is not as cumbersome as you make out,on the above that is probably the only time of the day that you have two completly different lighting situations so yeah the whibal may have an advantage there but with time and expierence doing weddings you are prepared for this eventuality and would compensate before that point so everthing runs smoothly. Saying that i’m doing a wedding on Sat so im going to try the whibal assuming its going to get here from Germany. Will let you know then how the two compares..
Ben 8)ben wrote:
im going to try the whibal assuming its going to get here from Germany.
From Germany :!: :?: I got mine in three days from the US, direct from Michael Tapes :!: .
Incidentally, I understand that the new WhiBal now ships with a plugin for photoshop, making it easier to use with JPEG’s. My preference is still to use it with RAW files and do a batch white balance adjustment in my RAW converter.
Thorsten wrote:
I’m not a wedding photographer, so the following might never happen, but I’ll use it to illustrate a point. Suppose you’re at the wedding and you’re shooting the couple in the church. You’ve used your ExpoDisc to get the white balance correct in the camera. The wedding ceremony is over and the happy couple proceed down the aisle to exit the church. You photograph the couple as they come down the aisle, still inside the church. Suddenly, you find yourself outside, and the couple are getting their champagne or getting ready to greet the other guests coming out of the church, or whatever it is they do (been a while since I’ve been to a wedding!). So what do you do? Do you ask the couple to stop everything while you pull out your ExpoDisc, attach it to the front of the lens, take your white balance shot and adjust the camera for the new custom white balance setting? Or, do you keep shooting, safe in the knowledge that you are shooting RAW and can take another WhiBal shot a few minutes later when all the hustle and bustle has died down (having earlier taken a WhiBal shot for the intereior shots)?
I know what my prefered option would be? And yes, it is sufficient to take a shot of the WhiBal cards at arms length and they don’t even need to be in focus – the only criteria is that they are in the same light that your subject is in. WhiBal is the ideal solution for the photographer working in a fast changing environment. I know I probably sound like a WhiBal advertisement at this stage but that’s only because I’ve used the product myself and know just how incredibly easy and fuss free it is to use. I simply couldn’t imagine having to take a shot with an ExpoDisc and then going through the menus to set up a custom white balance each time the colour temperature of the light changes.
Methinks he doth make a goode pointe…. ;-)
Anyone want to buy an Expodisc? Actually the Expodisc isn’t bad. I have one problem with it – different lens sizes. I originally had 3 consumer lenses with (I think) 52mm, 58mm and 62mm threads. I bought step up rings and a 62mm Expodisc. Fine. Since then I have bought a Nikon 17-55mm lens and am angling for the new Nikon 18-200mm as a walkabout. These have (I think) 72mm and 77mm threads. So I’ll need another Expodisc at 77mm and a step up ring from 72mm to 77mm.
Wait… it has just occurred to me that I’m talking gobbledegook. I could get away with 72-62mm and 77-62mm step down rings. Vignetting isn’t an issue with Expodisc. Must think more about this….
Apologies for the ramble. Very useful thread.
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