White Balance

Keeping Colors True

The color of light reflected from an object varies with the color of the light source. The human brain is able to adapt to changes in the color of the light source, with the result that white objects appear white whether seen in the shade, direct sunlight, or under incandescent lighting. Unlike the film used in film cameras, digital cameras can mimic this adjustment by processing images according to the color of the light source. This is known as “white balance.” For natural coloration, choose a white balance setting that matches the light source before shooting. The following options are available:

Taking Photographs

Approximate

color

Option temperature*

Description

—White

Auto

3,500–

White balance adjusted automatically using color temperature measured by 1,005-pixel RGB sen- sor, image sensor, and ambient light sensor. For

Balance

8,000 K

best results, use type G or D lens. With SB-800 or SB-600 Speedlight, white balance reflects conditions in effect when Speedlight fires.

Incandescent

3,000 K

Use under incandescent lighting.

 

Fluorescent

4,200 K

Use under fluorescent lighting.

 

Direct sunlight

5,200 K

Use with subjects lit by direct sunlight.

 

Flash

5,400 K

Use with Nikon Speedlights.

 

Cloudy

6,000 K

Use in daylight under overcast skies.

 

Shade

8,000 K

Use in daylight with subjects in the shade.

Choose color

2,500–

Choose color temperature from list of values

temp.

10,000 K

(

 

 

59).

 

 

 

 

 

White balance

Use

subject, light source, or existing

photo-

preset

graph as reference for white balance (

 

60).

 

 

 

* Fine-tuning set to 0.

Auto white balance is recommended with most light sources. If the desired results can not be achieved with auto white balance, choose an option from the list above or use preset white balance.

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Nikon D2Xs manual White Balance, Keeping Colors True, Approximate Color Option temperature Description