White Balance
I’ve received several emails and comments asking how I white balance. Here’s my big secret. Are you ready?
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I SHOOT ON AUTO WHITE BALANCE. Crazy, right? I don’t own or know how to use grey cards. And I have no idea how to white balance in camera. I honestly never really thought about it until people started asking. I guess my camera just does a pretty good job white balancing. Would it be beneficial for me to learn all that stuff? Maybe. But, I would so much rather capture the moments then have “technically” perfect images.
I know this isn’t really going to help people who are having white balance issues, but perhaps it will give confidence to those who are using AWB like me 
And what’s a post without a picture. I know I just posted a picture of Brayden in his UCLA towel, but I love it (thanks, Michelle!). Smile courtesy of Daddy’s tickles!
2.0, 1/100, ISO 500
About DrewB
I’ve started this blog as a way to connect with other moms who love photography. Whether you are a professional photographer who is looking for advice on how to manage your own business and your family or if you are a mom who is looking for tips on how to take better pictures of your kids, I hope that you can find some good information and be inspired!
I took a photography class in the winter and learning how to set my custom white balance changed my pictures. They are much richer. It’s really not hard to do….I have a portable gray card that I just keep in my bag.
Hmmmm….Thanks for answering this. I’ve read a lot about it, but usually just keep it on auto as well. I’ve never heard of gray cards. Guess I’ll have to research that too.
Cute bath towel!
Thanks for this post. I honestly felt like i was the only one using AWB and it was making me feel like I wasn’t doing a good enough job.
We use AWB too, unless we are doing a wedding. My dad wants all the details in the dress he can get. He has a reflector that corrects the color. Super easy.
A professor of mine in college said that the camera is smarter than we are so AWB was always better.
I agree most of the time but there are some cases when I set it myself. When it’s cloudy and blue out I amp up the yellow a bit with the “cloudy” setting, or when the AWB just isn’t cutting it when I’m in a room that’s got fluorescent lighting. It’s helpful to know when all the presets mean just in case. But yeah, for the most part AWB is the way to go.
o.k I shoot auto also…but mine always seem to have a hint of red. I was reading in a book that if you plan on editing your pictures that instead of shooting in vivid color shoot in standard. I switched over and all the colors and even the WB in my final (edited version) photos is much more “real” (for lack of a better word).
I said the same thing with gray cards…WHO has time?
I used to do a custom WB almost every time… But when you’re shooting wedding (for exemple) you don’t have time to redo it when needed. So I now use AWB and fix it after if needed… It’s easy to correct when y ou shot in RAW!
The only time I mess with wb is when it’s cloudy outside or when I’m using my 50mm lens inside near a window, I set my wb to cloudy setting…makes a nice soft glow to baby pictures and skin using that setting with that lens….I love it!
Well, yuck! I was one of the people who had asked because all of your shots are always so crisp and clean and white, indoors and out. That pretty much NEVER happens for me! People are green or orange or red or blue (not like cartoon characters or anything, of course, but quite a color cast much of the time!) I don’t know what to do to fix it.
I spend so much time trying to correct all of my RAW shots, and sometimes they still can’t really be fixed. Sigh.