Comments on: ExpoDisc Professional Digital White Balance

By: KBeat

KBeat — Wed, 27 May 2009 14:40:42 +0000

The problem with the Expo disc is that you have to point it at the light source, ie put the camera where the subject is and shoot back at the light. This isn’t always convenient or possible. Doing product shots in a light tent, for example.

I’ve found the easiest and most accurate tool (and I’ve tried several including grey cards, white paper, etc.) is a WhiBal card. I keep the small one on a lanyard around my neck (it’ll fit in your pocket as well) and take a shot of it in the subject’s light. A quick eye dropper selection later in ACR or Aperture and I’ve got perfect white balance on all my shots.

By: Stevo

Stevo — Sun, 24 May 2009 14:10:53 +0000

Interesting device, even more interesting DIY solutions. I have a foldable grey card (much like a foldable reflector). Folded – it’s a nice, small circle about 7 inches across. I could have bought several of them for the price of the ExpoDisc.

By: Ron Thompson

Ron Thompson — Thu, 21 May 2009 21:20:16 +0000

You can make your own disc real cheap that works just as well. find a broken cover from a florescent light fixture and cut a disc with a handle and drill a hole to attach a cord. I’ve tested it and it work just as good made 3 of them and they were all free

By: Peter

Peter — Thu, 21 May 2009 04:08:33 +0000

rob t
Stand in the position of your subject and point the camera with the Expodisc over your lens at the position of where you will be taking your photo and take your white balance reading. If you also set your exposure to manual and set your exposure at the same time, still with the Expodisc attached, you will have the perfect exposure for your subject as your camera will be measuring the light falling on your subject and your sensor will not be fooled by any other bright light around.

By: rob t

rob t — Wed, 20 May 2009 19:27:56 +0000

i am a newbie to photography, and was wondering about this white balance thing… i was wondering for the white balance, is it the light of the object i am shooting or is it the light that is hitting the lens. for example, i am standing in direct, early afternoon sun, but the object i am shooting is in the shade 30-40 feet in front of me. would i try to adjust the white balance for the object or where i am standing?

By: Matt Smith

Matt Smith — Mon, 18 May 2009 11:23:38 +0000

Possibly the cheapest method for getting the white balance, a tip I picked up off YouTube:

Using your camera’s custom white balance, take 2 sheets of white toilet paper (2 ply) or a white tissue folded over. Hold over the front of your lens and point it at you subject. Press the shutter. Works for all lens sizes!
Not sure how it compares to the likes of the expodisc, however, would be interested to know.

By: Luvntravln

Luvntravln — Thu, 14 May 2009 19:45:19 +0000

Hi, if you are shooting RAW, instead of setting a custom WB, what about simply putting the Expo over the lens (I have the 82mm and of course it easily covers my small sizes too) and taking a shot at the start of a sequence of images, or a shot at a particular location and light source and then take your images until the light changes when you will do another Expo shot?

When you open up in Lightroom for example, you can go to that first Expo shot, do a sample for WB and then correct all of images following that shot using Sync.

That way you do not have to fiddle with the Custom WB in the field.

By: awjay

awjay — Thu, 14 May 2009 19:19:26 +0000

ive used one for a couple of years..great piece of kit..so easy to use

By: golfzilla

golfzilla — Thu, 14 May 2009 17:53:34 +0000

My experience with Expodisc is that it produces images that are a bit “cold”.

My preference for doing white balance on the fly is WhiBal. Cheaper and handier. Most of the time I just wing it with Auto White Balance and tweak it by eye afterwards. If I’m doing work where color accuracy is critical I use a Photovision Digital Calibration Target.

By: Frank

Frank — Thu, 14 May 2009 15:49:17 +0000

I looked on Amazon. At almost $100, this device seems a bit expensive. I use a gray card to set the white balance for shooting jewelry. I purchased two 8 X 10 cards for approx. $12.