Why is my whitebalance so different?

[nemesis256]

I take multiple shots of the same thing in almost the same spot very often, just in case something goes wrong. I often find that the white balance varies between shots. Take a look at the two below. I checked the EXIF data, and focal length, aperture and shutter speed are all identical between the two shots. They were taken only a few seconds apart, and as far as I can tell, the shadows didn't move, so it wasn't too windy to cause the trees to change lighting conditions. The only difference I can see is that I moved slightly (which also means a different focus point). Why would I get shots like this so often?

[deudbus]

Do you have Auto White Balance on? If so, that small change in position may cause the camera to perceive the lighting differently, and compensate accordingly.

[nemesis256]

I did have auto white balance on. I had a feeling it was related to that.

[kencaleno]

Originally Posted by nemesis256

I did have auto white balance on. I had a feeling it was related to that.

Auto anything is a waste of time-it means the camera is doing your thinking for you. You need to be in control. For White balance setting between 10am and 4pm if you set WB to cloudy,you will be right for most outdoor shots-(6250Kelvin)just change to tungsten WB for indoor shots normal incandescant lighting,and fluorescent WB for fluorescent lighting.

regards, Ken

[wulf]

You digital camera probably isn't programmed to make fuzzy decisions. It probably has a number of distinct WB settings and has to pick one of them. In theory, a camera could make adjustments on a sliding scale but I don't think that is how it generally works.

Wulf

[Bluenoser]

Originally Posted by kencaleno

Auto anything is a waste of time-it means the camera is doing your thinking for you. You need to be in control. For White balance setting between 10am and 4pm if you set WB to cloudy,you will be right for most outdoor shots-(6250Kelvin)just change to tungsten WB for indoor shots normal incandescant lighting,and fluorescent WB for fluorescent lighting.

regards, Ken

Interesting point Ken, but a bit confusing for me. I shoot exclusively in RAW, and everything I've read/been told says to leave your WB setting on auto and then adjust accordingly during PP. Am I missing something here or would I be better off using the various settings available on the camera?

TIA

[Digidave]

Originally Posted by Bluenoser

Interesting point Ken, but a bit confusing for me. I shoot exclusively in RAW, and everything I've read/been told says to leave your WB setting on auto and then adjust accordingly during PP. Am I missing something here or would I be better off using the various settings available on the camera?

TIA

Shooting in RAW format allows you the ability to make all those adjustments but if you can get it correct in-camera that's 1 less step you have to do in PP. With my Nikon, I find using auto WB works really well & rarely have to change it. Some other cameras may be very different.