managing white balance on the Olympus cameras

see also:

• the Olympus OM-D system and how to make the most of it

• unlike film cameras, digital cameras can alter the colour balances to deal with different coloured light sources
• this is called the “white balance” setting
• light sources have a "colour temperature" which is measured in degrees Kelvin, for example:
  • blue sky (ie. shade outdoors on a sunny day) = 8000K
  • cloudy day = 6000K
  • flash = 5500K
  • midday sun = 5300K
  • early morning or late afternoon sun = 4500K
  • sun 1hr after dawn or 1hr before sunset = 3500K
  • tungsten light = 3000-3300K
  • sunrise or sunset = 2000K
• whilst your WB settings do not directly affect your RAW files, they do affect the way the camera's light metering assesses the scene which could create erroneous exposures
• Olympus cameras also have other settings that affect WB:
  • Menu:Cogs G:All WB+/-
    • this allows you to fine tune your camera preset WB settings on the Amber and Green axes
  • Menu:Cogs G:WB Auto Keep Warm Color
    • in AutoWB, it provides a warmer WB if set to ON, although it tends to be too warm in tungsten lighting
  • Menu:Cogs G:flash+WB
    • allows you to tell the camera to automatically use a specific WB setting when a compliant flash is used
    • this is ignored if just using PC sync or central pin to fire a flash

• you must be in a PASM mode or Movie mode (iAUTO, SCENE modes and some ART Filters will disable WB changes)
• you must not be using Color Creator mode as this will disable WB changes
• then you need to access the WB settings either via:
  • open activating the Live Super Control Panel (SCP) in Olympus cameras and scroll to the WB section at top left
  • press the down arrow button on rear of camera if this has been allocated to WB
  • go to Menu, Cogs G, WB

• in order for the camera to determine the autoWB measurement, there needs to be neutral or near-neutral tones in the scene that are within the exposure range (ie. not blown out from severe over-exposure or blocked out from underexposure).
• the camera then rapidly determines the best WB setting to make these as neutral as possible

• when you want consistent WB between exposures
  • panoramic stitching
  • HDR
  • photoshoots where you want to simplify your workflow in post-processing
• when there are no truly neutral tones in the scene and colour accuracy is important:
  • artworks
  • portraits
• when you want the light source to give colour to your image
  • warmth of sunsets or candle-lit subjects
  • creative colour effects such as using gels on flash in daylight

• sunny = 5300K
• shade = 7500K
• cloudy = 6000K
• incandescent = 3000K
• flourescent = 4000K
• underwater
• flash = 5500K

• the CWB setting allows you to dial in a colour temperature in degrees K

• you need a white piece of paper (or preferably a true neutral target) which is lit by your light source without reflective glare bouncing towards the camera
  • neutral targets have LAB color space variables of a (red-green axis) and b (yellow-blue axis) equal to zero and include WhiBAL cards
  • if you use normal white paper, it is actually a little blue due to optical enhancement agents which convert UV light into blue light to make it brighter, so your custom WB will render the scene a touch warm
• set your exposure to ensure the paper is not blown out or severely under-exposed
• perform a autofocus lock or use manual focus to avoid the next steps struggling as it can't lock AF on a plain sheet of paper
• if you get error message NG Retry with the following, it means that either:
  • your target was severely over-exposed, or,
  • your target was severely under-exposed, or,
  • your target was not suitable as a WB target (eg. no near-neutral tones)
• if using a flash, ensure Menu:Cogs G:flash+WB = OFF otherwise the custom WB will not be used (unless using a non-compliant flash)

• press and hold the One Touch WB button then aim camera at your target then press the shutter
• you will then have the option of assigning it to custom balance 1 or 2

• open the WB settings via the activating the Live Super Control Panel (SCP) in Olympus cameras or the down arrow button (is assigned)
• scroll across to either custom WB 1 or 2, then press the INFO button
• aim camera at your target
• press the shutter button

• most RAW connversion programs (eg. Adobe Lightroom) and jpeg editing software tools, allow you to change the WB setting
• this can be changed to a preset value (eg. As Shot, Daylight, etc)
• alternatively you can use the eye dropper to select a neutral tone in the image and the software will determine the best WB for that tone
• it is handy if you have taken a shot with a neutral WB target in the scene, and then the WB setting for that image can be used on other images taken in the same lighting