430 test with my new model prop

i think ive finally got this 430 flash down. this was a first try. just going out to the garage setting the camera up and clicking a pic. can wait to set this new prop in front of my background and the ab's AND with a model sitting on it. ya think uncle sam will let me write this thing off:p

Looks like there are few different sources of light in that shot and a white balance issue. Hope you can work it out before the model shows up.

Lotto wrote in post #6021751
Looks like there are few different sources of light in that shot and a white balance issue. Hope you can work it out before the model shows up.

Yep, blue light on the highlights of the bike and neutral light everywhere else. Since to me the flash is what's neutral in reality I'm guessing the rest are florescent, but maybe tungsten.

tkoutdoor wrote in post #6021812
Yep, blue light on the highlights of the bike and neutral light everywhere else. Since to me the flash is what's neutral in reality I'm guessing the rest are florescent, but maybe tungsten.

well i had window light from 4 windows,,6 floresents,6 tungston,plus the 430

white balance has me a little concerned:o. i know its just a snapshot but how do you guys fugure out a white balance issue this quick??
my processing skills are not the best but im getting better at it. i shoot in raw so when i click through the wb selections in lightroom,,the one that came off the camera looked better than the others,,that meaning,,it looked the closest to what it actually looked like with my eyes. AM I MISSING SOMETHING here with white balance. i prolly should have shot custom white balance but i didnt feel like running downstairs to get my disc. very seriously,,if you think there is a white balance issue,,what is it and how do i prevent it from happening.

BTW,,THE CRACK ABOUT THE MODEL WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A FUNNY

you can gel your flash to match with the ambients/other lights or keep all the lighting consistent by using one type ie all florescents or all tungston.

I think that the blue highlights in the pic is coming from the flash. Basically you gonna have to get the flash to match the other lights.

it may have been pilot error on the processing. i went back and checked and yup,,the blue is the color corrections got bumped up. does this one look better

slowdad wrote in post #6022208
it may have been pilot error on the processing. i went back and checked and yup,,the blue is the color corrections got bumped up. does this one look better

Well... yeah it looks better of course, but the issue is still a real issue. You can set a custom white balance for the subject area and it (the subject) will be the right color, however the lighting for the other colors will still be off. A custom white balance will attempt to "balance" all those colors into an acceptable range. This may or may not be adequate, but it's taking a chance and it's almost certainly gonna be a noticeable compromise to a trained eye (and a lucky client if they happen to notice).

The solution is simple however. If it were my project, I'd change out the tungsten bulbs with fluorescents that are daylight balanced, change them back when you're done if you want. If your other fluorescent lighting is also daylight balanced (5000k to 5500k basically, 6500k is too far out of range for the 5000k IMO) then they will blend in with your flash, which is in that same range typically. If not and I didn't want to daylight balance them I'd consider turning them off so they don't effect the pics presuming you have enough light from elsewhere. If you're shooting in the daytime and have daylight coming through the windows then all the lights (that are turned on) will match up in color temperature. Give them 10 to 20 minutes to warm up before shooting too as they will change temperature as they warm up until they get to a stable temperature. Once you've done all that you're still "best off" with setting a custom white balance in your subject area, but technically you could set you camera to the "daylight" WB setting and still be okay.

How do we know all this? It something photographers pick up on especially once they start learning about lighting. It's the first thing I notice when I'm looking at flashed pics and if you start looking at novice work in their new light boxes you'll see it consistently. I figured all this out back when I made my first home made light box and my work has been better for it ever since. It solves some really frustrating color problems too. Things just don't look right and can fight your efforts to get the color to look accurate when the lighting is mixed temperatures. So... when evaluating flashed pics I first look at the highlights to see their color and then I look at the main light. If they don't match there's a WB issue. Immediately the blue showed up in the highlights where your flash had fired so it was obvious to me and the first guy who mentioned it.

P.S. It looks like you've referenced "abs" which is a notation for "Alien Bees" for most of us around here. If you have two Alien Bees (or one and a reflector) you "could" turn off all your other lighting and use them. That would be the way to go, except possibly a background light and/or hairlight. And don't forget to set your custom WB. That's what ABs are for. If you shot at night you wouldn't have mixed window lighting issues, but you could block the windows too. If the AB's are 5000k to 5500k then the window lighting probably won't be noticable.

tkoutdoor wrote in post #6022451
Well... yeah it looks better of course, but the issue is still a real issue. You can set a custom white balance for the subject area and it (the subject) will be the right color, however the lighting for the other colors will still be off. A custom white balance will attempt to "balance" all those colors into an acceptable range. This may or may not be adequate, but it's taking a chance and it's almost certainly gonna be a noticeable compromise to a trained eye (and a lucky client if they happen to notice).

The solution is simple however. If it were my project, I'd change out the tungsten bulbs with fluorescents that are daylight balanced, change them back when you're done if you want. If your other fluorescent lighting is also daylight balanced (5000k to 5500k basically, 6500k is too far out of range for the 5000k IMO) then they will blend in with your flash, which is in that same range typically. If not and I didn't want to daylight balance them I'd consider turning them off so they don't effect the pics presuming you have enough light from elsewhere. If you're shooting in the daytime and have daylight coming through the windows then all the lights (that are turned on) will match up in color temperature. Give them 10 to 20 minutes to warm up before shooting too as they will change temperature as they warm up until they get to a stable temperature. Once you've done all that you're still "best off" with setting a custom white balance in your subject area, but technically you could set you camera to the "daylight" WB setting and still be okay.

How do we know all this? It something photographers pick up on especially once they start learning about lighting. It's the first thing I notice when I'm looking at flashed pics and if you start looking at novice work in their new light boxes you'll see it consistently. I figured all this out back when I made my first home made light box and my work has been better for it ever since. It solves some really frustrating color problems too. Things just don't look right and can fight your efforts to get the color to look accurate when the lighting is mixed temperatures. So... when evaluating flashed pics I first look at the highlights to see their color and then I look at the main light. If they don't match there's a WB issue. Immediately the blue showed up in the highlights where your flash had fired so it was obvious to me and the first guy who mentioned it.

P.S. It looks like you've referenced "abs" which is a notation for "Alien Bees" for most of us around here. If you have two Alien Bees (or one and a reflector) you "could" turn off all your other lighting and use them. That would be the way to go, except possibly a background light and/or hairlight. And don't forget to set your custom WB. That's what ABs are for. If you shot at night you wouldn't have mixed window lighting issues, but you could block the windows too. If the AB's are 5000k to 5500k then the window lighting probably won't be noticable.

well i trully appreciate your remarks. IT HELPS ALOT. im taking a ton of practice shots and experimenting daily in all kinds of lighting. as i mentioned earlier, i parked the bike under the garage lights,took out the lightmeter to get a reading, and set it so i could practice fill shots. didnt even go down to the studio and get the flding grey card. ive been doing alot of experimenting in manual and ettl flash modes and i really feel like im getting a grasp on it. i was pretty happy that i could get the results i did as far as exposure goes. now i need to work on correct color. i never shoot people and client work unless i use custom white balance. but again, i appreciate your peoples trained eye because im newer at this and not as far along. ya dont get better unless you ask. i appreciate this forum alot. ill take all the advise i can get