Whenever I photograph I include a gray card that enables me to adjust the color balance later in post-processing. It is not that I always balance the color to a normal setting. Sometimes I prefer the color cast to be more cool or warm. But at least I know what "normal" is and can deviate from there.
The card I carry with me is the
QPcard 101. It is small enough to conveniently fit in a vest pocket or camera bag. The images below show a rather dramatic example of how effective these cards can be.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjU9SvNzhsylWH0StBbBQG-hA2aS786jcCPI3ocZfdWt7uiOBPN7Hzp8zSn5N8K4-II5rHqTKrwVta2lqLs9Wp4WKuLR6XBjy_SOmBagMO6GPb1hcrJ2cHsxL7nOlG12DAplXY6PoNKNo/s400/ti0159066.jpg) |
I took this photo with available window light very late in the day under exceptionally cloudy conditions. Under such circumstances, colors will normally tend to a heavy blue range. After correction in post processing the colors were restored to normal. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3bwW6ON-LN2ochSRBVcC23ww6hXkkvqPYyvVgh2v8HTFQlMh_OmYSePFDFshyphenhyphenNLGSPpSI0DWlVInr-nt-zJNFkijA4MPoX7jEP1rYJ07Bj6t441z0yIAF-zGfkEfYdypbcGmZCcE7lPg/s400/ti0159069.jpg) |
Here is a before and after using the QPcard 101. The upper photo shows the results using an auto white balance camera setting. It tends heavily towards a blue cast. In post-processing I clicked on the white or gray area to correct the color to normal. The gray block usually results in a slightly warmer rendering. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibaS56r_TzMnzS_sxYGXMrxrChdtaZv8SBo9hWsdDBupqYiAO-szn3H7Qggsb_yEuzUax4HFC12Q_XWSwLd-g_APjxi6dl5YMeP5Kbsaa0IlX9TUuRop51-Qyfb4l5vjE3GUPgY_VsVaU/s400/ti0159071.jpg) |
This is the finished photo. Once I had achieved the correct color balance, I pushed it a bit further to warm it up. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8b2MtdREy6gLY0T-ByQf5fn1yCog0ffjgyKIhFMfEywvBSAm_VrfCDgolhnKlhDfr6Vx5OG6Kq4Wj5IWvfJ_4gZwgrwO3BQcO9X2_19L_GRomDmMN8TBby5vbpl_BzeOD3XfQRYM5HOA/s400/ti0159259.jpg) |
Just to show the extent of this color correction method, this image was taken even later in the day using only moon light. The exposure was 10sec at f/8 and ISO400. Under these circumstances the true color was completely skewed. Nonetheless, I was able to easily correct it to normal in post-processing with one click of a mouse button. |
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