White/Black Balance Questions

[John Fishback]

1. How do you adjust the black balance? The manual states to just hold the white balance button down, is there anything else to doing this more accurately?

I have an HPX500, but I believe it’s similar. Just hold the button until you display tells you it’s finished.

2. When aiming the HVX at a white balance reference card, should the card be held flat or angled toward a light source?

If lights are mixing at your subject, tilt the card. Basically the camera is making the card white given the color temperature of the light that falls on it. If the color temp of the light on the card is off, so will be the balance.

3. What types of shoots would you consider using the auto tracking white balance feature? OR is it a better idea to avoid this feature if possible?

I’ve never used the feature. Experiment and see how well the color temp change follows the change in light.

4. What do the values in 3200 K and 5600 K for the white balance presets represent?

3200 refers to the color temperature of tungsten light sources. 5600 refers to the color temp of sunlight (and HMI lights).

John

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[Adam Smith]

Regarding Auto Tracking White – you’ll want to evaluate the environment you plan to shoot in, as large fields of color can trick the camera.

For instance, daylight is blueish compared to tungsten lighting so if you were to shoot someone indoors and they went to stand near a window, the camera would likely adjust over time to more of a daylight balance. However… if that same subject were to go stand in front of a blue wall for a while, the camera might notice the abundance of blue and think it was daylight, and so slowly adjust white balance to compensate actually making the situation worse.

Often the color shifting is so subtle you don’t really notice it until you fast-forward or try to cut shots together and they don’t match up.

We’ve generally had decent results in situations where the camera is moving around alot, but any time you’re able to stop and balance for real it’s probably a good idea.

—
Video Photographer / Avid Editor
Maximus Media Inc.

[Kat Hayes]

1. When adjusting white balance, is there any need for a reference card that is divided into thirds, that includes the darks, mids, and lights? I have one for my
digital still image camera and was wondering if it has value like it does in traditional photography when used with the HVX?

2. What types of shooting scenarios would you want to use different hues of warm cards vs. just a white balance reference card?

Thanks.