The Photography Group had a full-on meeting in May. We reviewed our images from a technical session to adjust a setting in cameras and smartphones called White Balance.
So, if I was to use words such as the Kelvin scale, colour temperature, the golden hour, light hues, neutral grey, white ambience priority – well you might think these were great opportunities for triple word scores at Scrabble or you may think we are mad. But these are actual common terms in the mysterious photo setting called “White Balance” (WB), used to make sure that when taking a photo, the whites are not distorted by the camera, or the image ends up looking too cold or warm.
The group did an amazing job of understanding the complexities of white balance / light transmission, how to successfully capture true light in camera and phones, and they came up with some excellent examples.
- Image 1 by Kevin: Flowers with camera on auto.
- Image 2 by Kevin: This shows how he adjusted the WB setting for daylight and is much better.
We then took a look at how to use the Lightroom Mobile App, run by Deb Cook, (app available for both iOS and Android from their respective app stores) on smartphones. The app can provide additional settings when taking phone photos. Smartphones have great software to take images these days but the Lightroom App, which is free to download and use, can offer additional settings such as white balance, exposure compensation and high-definition images. It is worthwhile downloading the app if you want to experiment with improving your shots.
- Image 3 by Deb: A jukebox with camera set to auto and has neutral colours.
- Image 4 by Deb: This time the camera is set to account for the artificial light in the room and is much warmer.
- Image 5 by Deb: This time the camera is set to a cool light setting and looks cooler.
We have two trips planned over the next few weeks. First to Clumber Park to photograph their rhododendrons and azaleas and then next month a trip to Naturescape Wildflower Farm near Langar, South Notts. Next month is the peak season for wildflowers and we are looking forward to both trips.
Graeme Stewardson