A question.

[Depth Gauge]

I know that utilizing white balance is critical in videography but is it important in digital still photography?

Thanks in advance for your replies!

Jason

 

[notabob]

In short, yes it is. Just about every digital camera, though, can automatically set it, and many of the more advanced digicams allow you to set it manually as well as have a range of pre-defined settings (incandescent, fluorescent, daylight, sunny, cloudy, etc.).

 

[Depth Gauge]

Thanks notabob,

I'm interested in getting a Nikon 995 and there is no direct button on the underwater housing that comes with it for white balance. But it can be gotten to via the menu button. What do you think?

Jason

 

[Dee]

I can manually set the white balance on my Oly C-4040 but I haven't found the need to. Yes, I have taken photos underwater with the balance set from the factory and manually set at the time. I saw no appreciable difference so I leave mine set to factory settings. Another brand of camera may be different.

My CP880 is only used on land and there are times that none of the pre-determined settings are exactly right!

 

[notabob]

As Dee said, leaving WB on auto seems to work best. My Canon G2 does a pretty good job of setting it automatically, I've never had any problems with it. But if you wanted to get creative, or if shooting conditions are out of ordinary, you can always set it manually.

I'm not familiar with the 995, but I think many digicams have whitebalance that is set via menus. That said, I'm sure there are also some that have dedicated buttons for that purpose. Personally, I wouldn't be too concerned about WB settings.

I believe Raxafarian shoots with a Nikon 995 in an Ikelite housing. He may have personal experiences to share with you as pertaining to that specific camera.

-Roman.

 

[Depth Gauge]

Thanks Dee and Notabob for your comments. VERY helpful. I'll give Raxafarian a PM and see what his thoughts are.

Jason

 

[raxafarian]

Auto will do an ok job in most lighting situations.

I prefer to select the setting that matches the environment. I'll pick "strobe" for u/w or indoor shots with flash. You can set the 995 before it goes into the housing and it 'remembers' the setting even when off (note... remember to set it to cloudy or fine if you take above water pics, unless you are actually using a flash).



auto tends to get confused in varied lighting. Shots indoors without a flash seem to come out better by setting to the type of lighting.

Most camera reviews find the same problem with the auto setting with almost all cameras. They are using a color chart, so it might not be as noticeable to your eye without the color chart reference. I don't mind the extra button presses just to be sure.