Mixing Light Types

[twjolson]

I know it probably isn't ideal, but what harm is there in mixing, say, a daytime and incandesant light sources? And if I did so, can it be compensated for, either with the camera, or on the PC?

[eastman]

If you are using a predefined light setting or the auto adjustment, you will probably get a color shift based on one of the light types not correcting properly.

 

If you have a camera that lets you manually set white balance (by taking a picture of something white and letting the camera figure out how to get it back to a pure white) then you might be OK.

 

I don't take any chances with it - I use only GE Reveal bulbs for minis photography and my camera is manually white balanced for the Reveal bulbs.

[Kheprera]

Say, for instance, you use a flourescent and tungsten (normal indoor) lightbulb.

 

I know for film cameras that you will not just get the green cast of the flourescent, but you'll also get the yellow/orange cast of the tungsten. The colors mix into a wonderful array of something completely uncorrectable. I've had customers ask me to color correct, and I've had to tell them the picture is as correct as it's going to get. It's an ugly, ugly thing and I don't recommend it.

 

For digital, since the computer chips use the same basic technology in order to capture the correct colors and such, I don't recommend the mixing of lights. Stick with one type, replace it monthly (or every other month depending on how much you use it since light bulbs get weaker the more they're used, and this shifts their color - bet you didn't know that!) or manually set your white balance every time before shooting. This will cause less confusion in your camera, it will "read" the white balance more precisely, and you'll have less frustration.

[Demon]

Yes.....becasue each type of light source gives a completely different color cast to the image it is best NOT to mix different types of light. I also recommend using the same brand for each light (find a brand you see works well for ya then stick with it).

 

I should also note that to get as good a final image as possible you need to put as much care as possible in the actual taking of the picture. I have my own lab and constantly tell people around here that the problem they have was in how they shot the image and we just can't fix it. So take as much care as possible when shooting and take many different shots.

[Kheprera]

I should also note that to get as good a final image as possible you need to put as much care as possible in the actual taking of the picture. I have my own lab and constantly tell people around here that the problem they have was in how they shot the image and we just can't fix it. So take as much care as possible when shooting and take many different shots.

Oh, come on! Focusing Fluid works wonders on dropped film!

 

 

Sorry, that was a running joke at the lab I used to work at. One customer actually believed that if she dropped her film all her pictures would come out blurry.

 

Then there was the guy who brought in three flashes. One Leica, one Canon, and, IIRC, a Minolta (but I could be wrong). All were in the high dollar range for flashes, all did the same things (rotate, angles, etcetera). He wanted to know which was the best one. I just looked at him and said they all would perform in the same manner. He owned a dozen different high-end cameras, and took pictures of real estate he was selling.

 

Seriously, you don't need anything expensive or high dollar to do the work. I've seen some excellent lightboxes made from balsa wood and parchment paper (purchasable at your local grocery on rolls where you find foil and wax paper). I would typically recommend something a little more sturdy and heavier than Balsa wood, though.

 

Lights: I've heard excellent reviews of the GE Reveal bulbs, though I've never used them myself. I'm thinking they just added some sort of blue coating to the inside of the bulb to take out the yellow cast. Just use whatever works for you, but use the same kind of lighting.

 

And I guess I always thought it was a no-brainer to take more than one shot of something, although these days, with digital, it's very easy to see if you've got a decent shot and need to reshoot. With film, I'd take 3-4 shots of every angle to make certain I had at least one good shot.

[Demon]

While it is a no-brainer to take more than one shot of something I get tons of rolls dropped off in my lab where they take a single shot of something important assuming it will come out. Of course most of the people who drop off at my lab are also retards who think that a 200 speed disposable camera will give them a perfect shot of a scene a few yards away after sunset. Most experienced people will understand the quite a few problems with that.

 

The best thing I can recommend for someone taking pictures is to learn to take pictures. This doesn't mean spend a few grand on a Photography school or something.......it just means find someone who is perhaps knows something of photography and ask questions, get their recomendations, and see if they will teach you a few tricks.

 

As for digital......you still want to take a few shots.....bracket them if possible (that means to take shots of the same scene and angle but at a few different settings) and use a tripod. Also don't assume the picture looks good because of what you see on the LCD and stop shooting.....those things are small and sometimes won't show if an image was off on focusing or such.

[Spike]

I'm still finding that the absolute best light source is the sun. While it's not always available, it makes the purest light. For indoor shooting, I generally try to avoid flourescents altogether. Unfortunately, my game-room has two twin-tube flourescent fixtures and one three-bulb ceiling fan, so my game-nite photos come out reeeally green at times.Thank heaven for Photoshop.

 

Speaking of taking multiple shots "just in case"... I got a major disappointment a few weeks ago when I THOUGHT I had nabbed a photo of the perfect sunset..only to discover that both photos I had made (mind you I was in a hurry because it was setting fast) ..were taken while my camera was still in MACRO MODE!