Judging colour temperature 2

My cat garden ornament has stepped in again to complete part two of this exercise. This is a  repeat of part one but with some white balance variation. Each little sequence is shot in the same order, that of Daylight white balance, Auto white balance and Shade white balance.

Right so the first group of three was photographed under the midday sun. Clearly the images show a neutral colour for the daylight balance , slightly blue tint to the auto white balance and a yellow cast to the shade white balance. Note also the harsh shadows, btw. Which is nicer is really a matter of preference. The auto white balance shot is a little too cold for my liking but the shade balance has a nice warm feel to it. I am glad to see that the sun white balance on my camera has reproduced the colours very well.

Three cats in the midday sun

The next three cats are sitting in the midday shade. Notice how the cats have the same colour tints but on a much lesser level. Again I favour the last image  (shade white balance) for it's warmer tone. The difference is minimal though and I quite like all three shots.

Three cats in the midday shade

The last three are evening sun shots. Again the colours have become more pronounced. Now we can see a slightly yellow cast on the first cat (daylight white balance) as well as on the last (shade white balance). The middle auto white balance till retains it's blue cast.

Three cats in the evening sun

This exercise has made several very important points. First, the white balance on your camera can make quite a difference and when accurate colour temperature is required, it might not be wise to rely on auto white balance. Secondly, we are able to use what we know about white balance to our creative advantage. We could for example take a shot in full sun in the middle of the day but use the shade white balance to warm it up. By using daylight white balance during the setting sun we should be able to cool our photo down.