Nikon P900 white balance: I was wondering if any owners of the new Nikon P900 could share their thought on how the camera handles white balance, as shooting raw is not an option and it...

steve_stoneblossom Loc: Rhode Island, USA

I was wondering if any owners of the new Nikon P900 could share their thought on how the camera handles white balance, as shooting raw is not an option and it does not seem to have a temperature option for white balance. I am finding more and more that LED lighting indoors is a struggle to get right, and adjusting jpegs for white balance is so much more difficult than raw images for me (working primarily in Lightroom).

warrior Loc: Paso Robles CA

I use auto
Users manual DL from Nikon (pdf)
Pages 51 & 63

WesIam Loc: Phoenixville, Pa

I use auto wb mostly outdoors,change to flash indoors at 400 iso.I have also gotten good results using cloudy -1 outdoors also.I am still experimenting with the different settings.I have had the camera for a couple of weeks.Enjoy.

RGH

congratulations for getting a new P900, I am on a waiting list and still have yet to get one. For me it will only be used outside as a long lens. Can't wait to get one. I did order 2 Batteries and a charger. I have them, now I just need the camera.

steve_stoneblossom wrote:

I was wondering if any owners of the new Nikon P900 could share their thought on how the camera handles white balance, as shooting raw is not an option and it does not seem to have a temperature option for white balance. I am finding more and more that LED lighting indoors is a struggle to get right, and adjusting jpegs for white balance is so much more difficult than raw images for me (working primarily in Lightroom).

steve_stoneblossom Loc: Rhode Island, USA

RGH wrote:

congratulations for getting a new P900, I am on a waiting list and still have yet to get one. For me it will only be used outside as a long lens. Can't wait to get one. I did order 2 Batteries and a charger. I have them, now I just need the camera.

Don't misinterpret, I do not (yet) own a P900. I was merely inquiring because I am considering it.

I expect that the pre-sets would work well outdoors, or auto for that matter. But more and more venues that I have occasion to shoot in are switching to LED lighting, and I find that the color cast of these lights is very inconsistent, often lending either a green or green/blue hue to images. I won't have the same amount of control over the white balance working with only jpegs in PP as I do with raw images.

Additionally, if anyone has information to offer regarding maximum apertures through the zoom range of this camera, could you share that as well? I know the range is 2.8-6.3, but I'd be interested in knowing the max aperture at, for example, (35mm equivalent) 100mm, 300mm, 1000mm.

WesIam Loc: Phoenixville, Pa

it does have temperature options

steve_stoneblossom Loc: Rhode Island, USA

WesIam wrote:

it does have temperature options

Is that what "white balance preset" is?

WesIam Loc: Phoenixville, Pa

No it's not the preset i was referring to the Kelvin scale

steve_stoneblossom Loc: Rhode Island, USA

WesIam wrote:

No it's not the preset i was referring to the Kelvin scale

I don't see Kelvin listed on the Nikon website specs sheet.

WesIam Loc: Phoenixville, Pa

It is available in the camera's menu.

Chuck_893 Loc: Lincoln, Nebraska, USA

I found the P900 Manual: http://download3.nikonimglib.com/archive1/5zp1A00G0es30113uWd435Kv4t21/P900RM_(En)02.pdf

The camera offers presets and color temperature adjustments (pp. 63 and 64)

I love the presets in tough situations. I had a situation once in a classroom that was lit by overhead fluorescents. I was shooting jpegs and relying on auto, and some shots were fine, but others were an awful green. I realized that the walls were painted green and the reflected green light was getting into some of the shots. At the front of the room was a white board. I got close to it and shot a custom white balance (preset) off of it and had no further trouble. If I need to use a preset I usually look for something white or gray, but some workers carry gray cards and even special (spendy) thingies you can put over the lens to get a white balance. For example http://www.amazon.com/ExpoImaging-ExpoDisc-Digital-Balance-Filter/dp/B0002GFOSU

steve_stoneblossom Loc: Rhode Island, USA

Chuck_893 wrote:

I found the P900 Manual: url http://download3.nik... (show quote)

Sounds simple enough. If I had a nickel for every time I said that and ran into problems... ;)

I am finding LEDs even more difficult than fluorescents. Not to mention that they cycle off and on so instantaneously that- with a fast shutter speed- I sometimes catch them at just the wrong moment, and they are all dark.

Chuck_893 Loc: Lincoln, Nebraska, USA

steve_stoneblossom wrote:

Sounds simple enough. If I had a nickel for every time I said that and ran into problems... ;)

I am finding LEDs even more difficult than fluorescents. Not to mention that they cycle off and on so instantaneously that- with a fast shutter speed- I sometimes catch them at just the wrong moment, and they are all dark.

Uh, oh. I did not know that. I also did not know that they are now being used as general lighting in offices and such (I had to look it up). Well, the main thing is that the P900 does have user presets and/or color temperature dial-in. I expect you would have to have a color temperature meter, and those are waaaaay more spendy than the over-the-lens thing (and I thought that was out of line).

I don't think I have run into LEDs at all. I have run into sodium vapor and/or mercury vapor in places, and they're pretty much impossible because their spectrum is so narrow. How narrow is the LED spectrum?

Since my switch to digital, though, I've been really happy overall with digital's much-more-forgiving-than-film nature, especially with mixed light sources. I don't know how critical color is in what you're doing, though.

steve_stoneblossom Loc: Rhode Island, USA

Chuck_893 wrote:

Uh, oh. I did not know that. I also did not know t... (show quote)

LEDs that I have seen for sale are temperature rated, so if you have access to that info, it should be doable.

But, for instance, I have occasion to shoot at venues where they have installed LED lighting in large chandeliers, and when I inquire, none of the staff has any idea what the meaning of light temperature is.

Note the blue cast to the lights in this chandelier in this room which, now that I look a second time at this shot, may need better white balance adjusting overall (the room is cream, but to my eye it's too yellow).

(Download)

Chuck_893 Loc: Lincoln, Nebraska, USA

steve_stoneblossom wrote:

LEDs that I have seen for sale are temperature rat... (show quote)

I should first tell you that I don't have what I would consider a critical color eye. I once worked in a color lab and sometimes got into trouble with my supervisor because I was nowhere near as critical as she was (and I guess I was supposed to be). I spent too many years printing nothing but black and white.

I first opened your picture on my 14" HP Chromebook. An awful lot depends on the monitor. The Chromebook cannot be calibrated and (to my eye anyway) skews a little too cool and a little too light, but on that slightly cool monitor the walls looked cream and the lights juuuuuust a tad blue. Now I am on my calibrated iMac and the lights look pure white and the overall scene looks yellow, about how I'd expect it to look with a daylight color film in incandescent. But that said, it's beautiful. Gorgeous.

I suppose you could just balance the shot the way you want it, then select just the lights and their glow and adjust them in an adjustment layer? :)