toptrainer Loc: Wellington

What is a good, cheap white balance card?

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

This is good. This what I use.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=details&O=&Q=&ap=y&c3api=1876%2C%7Bcreative%7D%2C%7Bkeyword%7D&gclid=CjwKEAjwvMnJBRCO2NSu-Puc6AUSJAAf-OSUhMNa-7Xl9PvduZU_fnnRDmqHhuXYihn-qFunkTApVxoCUozw_wcB&is=REG&m=Y&sku=651253

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

Check out B&H, or any camera store. They start under $ 3. I'm partial to the Expodisk which is @ $40. Best of luck

toptrainer Loc: Wellington

thank you.

lngroller

depends on what "cheap" is. I have MacBeth 24 panel color checkers, and the Color checker passport. I recommend the color checker passport and here's why, you can get a free download for a PS, and lightroom add in that will use all the color panels to make a profile to make ALL colors as accurate as possible. also there are warming and cooling chips you can click on for white balance for warmer or cooler overall white balance as you like, plus it's small. So yes it acts as a white balance card but it's also much more. I believe it runs about $100 now

Robert Bailey Loc: Canada

A sheet of white paper.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

What are you using it for? To get your white balance in the ballpark, or do you need something accurate? Are you attempting to set a custom white balance, or will you be shooting raw, including the card in a scene for reference and assigning white balance in post processing?

This is cheap and convenient

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/788272-REG/Vello_WB_CS_White_Balance_Card_Set.html

But if you need more accurate color there is no substitute for the Color Checker Passport - hands down the best tool for color and white balancing. I've used Spectracolor and Minolta color meters, gray cards, white cards, Expodisc-type devices, etc - and none provide the consistency and accuracy of the Passport.

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

Put the camera on auto, then follow the directions on:
http://www.techradar.com/news/photography-video-capture/how-to-fix-white-balance-in-your-photos-973511

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

I like to use the old Kodak gray cards and read them with your white balance setting on the camera under the lighting conditions you are shooting.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2380057.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xkokak+gray+card.TRS0&_nkw=kokak+gray+card&_sacat=0

AZNikon Loc: Mesa, AZ

CO

Don't go for the least expensive white balance card. You could be disappointed in the results. I've been through various white balance cards trying to find one that's accurate. I now have one made by WhiBal. The cards are individually tested with a precision spectrophotometer before they leave the factory. They have very low reflectivity. I got their studio kit that has a stand and hanger. It also has pure white and pure black areas for setting dynamic range.

Bulldog1jack Loc: CT

👍🏼👍🏼

olsonsview

When I shot weddings I carried around a folding reflector that had white, grey, and black panels on one side, like three stripes, each about one foot wide. And with a handy silvered reflector on the other side. It was great to get the range of tones spot on in a histogram. And the three shade panel shot to fill the frame of the camera was great to calibrate custom white balance in a dslr. The reflector folded to a 12 inch circle and fit into a nice cloth zippered bag. Photovisionvideo sold them and I bought mine at a wedding class taught through the PPofA. When expanded to use it: formed a 36 inch square with the corners rounded off to almost a circle. A really practical tool. I also had a small version of it maybe 9 inches in size that I took everywhere in my camera bag when shooting pics for fun.
In the film days, when we wanted to get near perfect color we sometimes used full sized MacBeth color charts and automated film processing, enlargers, and paper processing that one could program and calibrate to a fine degree. Had to purchase film and paper in very large quantity in order to not have batch to batch variance. So much easier and far cheaper now in the digital age, I do not miss the good old days!

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

Let me tell you what is a cheap WB card. Get a piece of white carton, enough to see it well in the camera viewfinder. Whenever you need a custom WB just follow the steps for a custom WB using the piece of carton.
Could not be any cheaper.

JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

I would be careful using OLD gray cards - they may not be color neutral. Some were intended for measuring exposure and not color balance. I prefer a white card to gray if your camera can use either to set a custom white balance.