Svanden

Hi - I teach in a program for adult learners. Students are extremely multi-cultural. I volunteered to snap graduation photos. I successfully compensated for exposure for very dark subjects and I had great results using my Canon 5DM2 with the Canon 580 flash, in all says except one--skin tone. The place had overhead fluorescent lighting (U-shaped bulbs).

I tried using no flash and adjusting the white balance, but none of the WB settings produced good color, not even the fluorescent light setting (maybe because of the combo of fluorescent plus flash?). No matter what WB settings I used, the Euro-American skin tones came out nice enough with some post-processing, but if i post-porcess to get the colors in the background right, the Latino students look orange-ish and the darker-skinned African-Americans look greenish.

With flash I had to go with auto on the flah because I am not good enough yet to figure out manual settings--but I can "plug in" what you pros suggest!). Similar results to above.

I don't know if I can post photos due to privacy, since blocking facial features would obscure the problematic skin tones as well.

So, in short, any tips for shooting under ugly flourescent lighting, especially a range of skin tones? (Shooting butterflies on colorful flowers in gorgeous natural light is much easier, for me!)

Thanks!

Svanden

Sorry about the editing. I type with my thumbs about as well as I shoot multi-cultural subjects under ugly flourescent lighting.

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

Here is the secret to using flash indoors.

1.) Try and confine your lighting to one kind; i.e. fluorsent, tungsten, natural, etc. That will make it easier to sort out later.


2.) Gel your flash to match the predominate lighting. in the case of Fluoresent that would be (if memory serves) CTO green.


Go to any online camera shop such as B&H or Adorama and get a "gel swatch book" for about 3.00. The swatches are just the right size for a flash.

You hold them on via velcro or gaffers tape or whatever.


I hope that helps.

treadwl Loc: South Florida

I'll offer two suggestions. Try a ExpoDisk filter for your camera. It is designed to be used before you take photos to correct White Balance. I've used it in a variety of settings and gotten excellent results.

Next--light actually has color which is explained numerically in degrees Kelvin. A photo processing program like Lightroom has several color adjustment sliders which actually allow you to change the light temperature to either warm and photo (adding reds) of cool a photo (adding blues) Lightroom willlet you adjust photos to any temperature and thus get perfect white balance.

Larry

Svanden

Thanks for the helpful tips!

gleneric Loc: Calgary, Alberta

Another option ... use a neutral gray card (should be available from any decent camera store, or online from places like B&H (just search for "white balance")). Take one photo with the gray card, and then take photo(s) without (preferably in RAW, but I think you can still adjust if shot in jpg). Allows for establishing the white balance in your post processing software. As long as the light falling on your subjects is even across the group, this should work (even if a mix of different light sources).

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

Actually...it can't.

That would be the whole point of white balancing in the first place...color temperature.

Not saying it will look horrible but different light sources in one shot cannot be made to look the same temperature wise by doing a white balance.

The only way to really get the different light sources to play together is to turn off all but the predominate light sources and minimize others as much as possible, then correct for the predominate light source.

ManoaMan Loc: Honolulu, Hawaii

One problem with fluorescent lighting is that they come in many different Kelvin temperatures. They range from true Daylight to quite warm with several variations in between. The gentleman who suggested Lightroom (or most any current post-processing software) is a good one and will solve most of the the mixed lighting problems.

Nikonuser Loc: South Dakota

All the above suggestions are good. If you have the time to do post processing, shoot in RAW and then you can change the white balance to whatever you want and then even fine tune it to your liking. Just depends on where you have the most time to do it. Whereas white balance is concerned, I use Nikon Capture NX2 for my post processing and get excellent results. Am sure any other program will have similar results. Good luck!

bigharry31

You need a filter for flourescent light, I think it may be an FD filter, asak at a camera shop to be sure. Good luck, Harold

twowindsbear

Can anyone tell me - does fluorescent lamps produce a complete spectrum of light?

Thanks

Roger Hicks Loc: Aquitaine

No. Never.

Do not rely on your camera's 'fluorescent' setting, because the lamps vary too much.

But manual WB off white paper (or a grey card, if you want to spend the money) can still deliver astonishingly good color balance.

Cheers,

R.

Bigdaver

You can add an adjustment layer of magenta, that is the counter to the green of fluorescent.
Fluorescents do not make a complete spectrum. They are balanced, but have a spiky spectrum, gaps and spikes. And all have a bias toward green.

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

The OP is asking about flash VS fluorescent lighting temperature and why they don't play well.

No amount of white balancing and PP will make two different color temps the same unless the flash is gelled while shooting.

Trust me. If you don't gel your flash you will have two different color temps in the same shot.

I think it's called "window green"

http://strobist.blogspot.com/2008/04/lighting-102-61-gelling-for-fluorescent.html