In the last article Balancing Flash and Ambient Light Using an Incident Light Meter I did not mention color temperature or any correction for the colorcast in the background. Color temperature is measured on the Kelvin (K) scale, and most automatic White Balance (AWB) systems on cameras can adjust between 3500K and 8000K. This range may not be sufficient in certain situations, such as indoor night photography where domestic lighting tends to have a lower color temperature, resulting in an orange.
Color temperature gels are colored pieces of plastic that can completely transform the way you use flash lighting. One of the cheapest and most powerful accessories in photography, there is no reason not to learn the fundamentals of color balancing for your flash with gels. That comes down to color temperature of the ambient light.
Flash always has something similar to daylight (5500-6500K), so you need to use conversion gels from daylight. Most useful gel is (color temperature orange), which will color daylight to tungsten (3200K). Usage is as follows: This has two possible effects: If ambient light is tungsten, everything will look just normal If the ambient is.
What he's referring to is the color temperature of the flash unit's light, and it's a key element in flash photography. A light's color temperature can be thought of as its specific hue, which is measured and expressed in degrees Kelvin. Color Gels can be extremely effective tools to help you create unique and dynamic photographs, and they've been around since the early days of film photography.
The two most common reasons why you would want to use color gels with your flash are for adjusting/balancing color temperature or adding color for a creative effect. Balancing Color Temperature Photography is the art of capturing light. Understanding these temperatures is essential when mixing ambient light with flash, as it helps determine which gels to use with your flash.
A color temperature meter can provide precise readings for complex lighting situations. Color temperature varies significantly throughout the day and with different weather conditions. 2.
Colour Temperature Put the color temperature orange (CTO) gel on the flashgun and fix it to a light stand. Fix on a diffuser of some sort. Understand color temperature so you can create images with natural, accurate colors.
Discover how to get rid of color casts in seconds! Use a color temperature meter that reads both constant and electronic flash light. If you can find a used Minolta Color Meter IIIF on eBay that is an excellent choice. But I think I've read that some company is making a metering cell and app for iPhones that reads color temperature.