Etsy :: The Storque :: How-To :: Bright Light, Big Color: Using EV and White Balance to Make Your Photos True to Life

Bright Light, Big Color: Using EV and White Balance to Make Your Photos True to Life


Story by terrain Published on October 25, 2007 in How-To	Photo by terrain

Taking a great photo is all about managing light. Nothing is more frustrating than photos that turn out too dark, too washed out, or off-color. It’s a particular challenge for sellers who have to use artificial light rather than natural light due to time constraints or inclement climates. Luckily, your digital camera has a few handy tricks — exposure value (EV) and white balance — that can help you overcome these challenges and snap your way to better, brighter photos.

How Does EV Work?

Evaluative metering is the term used to describe how the camera divides an image into different zones for light metering — it evaluates the lighting conditions and makes adjustments to exposure based on the position of the subject, the brightness, direct light and backlighting, and a multitude of other factors. Essentially, evaluative metering performs the same functions as the human eye.

However, cameras are not as perfect at adjusting exposure as our eyes. In overly bright or underlit conditions, a little manual compensation is required. Exposure values are the numeric values (+1, -2, etc) which describe a particular combination of shutter speed and lens aperture. On most cameras the exposure values are measured at one-half or one-third stops. The default or no-compensation level is set at 0. By raising or lowering EV from 0, you adjust the shutter speed/lens aperture which allows either more or less light to reach the camera’s sensors, thereby brightening or darkening your photograph.

How to Use Exposure Values (EV) and Evaluative Metering:

photos by terrain

1. Even a basic digital camera should offer evaluative metering. Use your camera’s manual to locate the evaluative metering function. The icon typically looks like this [ (o) ]. Your camera may have other light metering modes such as centre-weighted averaging and spot AE point, but for now, make sure the regular metering function is selected (it is most likely the default setting).

2. You should also have an exposure value (EV) scale associated with the evaluative metering function on your camera. The icon for this scale will often appear as “+/-0”. Select this icon and you will see a simple scale with 0 in the middle and a +1 and +2 on the right or top, and -1 and -2 on the left or bottom.

3. Aim your camera and focus on the object you are photographing. Use the arrow keys (or equivalent) on your camera to move up or down the scale. Watch the camera monitor and you’ll see the shot you’ve composed become brighter as you move up or to the right of the scale, and darker as you move to the left or down the scale.

4. If you have a white object in your scene, use it to gauge when you’ve reached the appropriate brightness level, or place a white object temporarily in the picture to judge the light levels. When you’re satisfied with what you see, press the shutter button and you’re done!

Tip: When shooting in low light you’ll want to raise the EV to brighten the shot, but to do this the camera takes a longer time to gather light and take the photo. This can exacerbate “camera shake” (the tiny movements caused by even a steady hand or by the mechanics of the camera itself). To compensate, use a tripod and press the shutter button cleanly and gently. Most digital cameras have a timer function, in which case your finger wouldn't even be pressing the tripod-mounted camera when the shot is taken.

How does White Balance work?

White balance is the balance between cool and warm light color temperature captured by your camera’s sensors. Color temperature describes the spectrum of light as it is measured in Kelvin, from “warm” light (low Kelvin) to “cool” light (high Kelvin). See the chart below for a range of common light sources and their relative temperatures:

1000-2000K Candlelight
2500-3500K Tungsten household lightbulb
3000-4000K Sunrise/sunset (clear sky)
4000-5000K Fluorescent lighting
5000-5500K Electronic flash
5000-6500K Daylight with sun overhead
6500-8000K Moderately overcast sky
9000-10000K Shade or heavily overcast sky

The lower the temperature of the light, the more of a warm or orange-ish color cast will be visible in your photographs. The higher the temperature, the colder or bluer your photos will appear. Using pre-set white balances allows your camera to accurately judge and compensate for the light temperature of your composition, and the result is a photo with truer, brighter colors.

How to Use White Balance:

photos by terrain

1. Not all digital cameras offer white balance customization, but most offer preset white balance settings that match commonly used light sources. Use your camera’s manual to locate the white balance function. The icon usually looks like a little lightbulb. Select it and you should see several presets from which to choose. You may also see an icon “AWB” which stands for auto white balance, which is the default setting.

2. What kind of light are you using? It is crucial that you match the preset white balance setting to your light source. Natural source presets typically include “daylight” and “cloudy.” Artificial presets may include “fluorescent,” “tungsten” (incandescent), and “daylight fluorescent” (halogen). Note how the color tint on your camera monitor will change if you flip through the different presets. Select the preset that matches your light source and snap your photo.

3. If your camera has a custom white balance setting, take advantage of it! Select the “custom” option icon and place a white piece of paper or cloth in the scene. Aim the camera so that the entire frame is filled with the white object. Press the “set” or “enter” button on your camera. The camera reads the white object and uses the data from it to set a custom white balance for your composition. Now you can continue to photograph your items.

Tip: If using a custom white balance, keep in mind that any changes to your composition will throw off the data used by your camera to make the custom setting. This includes any changes to your lighting and even alterations to backdrops, props and reflective surfaces. If you need to rearrange your scene, be sure to set a new custom white balance.

Using EV and White Balance together:

EV and white balance can be set totally independently of each other, but still used together for maximum results. If you raise EV to brighten a photo but neglect to adjust white balance, you may have a brighter photo that still has a blue or orange tint. Conversely, if you adjust white balance to match your lighting conditions but don’t adjust your exposure values to compensate for an underlit scene, your colors may be true but the photo may remain too dark overall.

Tip:

Because EV compensation requires more fine-tuning than white balance, set your white balance first and adjust EV second.

Happy snapping!

Tags	EV shift, How-To, HOW-TO, photographing, photography, Seller Handbook, terrain, white balance

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97 comments Login to add your own!

Oct. 25, 2007 at 8:53 p.m.

cupcake2create

Great information thank you .

Oct. 25, 2007 at 9:20 p.m.

IngasGems

Thanks! Very useful info!

Oct. 26, 2007 at 6:57 a.m.

fuzzyfibers1960

thanks for the info! this is my least favorite part of my creating.

Oct. 26, 2007 at 9:28 a.m.

Knitsteel

Thank you. I really needed the explanation on white balance!

Oct. 26, 2007 at 9:45 a.m.

wunderbug

thanks so much for sharing, terrain!!

Oct. 26, 2007 at 11:04 a.m.

HeyMichelle

Awesome! Very informative!

Oct. 26, 2007 at 3:10 p.m.

chickadeebeads

Thank you so much for sharing this!

Oct. 27, 2007 at 3:12 p.m.

Blondezillabeads4fun

I'll try this today ! Thanks so much for your expertise :D

Oct. 28, 2007 at 2:57 a.m.

jewelryforallages

Thanks, one day I'll get the knack of this.

Oct. 28, 2007 at 2 p.m.

Brooklynbee

This is really informative and interesting. Thanks!

Oct. 28, 2007 at 6:33 p.m.

hobbledehoy

Learning those tricks earlier this fall made a *huge* difference in my sales. I went from having really washed out photos to slightly more balanced ones by adjusting the EV.

Great lesson!

Oct. 28, 2007 at 7:05 p.m.

juln

Grand article! I've been trying to figure out what EV stood for for years.

I do find that whatever my settings, my photos almost always require a bit of foozling in my photo editing program - 'set white point'.

Oct. 28, 2007 at 9:26 p.m.

littlegirlPearl

I so appreciated this article. Not only do I struggle with a moving model(my 2 yr. old), but the lighting has been one of the biggest challenges. Tomorrow, I'm off to fiddle more with my camera. Thank you!

Oct. 28, 2007 at 9:28 p.m.

quirkybags

Thank you for this article, terrain!

Oct. 28, 2007 at 10:10 p.m.

BlueLadyBeads

Very informative, thank you.

Oct. 29, 2007 at 4:43 p.m.

estherly

Thank you very much for sharing! Definitely a great help for newbie like me :)

Nov. 2, 2007 at 6:41 p.m.

BKMHattitude

Fantastic article, now if I can only find my camera manual. Thanks

Nov. 16, 2007 at 10:30 a.m.

fernfiddlehead

I feel as though someone just turned on a light. Thank you for this great information.

Dec. 7, 2007 at 8:03 p.m.

GreenMamba

Very illuminating, terrain!
Thanks!

Feb. 7, 2008 at 7:59 p.m.

Psculptures

Great info, terrain! I sure needed this important lesson in digital photography. Hopefully it result in much-improved shop photos, thereby increasing sales potential. Thanks so very much!

Feb. 8, 2008 at 7:42 a.m.

habbags

Thankyou,

alerted me to functions I didn't know I had on my digi camera...big learning process, but such fun, especially snapping in very different environments!

March 15, 2008 at 9:47 p.m.

LillyRoseBowCompany

Thanks a bunch! Very imformative and helpful. I will get to work tomorow improving my photos, therby improving my shop!

March 16, 2008 at 4:07 p.m.

windyhilldesigns

Thank you so much for sharing this info. I'll be changing my photos tonight.

May 8, 2008 at 3:22 p.m.

desertnana

your ability to explain step-by step- is extraordinary and receiving a standing ovation from me!!!!!!

Now can you write a complete Manuel encompassing absolutely everything involved in setting up and Etsy shop from start to finish??

June 12, 2008 at 6:32 a.m.

ThePeachTree

Great tutorial! You make it sound so simple!

Aug. 15, 2008 at 4:08 p.m.

agapegems

Thanks so much!! Your explanation is much clearer than the manual that came with my camera!

Aug. 19, 2008 at 4:13 p.m.

AmandaYuDesign

Thanks for the useful info. :)

Aug. 20, 2008 at 7:54 p.m.

spunsilver

Just what I was looking for!

Aug. 24, 2008 at 5:53 a.m.

kylieB

Oh wow fantastic, Thank-you!

Sept. 13, 2008 at 8:54 a.m.

soapychica

this is such a great article-even I can follow it -Thank you so much!

Sept. 22, 2008 at 9:40 a.m.

curlsofsunshine

this helped a lot...there are things on my camera I did not know I had!

Sept. 23, 2008 at 11:44 a.m.

breedingfancy

Very informative. How did I not see this article sooner? Thanks!

Sept. 24, 2008 at 12:16 a.m.

cushylife

Thank you so much for sharing these very useful information!

Sept. 27, 2008 at 10 a.m.

meraldesigns

how informative, thank you so much....

Sept. 28, 2008 at 7:56 p.m.

charleneofdomus

thanks very helpful. I just pulled out my user guide

Oct. 5, 2008 at 3:17 a.m.

MonasMane

Thanks, before this I didn't even know what ev and white balance was!

Oct. 6, 2008 at 3:38 a.m.

TwilightKnits

Oh I'm so glad I found this article! My pictures needed to be better!

Oct. 7, 2008 at 7:14 p.m.

hipclothing

Thanks for the tips!

Oct. 22, 2008 at 8:40 a.m.

nadessicco

Ooooh! Great!!
Thank you so much for sharing the very useful information!!
I'll use it everytime from now on for a snap!!!

Nov. 9, 2008 at 9:26 a.m.

moonpics

Thank you!! About the WB I knew, but I'm going to try the EV adjusting straight away!

Nov. 14, 2008 at 9:37 p.m.

mpaperarts

Can't wait to try this out - I am dying for consistant photos and no more orange glow!

Nov. 15, 2008 at 12:34 a.m.

StudioYTE

Always looking for ways to improve...many thanks!

Nov. 20, 2008 at 2:39 a.m.

LuminousMom

GREAT information... I will openly admit I never had a clue what those settings were on my camera, lol

Nov. 24, 2008 at 10:55 a.m.

krystalsbykrystallee

Wow... this was the best info I have found! Thank you....

Nov. 24, 2008 at 5:18 p.m.

suzicook

Thanks for the info. I'm off to the FUJI site to find out where these settings are located on my camera.

Dec. 2, 2008 at 10:40 a.m.

worksandfinds

Thanks for great info. Pictures are my sore point. I'm going to work on it.

Dec. 4, 2008 at 2:56 p.m.

Jewelry4AllTime

We plan to use this info. with the new "Studio Photo Box Tent Kit Photography"when it is delivered. Thanks for the article! Great info!!

Dec. 27, 2008 at 7:45 p.m.

thebline

Helpful info! Thanks!

Dec. 28, 2008 at 8:25 p.m.

dropyourdrawers

so helpful thank you!

Jan. 2, 2009 at 1:14 p.m.

pleinair47

Thanks for sharing! Now I have a better understanding of the terms and functions on my digital camera.

Jan. 2, 2009 at 2:43 p.m.

TheBornAgainBoutique

yay! a straight forward answer with easy instructions - I'm off to go play!!

Jan. 4, 2009 at 2:48 p.m.

colorpoetry

Thank you so much! Instead of buying a new camera I now see that my current one will do everything I need.

Jan. 5, 2009 at 11:05 a.m.

Lesbijouxcrealune

very helpful, thanks!

Jan. 6, 2009 at 12:14 a.m.

Waterrose

Thank you. I'm experimenting tomorrow!

Jan. 6, 2009 at 12:41 a.m.

peaseblossomstudio

LOL, I just read this and never heard of EV! Thanks so much terrain! I still bought a new camera today, though. ;-)

Jan. 6, 2009 at 6:48 p.m.

ChattyCatsArtWear

A thousand thanks! I have a great camera, the Pentax Optio, which I love...however, it fights me every step of the way with regard to lighting. Now that I know it's actually me that's the dummy, I expect to create finer photos. This was especially helpful, since I've had the camera several years (and several moves), and finding the manual that came with it would be nearly impossible!!:)

Jan. 11, 2009 at 9:52 p.m.

KatieAnnCreations

I am definitely going to try this thanks!!

Jan. 12, 2009 at 4:50 a.m.

reneeandriole

Great article, I have such issues with the photos sometimes

Jan. 12, 2009 at 7:49 p.m.

1ForYou

Thanks for the tips! I can sure use them.

Feb. 16, 2009 at 3:37 p.m.

ClareBears

Wow - that's really useful. It's been of help already!

Feb. 17, 2009 at 6:02 p.m.

agmode

Very useful info. Thank you!!

March 9, 2009 at 8:21 a.m.

JanFairhurstPottery

excellent-- just the info i needed!

March 9, 2009 at 2:49 p.m.

ArtBalance

Thank you for a wonderful, accessible article! Fab writing.

March 19, 2009 at 8:03 a.m.

eileensf

Thanks for the tip. I'm going to try it.

March 25, 2009 at 2:49 p.m.

acousticdragonfly

Thanks so much for sharing. I appreciate your time, and your talent. :-)
Have a great day,
Lisa

March 28, 2009 at 5:57 p.m.

rlevenkron

I never knew about all this - thanks for the tip!

April 21, 2009 at 12:25 a.m.

RJBDesigns

Thank you so much for the tips! Amazing how many things I have learned from Etsy in the last week! What a great place to shop, work and learn:)

May 5, 2009 at 12:51 a.m.

SparkleRocks

Oh perfect, I really needed this. thanks!! :D

May 22, 2009 at 4:38 a.m.

CandiedBeauty

incredibly helpful!! i was looking everywhere for camera settings..thanks to this article i am now getting a mostly white background when i use my handmade light box. Thank you SO SO SO much! YOU R AWESOME!

June 11, 2009 at 5:27 p.m.

MessyJesse

definately have to try this out!

June 15, 2009 at 1:09 p.m.

FiddlyFingerWork

It's so helpful to have someone explain these things - I've really been struggling trying to understand the workings of my camera and how to get a good picture from it, thank you

June 15, 2009 at 3:33 p.m.

violetribbon

I can't wait to get started on my shop photos after reading this great information. Thanks.

June 29, 2009 at 4:56 a.m.

sivylla

Thanks so much for the useful info. I really appreciated your effort :-)
I think i'll have to photograph all my items all over again :-)

July 1, 2009 at 4 p.m.

TheFourStore

Amazing!! I can't wait to shoot good pictures finally!

July 31, 2009 at 6:42 a.m.

peagreenboatdesign

Mysterious camera settings are explained so clearly that they make perfect sense now. This is great information - thank you!

July 31, 2009 at 11:26 a.m.

shopgoodgrace

fabulous. Thank you!!

Aug. 6, 2009 at 12:45 a.m.

TheArtOfJoy

What a HUGE help! Thanks!

Aug. 11, 2009 at 4:30 p.m.

AryalAmesJewelry

Wow! I need to print this out and start putting this to work... thank you!

Aug. 11, 2009 at 5:57 p.m.

ArrayedAndAdorned

Thank you!

Aug. 11, 2009 at 6:17 p.m.

ladnamedfelix

Thanks for the very informative and simply-explained article! This should really help a lot of Etsy users - including myself!

Aug. 11, 2009 at 6:19 p.m.

dolliecs

great tips and tricks. lighting, finding the ultimate "sweet spot" is always my goal. thank you.

Aug. 11, 2009 at 9:25 p.m.

magartsypartycrafts

I was having issues with taking photos in my studio space with my digital camera and this really helped me figure out where I was going wrong! Merci

Aug. 11, 2009 at 9:47 p.m.

wildcubs

Was fun playing with custom white balance. But, sometimes even that is not enough. :)

Aug. 12, 2009 at 12:23 a.m.

pixiecampbell

thank you, terrain! i need all of the photo help i can get!

Aug. 12, 2009 at 12:17 p.m.

kendraha

Thanks for the great info! I am going to go work on them right now with the feature I just learned my camera has. I know my photos need a lot of help! Thanks again!

Aug. 12, 2009 at 2:01 p.m.

ChampagneandBaubles

Geat info.! Thanks so much. Every piece of advice or help is greatly appreciated.

Aug. 12, 2009 at 3:41 p.m.

CoeCreations

Thanks for the great tips. Showing off your creations through a picture is tough.

Aug. 12, 2009 at 4:08 p.m.

ParisPennsylvania

Thank you for sharing a great and informative article. I learned a lot....Linda

Aug. 14, 2009 at 3:58 p.m.

ArtByHandz

I was having a lot of work before those tips having to take pictures with my cell phone after having all my camera stuff stolen and no money to invest on new ones, now I found out I need no fluorescent lamps anymore and I even can take night pictures with daylight options and ev automatically adjusted from my cell phone, didnt even know my phone had those....you roxxxxx as always, im so glad I read this post, thnkssssssssssss

Aug. 25, 2009 at 10:09 a.m.

rmcotton

This is the best article I have read yet! Thank you so much for the help and the pointers. I just pulled out my little booklet and my camera and I learned so much! Get ready, Etsy! My photos are gonna be the bomb!

Aug. 30, 2009 at 7:18 p.m.

Jrisco

thanks! I think I am finally grtting CLOSE to getting it... :)

Sept. 13, 2009 at 12:01 p.m.

jubileebags

thank you, can't wait to try these tips!

Sept. 22, 2009 at 10:35 p.m.

AChildsDreamParty

So invaluable! Thank you SO MUCH for offering this - I just got feedback that my pics can use a make-over, and this helps a ton! Can't thank you enough...

Oct. 1, 2009 at 9:58 a.m.