M8 firmware request

[KM-25]

I have a simple request for the next wave of firmware on the M8.

Sometimes, I like to use the Kelvin setting to trim the white balance to a specific cast, such as around 3,000-3,300 K for indoors. AWB generally does a good job, but is still a bit too blue for me at times.

What I am having a problem with is that after setting to say, 3,200 K and then going back to AWB or another setting, the Kelvin setting always resets to a rather useless 2,000 K.

I would like to see the kelvin setting stay on what I last put it on, even if I turn the camera off or take out the battery, no resetting to 2,000 K.

I am pretty sure this can be accomplished with a firmware adjustment.

How about it Leica?

[Susan_NYC]

Is there a website that'll explain Kelvin to me?

[cyberean]

agreed ... as i've brought this to their
attention several months ago.

[cyberean]

Originally Posted by Susan_NYC

Is there a website that'll explain Kelvin to me?

Color temperature - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[ho_co]

Susan--
cyberean and I both link to the same site.

Kelvin is a temperature scale like Fahrenheit and Celsius. With Fahrenheit, water freezes at 32° and boils at 212°. With Celsius, water freezes at 0° and boils at 100°. But some temperatures are outside a range where it's convenient to use those two; so chemistry and physics often refer to Kelvin. 0 on the Kelvin scale is absolute zero (the temperature at which all atomic motion ceases, viz -273.15° C); and the size of the units is identical to the units of Celsius.

That is the basis for the photographic use of the term, where it is used to describe "color temperature":

from Kelvin: - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Color temperature

The kelvin is often used in the measure of the color temperature of light sources. Color temperature is based upon the principle that a black body radiator emits light whose color depends on the temperature of the radiator. Black bodies with temperatures below about 4000 K appear reddish whereas those above about 7500 K appear bluish. Color temperature is important in the fields of image projection and photography where a color temperature of approximately 5500 K is required to match “daylight” film emulsions. In astronomy, the stellar classification of stars and their place on the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram are based, in part, upon their surface temperature, known as effective temperature. The photosphere of the Sun, for instance, has an effective temperature of 5777 K.

Here is a chart from another brand's instruction manual, but remember that nominal values may vary among companies:

[sean_reid]

Also...one way to remember that "colder" light is represented with a higher Kelvin number is to recall that the hot part of a fire burns blue rather than yellow or orange. (Yes, I know the color changes at even higher heat but that doesn't really help one remember the core Kelvin direction. <G> If we start to think about things that burn at a white heat, we risk losing the analogy.)

Cold > Blue (like lips after a cold swim) > higher Kelvin numbers

Warm > orange-yellow (like the color of a warm room in a house when seen from outside on a winter's night) > lower Kelvin numbers

FWIW


Cheers,

Sean

[marknorton]

The curious thing is that the manual setting is retained while the camera remains powered up; you can switch between the Kelvin and other settings and still get your last selected temperature when you go back to Kelvin. It's only when the camera goes to sleep and subsequently wakes up (by manually switching off or letting the auto shutdown do it for you) that the manually selected value is reset to 2000K. If the WB is left at Kelvin when the camera shuts down, the manually selected value IS retained.

A clear case of the programmer not understanding how the camera is going to be used. Some over-zealous housekeeping says "If the user hasn't selected Kelvin, reset the selected temperature to 2000K since it's not in use". The correct approach in any situation like this is to vet the selected value and reset it only if the value is invalid (out of range, not one of a set of supported values) or if other selected options render the selected value invalid, which does not apply in this case. In any case, 2000K is a silly default value to have in the first place. Direct Sunlight such as 5200K in HC's table would be better.

HC - I'll put money on your "other" brand NOT being Canon....LOL

[ho_co]

Mark--
Shh! Don't tell 'em. I don't want to get sued for off-brand use of copyrighted material. (But you're right. )

Good analysis on the Kelvin reset, BTW. Should be simple enough to correct, as KM-25 surmised. Most important part of programming has always been the coffee or cola.

[Susan_NYC]

Thank you Cyberean, Howard, and Sean..I'll play around with the Kelvin settings when I get too much blue, too - since that's where AWB doesn't work for me, either.