Setting gray card WB

[m9photo]

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Need help, I'm trying to set the gray card on the Q but it won't focus on the gray card on the small screen. I have the camera set on AF, am I missing something?

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[pico]

As long as the card fills the frame, it need not be in focus.

[bags27]

I used to use a gray card. Truthfully, auto WB is so good, I put the card away. Interested in learning if others have a difference experience.

[m9photo]

15 minutes ago, pico said:

As long as the card fills the frame, it need not be in focus.

Thanks!

[antigallican]

Grey cards are for exposure (18%  reflectance) not white balance, though they are sometimes sold for white balance. Google it if you don’t believe me. You can just use any old piece of white paper if you want a specific scene white balance, or a shirt. Modern cameras are pretty good at awb.

[bags27]

You're absolutely right, of course. Brain freeze. But I did put my grey card away. Maybe I just felt comfortable with using the histogram. Thanks.

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[lykaman]

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We use to use a pavement stone (without direct sunlight) .. what's going on with all this modern technology 

[abhishek]

I have found the exposure and awb in Leica Q to be quite spot on . Has anyone done a measure of with and without gray card ? Any diff ? 

[evikne]

I don't know the Q, but with my M10 the AWB always looks very good – until I see the difference I get with an ExpoDisc. The colors from the ExpoDisc are usually warmer and more natural than from the camera's AWB. 

Edited July 22, 2019 by evikne

[jaapv]

I find grey card WB very useful under LED or other difficult lighting; it gives a decent starting point in postprocessing, although it is nearly always needed to warm the shot a bit.

I do have a grey card with me in the form of a ColorChecker Passport, but in general anything neutral, even a sheet of paper or a white tablecloth will do. Precise focus is indeed not needed.

[bags27]

1 hour ago, abhishek said:

I have found the exposure and awb in Leica Q to be quite spot on . Has anyone done a measure of with and without gray card ? Any diff ? 

I did this when I first got the Q and found it was indeed spot on. I haven't tried it with my more recently acquired CL, but have no reason to think it's worth doing.

[wda]

Much depends on your needs for colour fidelity. While any self-colour grey card can be used, one calibrated for uncontaminated RGB has been proven reliable. I use a ColorChecker Passport or an old clean WhiBal where colour accuracy is important, such as pictures of natural subjects e.g. flowers for reproduction in educational publications. They are really useful where mixed lighting sources are unavoidable. As with exposure determination, it is up the photographer to fine-tune as seen fit for specific purposes. There is no golden rule regarding use of a calibrated grey card. Just treat them as useful aids where colour accuracy is essential.

[bags27]

Thank you, David.

I've been thinking about this some lately, as I try to see how at least an awareness of the Zone System helps me with digital photography, both in taking the photo and in post in terms of stretching dynamic range. I confess that I haven't got very far in changing my habits, though it does make me more conscious, especially when I am converting color to B&W in post. 

When photographing digitally, I think Ansel Adams's famous saying is flipped and becomes: expose (on the histogram) for highlights, develop (in post) for shadows. 

[Pelu2010]

For exposure I measure my hand. 
it usually has the b&w grey that the meter need to set the exposure correct. 
 

if shooting people I use „spot“ on the face 

 

kind regards 

 

peter 

[wda]

50 minutes ago, Pelu2010 said:

For exposure I measure my hand. 
it usually has the b&w grey that the meter need to set the exposure correct. 
 

if shooting people I use „spot“ on the face 

 

kind regards 

 

peter 

Peter, if you are talking about exposure, OK. But the 18% grey cards used for exposure determination are not necessarily accurate for white balance setting. They might not be spectrally neutral. AWB might be equally acceptable. Then fine-tune in Lightroom, or whatever. ColorChecker Passport is more accurate for critical work.

[Pelu2010]

1 hour ago, wda said:

Peter, if you are talking about exposure, OK. But the 18% grey cards used for exposure determination are not necessarily accurate for white balance setting. They might not be spectrally neutral. AWB might be equally acceptable. Then fine-tune in Lightroom, or whatever. ColorChecker Passport is more accurate for critical work.

True true …. 

[Overgaard]

Did this one long ago on setting the WB on the Q: