How can I match color casts between outdoor photos taken at different times?

Question

I have several photos of similar subjects against the same background, but they were shot outdoors at different times so the light changed between shots. As a result, the colors don’t match—for example, the same grass looks bluer in some images than in others.

Can I use a known reference area in each image and tell the software, in effect, “this should be the same color,” so the photos become more comparable? How well does this work in practice, and what Windows or Linux software can do it, preferably without using Photoshop?

user124 · Answer

If your photos were taken under different lighting conditions, it is unlikely you will be able to fully normalize all of them relative to each other. Lighting is a very critical aspect of photography, and changing it will indeed change the color balance of your photos. You may have some leeway to correct and improve similarity, however it is doubtful that you would be able to achieve total normalization for all tones and colors in each image.

You can use a tool like Lightroom to automatically color balance based on a particular "neutral" pixel. If there is a particular element in each photo that should be a neutral color (preferably white, but grays also do), you can use the White Balance Picker tool to simply select the same area in each photograph, and correct white balance around that pixel. You might get a closer normalization, but it won't get you all the way there. You could then use the color temperature and tint sliders to fine tune each image.

How can I match color casts between outdoor photos taken at different times?

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