What’s the difference between white balance and color calibration?
Asked 2/16/2019
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I’m confused about how white balance differs from color calibration. In both cases, are you adjusting things so colors aren’t affected by the color of the light source? Or are they solving different problems?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
6
Color calibration usually refers to adjusting a device, such as a monitor or printer, so that digital colors appear in a standard way. An image should look as close as possible to the same across different displays and media, and calibration is a necessary step for that.
White balance, as you say, is adjusting an image so that the illuminant appears neutral (or, if not neutral, to a color temperature shift from neutral as desired by the artist).
Originally by user1943. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1943
7y ago
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They solve different problems.
White balance is an image adjustment. It compensates for the color of the illumination so neutral subjects look neutral, or it can be intentionally shifted warmer/cooler for artistic effect. In other words, it affects how the scene itself is rendered.
Color calibration is usually a device adjustment. It brings a monitor, printer, or similar device closer to a known standard so colors are displayed or printed consistently. Its goal is not mainly to “fix” the lighting in a photo, but to make the same file look as similar as possible across devices and media.
So:
- White balance: corrects or controls the scene’s color cast from the light source.
- Color calibration: corrects or standardizes the device used to view or output the image.
Better real-world color accuracy can be a result of calibration, but consistency between devices is the primary purpose.
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