Adobe AFTER EFFECTS CS3 PROFESSIONAL User Manual page 107

For highlights, pixels that are clipped in all color channels appear white. For shadows, pixels that are clipped in all
color channels appear black. Clipping in one or two channels is shown by the primary color (red, green, blue) or a
combined color (cyan, magenta, yellow).
Note: In some cases, clipping occurs because the color space that you are working has a gamut that is too small. If your
colors are being clipped, consider working in a color space with a large gamut, such as ProPhoto RGB.
White balance controls in Camera Raw
In very simple terms, adjusting the white balance is a matter of identifying what objects in the image should be
neutral-colored (white or gray) and then adjusting the colors in the image to make those objects neutral-colored. A
white or gray object in a scene takes on the color cast by the ambient light or flash used to shoot the picture. When
you use the White Balance tool to specify an object that should be white or gray, Camera Raw can determine the
color of the light in which the scene was shot and then adjust for scene lighting automatically.
Color temperature (in Kelvins) is used as a measure of scene lighting because natural and incandescent light sources
give off light in a predictable distribution according to their temperature.
A digital camera records the white balance at the time of exposure as a metadata entry. The Camera Raw plug-in
reads this value and makes it the initial setting when you open the file in the Camera Raw dialog box. This setting
usually yields the correct color temperature, or nearly so. You can adjust the white balance if it is not quite right.
Note: Not all color casts are a result of incorrect white balance. Use the controls in the Calibrate tab to correct a color
cast that remains after the white balance is adjusted.
The Basic tab in the Camera Raw dialog box has three controls for correcting a color cast in an image:
Camera Raw applies the white balance setting and changes the Temperature and Tint properties in
White Balance
the Basic tab accordingly. Use these controls to fine-tune the color balance.
•
Uses the camera's white balance settings, if they are available.
As Shot
• Calculates the white balance based on the image data.
Auto
Note: If Camera Raw doesn't recognize the white balance setting of a camera, choosing As Shot is the same as choosing Auto.
Sets the white balance to a custom color temperature. Decrease Temperature to correct a photo taken
Temperature
with a lower color temperature of light; the Camera Raw plug-in makes the image colors bluer to compensate for the
lower color temperature (yellowish) of the ambient light. Conversely, increase Temperature to correct a photo taken
with a higher color temperature of light; the image colors become warmer (yellowish) to compensate for the higher
color temperature (bluish) of the ambient light.
Note: The range and units for the Temperature and Tint controls are different when you are adjusting a non-camera raw
image, such as a TIFF or JPEG image.
AFTER EFFECTS CS3 101
User Guide