Keeping Colors True: The White-Balance Menu - Nikon COOLPIX 5000 Manual

Keeping Colors True: The White-Balance Menu

What Is "White Balance"?
The color of the light reflected by an object depends on the color of the light
source. The human brain is able to detect and compensate for such changes
in color, with the result that a white object will look white to humans whether
viewed in sunlight, under overcast skies, or indoors under incandescent or fluo-
rescent lighting. To a camera, however, the "whites" produced by these dif-
ferent sources of light vary in color, some being slightly blue and others yellow
or red. A digital camera can adjust colors according to lighting so that colors
that appear white to the human eye also appear white when viewed in the
final photograph. This adjustment is called "white balance."
Choosing a White Balance Setting
In User Sets 1, 2, and 3, white balance can be cho-
sen using the white-balance option in the SHOOT-
ING menu (in User Set A, white balance is adjusted
automatically).
Viewing the Current White-Balance Setting
At settings other than Auto, the current white-bal-
ance setting is indicated by an icon in the monitor.
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