B: Setting The White Balance; About White Balance - Canon EOS 5D Mark III Instruction Manual

B: Setting the White BalanceN
White balance (WB) is for making the white areas look white. Normally, the
<Q> (Auto) setting will obtain the correct white balance. If natural-looking
colors cannot be obtained with <Q>, you can select the white balance to
match the light source or set it manually by shooting a white object.
<Q> is automatically set in the <A> mode.
Display
Q
Auto
W
Daylight
E
Shade
R
Cloudy, twilight, sunset
Y
Tungsten light
U
White fluorescent light
D
Flash use
O
Custom (p.140)
P
Color temperature (p.141)
* Applicable with Speedlites having a color temperature transmission function.
Otherwise, it will be fixed to approx. 6000K.

About White Balance

To the human eye, a white object looks white regardless of the type of lighting.
With a digital camera, the color temperature is adjusted with software to make
the white areas look white. This adjustment serves as the basis for the color
correction. The result is natural-looking colors in the pictures.
You can also set this with [z2: White balance].
1
Press the <n> button.
2
Select the white balance.
While looking at the LCD panel, turn
the <5> dial.
Mode Color Temperature (Approx. K: Kelvins)
3000 - 7000
5200
7000
6000
3200
4000
Automatically set*
2000 - 10000
2500 - 10000
(9)
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