All pictures come out blue

<p>Shooting with my D80 (after not using it for a long time), all my pictures come out real blue/magenta.Also it seems to me the highlights are unusually burnt out.<br>

See sample here: http://picasaweb.google.com/saneplanet22/Maygoon?feat=directlink<br>

Also I am attaching a sample.<br>

I am using a new 18-200 DX lens, plus a Tiffen UV filter.<br>

The WB is set on Auto.<br>

Can anyone guess why is this happening? Any help would be appreciated.</p>

<p> </p><div></div>

<p>It will help if you provide a sample photo with EXIF data intact. Or copy the EXIF data as a text file and post it here.</p>

<p>Uh, either I'm blind, or my monitor calibration is such that it compensates for it, but I'm not seeing whole lot of extra blue here (the greens in the pick above are sorta dirty), can you take a screenshot of your histogram from lightroom, CS4 or Aperture and include it in the post?</p>

<p>I'm with Leigh--nothing overly blue; just some subdued colors. Maybe Auto WB is not the way to go!</p>

<p>Skies are blown out, but only a ND grad will help that. Some pictures look underexposed. I'm wondering if a dirty lens/filter are to blame. Again no sign of magenta.</p>

<p>Sorry it took so long. Had to figure out how to export exif in Lightroom.</p><div></div>

<p>Here's the screenshot of histogram leigh requested.</p>

<p>EXIF says WB was MANUAL.</p>

<p>It looks like your monitor is bad. I'm not seeing the problem with your photos you describe.</p>

<p>no blue here either.</p>

<p>Nick, What does "manual" mean? I mean the setting on the camera say "A" for auto I assume.</p>

<p>It means that you manually set WB to one of the presets. Digging deeper into the EXIF (I'm using PhotoME) I find that it lists Cloudy as the light source. Such a WB setting would serve to warm the shot ("take blue away/add red"). The EXIF also shows you used manual exposure (f10 at 1/250; ISO 125; Hard contrast; and using "Standard" scene (rather than "landscape").</p>

<p>Given than none of us are seeing blue, I'd also chime in on the side of those who believe your monitor calibration is to blame.</p>

<p>Setting A stands for aperture mode not Auto if the camera was in Auto it would be on "green setting"</p>

<p>Some slight adjustment in LR2 would fix this right up. Shooting in raw also helps if any other than minor adjustment becomes necessary to salvage a shot. Does the D80 allow setting a custom WB? If so it saves a lot of work in post if WB is set according to prevailing light conditions before shooting. Can use the "PRE" setup if the D80 is so equipped.</p>

<p>>f10 at 1/250; ISO 125; Hard contrast; Standard scene.<br>

No blue on my screen. But the photos should appear sharper in their relatively small sizes, and should be more contrasty at the stated settings. All the sample photos appear unsharp, hazy and low in contrast. Since the camera has not been used for a long time, could the lens have mold ?</p>

<p>Sun Dance: I agree with your prognosis os how the pics look. I just bought the lens used on ebay. But it's relatively new. Is there a way to check for mold? It's 18-200 VR.<br>

Keith: What do you mean by LR2? D80 can shoot with PRE. But does that mean constantly changing it for every lighting condition?</p>

 

<p>>Is there a way to check for mold?<br>

With the aperture wide open, shine a bright light into the front element while looking through the back of the lens. Look for filamentous growths on the glass surfaces inside. (I hope there isn't any, good luck!) </p>

<p>They look fine to me , apart from the sharpness . Do you calibrate your monitor regularly ?</p>

<p>As far as lack of sharpness goes, can you make sure you have a good focus point selected before we assume the lens has fungus. The 18-200 is a pretty new lens to have fungus in it, unless it's been stored in a horrid environment. It's more likely to be out of alignment, OR (please don't take this the wrong way) user error... The photo you posted here is shot, apparently, with the lens wide open. That's not the best way to use this lens for a photo like that. f8 is the place to be!</p>

<p>And again, don't adjust your photos color too quickly. Your monitor is apparently blue, not the images!</p>

<p>Here's the result of setting white and balck points, adjusting curves, and increasing contrast. Still not great, but better. How did you set WB?</p><div></div>

<p>You need to calibrate your monitor, and do that often.<br>

Here's the one I use, not the best, just pointing you in **a direction**</p>

<p>http://www.amazon.com/Pantone-MEU113-huey-Pro/dp/B000OFC1YY/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1249927029&sr=8-2</p>

<p>L<br /></p>