robert_bouknight1 Posted January 3, 2023 Share Posted January 3, 2023 I have several Nikon 1.4 lenses, 35/1.4g, 50/1.4g, 58, & 85/1.4g. I have noticed that these lenses seem to deliver a bit of "golden glow" white balance vs the 1.8G lenses I have. The 50/1.4 seems to have the most consistent golden bias, probably too much. The 35 has a little, 85 is slight but a bit compared to the 1.8g. The 58 has less bias than the 50 most of the time, but the 58 on Z7 went "full sunset" the other day during one usage. A little bit of this golden glow is nice since my favorite subject is people, but I am concerned that the 58 will kick in too much again some time. I will probably retire the 50/1.4g, generally I like the 58 better as well as the 50/1.8S. Observations are mostly on a Z7 but I think similar on D850. Anyone else have this observation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_halliwell Posted January 3, 2023 Share Posted January 3, 2023 3 hours ago, robert_bouknight1 said: seem to deliver a bit of "golden glow" white balance vs the 1.8G lenses I have. If it's just a WB thing, adjust it later by taking RAW....😉 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanford Posted January 3, 2023 Share Posted January 3, 2023 Samples? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgelfand Posted January 3, 2023 Share Posted January 3, 2023 If you are using Lightroom, use this package to calibrate your camera/lens combination (I usually calibrate each lens for bright sun, shade, and overcast and where necessary various flash combinations) Calibrite ColorChecker Passport Photo 2 CCPP2 B&H Photo Video (bhphotovideo.com) Then in the Develop Module in Lightroom select the appropriate calibration file in Camera Calibration > Process. It is not perfect, but comes very close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_bouknight1 Posted January 3, 2023 Author Share Posted January 3, 2023 (edited) Examples: Well, these were AF accuracy test shots, not worth the space to post. Checking in NX the "more normal" auto WB images were around 4800K with a 50/1.2AIS, the crazy golden images by the Z7 & 58 indicate 6090K. Approximately the same lighting and time of day, so go figure the huge difference in WB. I thought I had deleted the files. I do shoot raw+JPG and can fix in post, but I have better things to do than mess around with WB and any other post process if at all possible. Having shot slide film back in the day, I have always tried to optimize the original exposure. The real reason for the post is that I don't understand how a given camera can arrive at a different WB point with the same scene, lighting and same lens focal length and type (example 50 1.4g vs 1.8g)? Edited January 3, 2023 by robert_bouknight1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgelfand Posted January 4, 2023 Share Posted January 4, 2023 Different glass and coating absorb and transmit different wave lengths of light. These are different lenses, not the same lens with a different aperture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDMvW Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 (edited) On 1/3/2023 at 5:20 PM, robert_bouknight1 said: but I have better things to do than mess around with WB and any other post process if at all possible Usually the color balance can be adjusted with a push of one or two 'buttons' in one or another PS tools. It requires little effort. Edited January 13, 2023 by JDMvW 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_halliwell Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 On 1/3/2023 at 11:20 PM, robert_bouknight1 said: auto WB images What WB settings were. err, set for these tests? Auto WB would normally compensate for stuff such as glass and coatings' different transmission properties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodeo_joe1 Posted January 15, 2023 Share Posted January 15, 2023 (edited) AWB is a movable feast, and different lenses can indeed cause a colour shift. Because how can a dumb camera automatically know what's supposed to be 'white'? When even our own eyes can't determine that objectively and reliably. Total frame integration to grey? That's prone to subject failure due to any bias toward one particular colour. Can also be influenced by strong lens vignetting. Setting the brightest part of the subject to neutral white? Almost equally doomed to occasional failure. So, what algorithm will actually work infallibly? I can't think of one without the camera having access to an external incident light colour-meter - absent from all known cameras AFAIK. Nope. Auto anything is going to make a wrong decision in some circumstance or other. Those decisions are the job of the intelligent organism operating the stupid bit of machinery. Edited January 15, 2023 by rodeo_joe1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_bouknight1 Posted January 17, 2023 Author Share Posted January 17, 2023 (edited) The reason for the post was to gain an understanding of why lenses of the same focal length shooting the same scene with same lighting can trigger sometimes significantly different AWB values. These lenses seem similarly clear when looking through them. Just seems odd to get a large difference on occasion. For a lens that is not "clear", my cameras don't seem to be able to correct for a yellowed early 35/1.4, and I am not sure I would want them to. Edited January 17, 2023 by robert_bouknight1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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