Custom white balance setting

Custom white balance (CWB) setting for correct gray balance in the camera is a very powerful tool when being used correctly.

The problem is that white isn't always white when it comes to spectrophotometric definition. "Point the camera at a white surface and set CWB" just isn't enough for a photographer who wants to get it right. The problem is illustrated in the picture below.

There are three different white surfaces in the picture. From left to right: An old slightly yellowish backside of a Kodak 18% gray card. The white patch on QPcard 101. An envelope from the mail.

The camera always assumes the surface it is being pointed at when setting CWB is neutral. By pointing the camera at the left "white" surface, the whole picture becomes bluish. Many white papers are bluish, like the envelope to the right, which gives a warm tint to the picture.

In order to set CWB correctly it is necessary to point the camera at a perfectly neutral surface, like QPcard 101.

The numbers in the picture are L*a*b values measured in Adobe Photoshop. "L" is lightness, "a" is red or green, "b" is yellow or blue. 0 (zero) for a and b means neutral, with no tint of any color.

Gray balancing QPcard 101

Instruction for gray balancing with QPcard 101 using the Eyedropper tool in Adobe Photoshop.

1) Place QPcard 101 in the subject. Make sure it is lit by the same light as the main part of the subject.

2) Take a picture with white balance on camera on an appropiate setting (NOT Auto White Balance!).

3) Take the rest of the pictures without QPcard 101.

4) Open the first picture in Adobe Photoshop or other suitable image or camera software.

5) Choose the eyedropper tool and set Sample Size to 5 by 5 Average.


6) Check the gray balance in the gray patch of QPcard 101. In this example it is too blue and a little bit too green.

7) Choose Levels and click on the gray eyedropper. Make shure it isset to neutral by double clicking and checking RGB numbers. Default setting is 128, 128, 128.


8) Now click on the gray patch of QPcard 101. The RGB values will become equal, meaning neutral gray. If the gray patch still seems to have a color cast you have to calibrate your monitor.

9) Save the gray balancing profile by clicking "Save...".

10) Open the other pictures taken in the same light and same white balance setting on camera.

11) Choose Levels and click "Load..." to apply the saved gray balancing profile.

QPcard 201 x 2

QPcard 201 is a reference card with 27 different colors.

It is designed to be used with the software QPcolorsoft 501 that can be downloaded free on this site. The colors on the card are mixed separately from pigments and extremely fade resistant. Some of the colors are mixed to resemble the spectral response of colors in real life: Light skin (#18), Dark skin (#17), Sky blue (#25) and Forrest (#15). The seven neutral patches (#4?10) all have an almost straight spectral response. In practice this means the QPcard 201 can be used in almost any light condition with almost any camera, without suffering from metamerism.

The card is self-adhesive making it perfect to place on almost any surface in the subject. The size of the card is 142 x 40 mm (5.6 x 1.6 inch).

QPcard RAW package

Calibrate your digital camera for RAW shooting using QPcard 201, Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Camera RAW (ACR).

In ACR there is a tab called "Calibrate". Here you will find sliders for adjustment of Shadow Tint, Red, Green and Blue Hue and Saturation. Using these sliders you can finetune the color reproduction of Adobe Camera RAW converter. However, it is almost impossible to succeed without a reference color target like the QPcard 201.

Finetuning of RAW can be achieved manually or automatically. The manual procedure is described by Bruce Fraser here http://www.creativepro.com/story/feature/21351-1.html

In order to accomplish this with QPcard 201 you need a reference image with RGB values. This image can be downloaded here.

But there is also an automatic way to go. Rags Gardner at http://www.rags-int-inc.com has a Technology department on his site: http://www.rags-int-inc.com/PhotoTechStuff/ with lots of useful information and solutions for digital photographers. Rags has written a Javascript for automatic color calibration with ACR. The script can be downloaded free from Rags site here:
http://www.rags-int-inc.com/PhotoTechStuff/ColorCalibration/

You can read Rags explanation here:
http://www.rags-int-inc.com/PhotoTechStuff/AcrCalibration/

QPcard 101 v2 x 3

QPcard 101 is a reference card targeted for professional photographers

Qpcard 101 v2 is the new improved version of Qpcard 101. It has three patches with perfectly neutral dark gray, mid gray and white colors. The Cie L*a*b values are 35*0*0, 48*0*0 and 95*0*0. The spectral respons of the three colors is almost perfect straight, meaning there will be no problems with metamerism at all. The colors are extremely fade resistant. The main purpose with the card is to use the gray patch for neutral gray balancing of the image. The gray patch is reflecting 18 % of the light, making it useful also for exposure purposes. Since the white patch is free from fluorescent whitening agents, it is perfect for custom white balance setting of your camera before shooting. There is a millimeter reference scale on the card.

The card is self-adhesive making it perfect to place on almost any surface in the subject. The size of the card is 142 x 40 mm.

The versions: Capture One 4, PRO and DB

Here is a quick explanation to clarify the naming and versions of Capture One 4. 4 indicates the software generation. The previous generation was 3. Included in the software is Capture One 4 DB (for digital backs only), Capture One 4 PRO (for digital backs and DSLRs), and Capture One 4 (for digital backs and DSLRs but without PRO features like Tethered Shooting and Styles). How you activate the software defines which version you are running. To confirm which version is activated, select License from the Capture One drop-down menu and the information screen appears. We have had a number of releases in the Capture One 4 series. Our current release is Capture One 4.5.

10 articles in the Knowledge Base to see some of the new materials.

Support for Capture One 4 PRO

The Phase One support team have been very busy to make sure that resources are available for Capture One 4 PRO users. Select the Latest 10 articles in the Knowledge Base to see some of the new materials. As well, download the Capture One 4 User Guide (all versions).

Additional resources to consider from support includes the User Forum. If you are not a member of our forum, register and enjoy sharing ideas and comments.

Redefine your raw processing with Capture One 4 PRO

Capture One 4 PRO software is now available for download! This is a landmark software release for Phase One and we are introducing many new changes.

Our R&D team have worked hard to develop a software architecture that can be quickly updated for new DSLR support and new features or functions. This new architecture is an engineering marvel that will allow us to keep up to rapid OS changes for both Mac and PC. I am also proud to note that both Mac and PC versions now look and operate in a similar manner.

The most important aspect of Capture One 4 PRO is that the functionality and workflow of version 3 is retained with all of the enhanced quality advantages of Capture One 4 PRO! The ColorEditor is now integrated, Styles are enhanced, and new creative tools have been added. Our breakthrough Lens tools prove that world class optical correction can be applied to almost any lens with spectacular results, regardless of camera platform.

If you have not had a chance to see Capture One 4 PRO in action, download a free 30 day trial and enjoy some new creative freedom!

We have a great story on the image for the new Capture One 4 PRO box by Tim Griffith. The architectural work of Tim Griffith is so focussed upon capture and with our own focus upon capture it seemed like the perfect opportunity to work with a creative icon. Look for the whole story on Tim's shoot in the next issue of RAWNEWS+.

+ Sensor + provides flexibility, choice to photographers

Sensor+ represents some very unusual technology that is completely different from anything we have ever offered before or has ever been offered in our industry.


We now provide two solution families with the P 65+ as our only back in the Sensor+ family and the rest of our backs as part of the XPose+ family of solutions. Learn more about Sensor+ technology and what our two solution families offer by reading the Phase One

Hot, hot news for better capture

Photokina is a great time for us to meet and talk to thousands of photographers over the 6 days of the show. We have a lot to talk about. The P 65+ is here! Finally, we have real full frame capture with 60.5 megapixels of resolution. Phase One is also rolling out our Sensor+ technology with the P 65+ which offers a scaled 15 megapixel output at full frame and double the ISO!


Just as exciting is our first public showing of Capture One 4 PRO. We are very near to releasing our final public version. I am extremely proud that our development team has retained the ability of Capture One to control and balance how digital or analogue an image can look and feel. Capture One 4 PRO actually goes much further with many new tools that push this control in new creative directions. Our expected release date is October 15th and we look forward to your excitement for the many new features and functions.

This month our feature article is a first shoot experience with photographer Drew Gardner and the P 65+ with Capture One 4 PRO. We also announce details about the P 65+ and Sensor+, Capture One PRO 4, our new expanded Phase One digital lens range and finally our newest alliance with Leica.

For many of you who will be at Photokina, we look forward to seeing you!

Peter Eastway - The Versatile Travel Camera

Peter Eastway is rewriting the rules for highend travel photography. Using the Phase One P 45+, Peter achieves results that rival 4x5 film qualty while still having the versatility to shoot hand held. This article is a practical explanation of how images are created on location and what it takes to get the shot.


The extensive experience and knowledge that Peter has, shows through in his real world scenarios. Read the PDF here.

Capturing a better world

Solving some of the most pressing problems on a world scale needs a different way of thinking about each other and how we all fit. MYC4 is a micro banking group focused on Africa providing loans to those who would otherwise never get a chance. Jens Honoré was commissioned to document some of the incredible results for an exhibit to further publicize the MYC4 project.


Jens approached this project in a completely different way with surprising results. Read about why Jens chose medium format over a DSLR and see more of his results. This is a powerful discussion of how equipment changes the look of an image. Read the PDF article here.

The challenges of location photography

Compact lighting tools, enormous exposure latitude with our Phase One P+ backs, powerful laptops, accurate LCD monitors and portable generators have transformed shooting locations into full production studios. The Phase One 645 Camera platform has been designed with the growth of location work in mind. With our product announcements before and at Photokina, we will add to the travel and on-location photographer's arsenal of tools!



This month we feature an article about rethinking the location kit by Peter Eastway, a review of the Phase One 645, P 45+ camera solution from Digital Photographer magazine and an article featuring Jens Honoré and his location work in Africa with micro banking group MYC4.

More and more in our industry are starting to understand that the point of photography is the subject, not the equipment, software or post-production. For Phase One, focusing on capture has been a key to our success. Our tools are designed to enhance a photographer’s workflow so that the moment and look of an image stays as unique as possible.


Henrik Håkonsson, President and CEO, Phase One

Michael Furman - New perspectives

The photography of Michael Furman of Philadelphia, USA explores the influence of society on car design. The body of work reflects a very strong interaction between photographer, perspective, lighting, subject and the intent of the car's designer.



Michael takes crafstmanship capture very seriously sharing ideas and the philosophy that makes his work so successful. Read the PDF article here.

John DK - An evolution of art and business

Based in Barcelona, Spain, John DK makes working with the team a key part of how projects come together. John blends intuition about locations and a remarkable technique of capturing a car from before sunrise until after sunset for some incredibly original results.



This article also breaks the code of silence and give up some of the secrets to shooting cars. Read the PDF article here.

Chris Lewis - No compromise shooting

Auckland, New Zealand is the home base for car photographer Chris Lewis. Running a successful equipment rental business makes it much easier to invest in the best possible tools like his motion rig that is partially made of glass. Creating images that require minimal post-production is a passion with Chris that keeps bringing clients back for more. Read the PDF article here.

The Quick Tab - swift image making

Capture One 4 allows you to edit your RAW files in various ways. The Quick Tab is a selection of the most commonly used tools, topped with the base characteristics, the ICC profiles and curve presets.

You find different camera settings in the ICC drop-down menu, Capture One 4 supports around 90 different camera models now and more will come.



Select cameraprofile adequate for the image, or choose between the camera recording presets, such as flash, tungsten, daylight etc. these presets will provide the possibility of deciding the tone of light after recording the image, from standard values.

In the same drop-down menu you find the effectfilters, providing effects known from the good old days, the classic B&W panchromatic, B&W yellowfilter, bluetone and sepia, these filters enables you to rapidly create a desired effect.

When the profile or filter is set, adjust with white balance editor when you are satisfied with the tone of color, you can adjust exposure, contrast, brightness and saturation.

It is worth noticing that you find several presets in Exposure, the presets are mixes of settings adding different looks to your image.

If the image needs editing of highlight/shadow details the new High Dynamic Range Tool is perfect, first lift the shadowdetails, and then recover the highlight details until the desired result is reached.

When you are done editing just press process and the image will be processed to the default folder. If you press shift while pressing the Process button you will start process of all selected files.

New video tutorial on Capture One 4

After 3 weeks and tens of thousands of trials downloaded, Capture One 4 is already looking to be as successful as the previous versions.

Now we are offering more insight material to Capture One 4.

We have created a downloadable video tutorial for the application taking you through the workflow showing the way way to better images from activation of the application and to the processing of files.



The video tutorial is of 30 minutes duration and it is available in .wmv and .mov formats for download here

By professional photographer Valts Kleins, Latvia.

Valts Kleins has for more than 20 years been working as a broadsided photographer on the small Latvian market. By the eastern border of the Baltic Sea, the talented photographer is today amongst the very best



Valts tells us about working in the many various areas that opens on a small market, Packshots, portraits, fashion and much more – also the change to Phase One and Capture One.

Kim Kaiser amongst Pryor Mountain Wild Horses

Kim Kaiser is a many-sided nature photographer who takes authentic images and who takes the time to get the right shot. Read his colorful reportage from the Pryor Mountains, where wild horses live, love and fight.



As most quality minded photographers, Kim Kaiser is processing his images in Capture One and we’re proud to show our RAWNEWS-Readers images from the wild-wild west.