# 1D X White Balance Bug NOW WITH SAMPLES...



## clicstudio (Jun 6, 2013)

I have a problem with white balance shifting on random images on my 1D X.
White balance is set to Flash, Manual Exposure and Aperture and ISO. NOTHING AUTOMATIC except for AF.
Out of 307 photos I took yesterday, about 8 or 9 have a "colder" white balance. Basically they look less "warm".
I shoot models so I can tell right away because of the skin tones and the over all scene changing.
At first I thought it was a color problem with my Einstein Flashes not keeping up while shooting rapidly (The camera is on Low Speed at 3fps anyway and at about 10% of power, so recycling shouldn't be a problem) but I notice this also happens when using available light.
This happens every day on random images and I am concerned at the moment thinking I might have a faulty sensor or light meter... 
I have the latest firmware and use a Canon 24-70 F2.8L II...
Anyone has the same issue? Please let me know.
I am a CPS Gold Member and could send the camera to Canon for a checkup...
Cheers

Patrick


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## dgatwood (Jun 7, 2013)

*Re: 1D X White balance problem on some images...*

That's really weird. Are there any examples you can post? Do the EXIF tags confirm that the shots were taken at the same WB setting? If you take the original RAW files and process them with Lightroom, Aperture, Camera RAW, or some other tool at a fixed WB setting, do you get consistent results, or do you still see the same variation?


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## clicstudio (Jun 7, 2013)

*Re: 1D X White balance problem on some images...*



dgatwood said:


> That's really weird. Are there any examples you can post? Do the EXIF tags confirm that the shots were taken at the same WB setting? If you take the original RAW files and process them with Lightroom, Aperture, Camera RAW, or some other tool at a fixed WB setting, do you get consistent results, or do you still see the same variation?


I shoot jpg, so it's not a processing problem.
Yes, Color temperature is the same on the Metadata but visually, you can see the difference. 
I will try to post some samples tomorrow. 
Thanx for your reply


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## RGF (Jun 7, 2013)

*Re: 1D X White balance problem on some images...*

does the meta data so that the flash fired? Unfortunately it will not tell the flash power


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## dgatwood (Jun 8, 2013)

*Re: 1D X White balance problem on some images...*



clicstudio said:


> I shoot jpg ...



Why? Just curious. I haven't shot in JPEG for about three years now. At some point, I realized that you never know when you're going to want a higher quality version of a shot, and it's a lot easier to shoot it RAW the first time than to go back and try to recreate it.

That and it seems to me that shooting in JPEG format on a 1D* is like driving a Ferrari with an automatic transmission. 

Either way, my point was that if you shoot in RAW+JPEG, you have the raw data, so you can tell whether the white balance strangeness is caused by a camera bug or something environmental. With JPEG, there's no way to tell because you don't have the raw sensor data to compare it with.


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

Follow up of this post: http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=15249.0

I have a problem with white balance shifting on random images on my 1D X.
White balance is set to Flash, Manual Exposure and Aperture and ISO. NOTHING AUTOMATIC except for AF.
Out of 307 photos I took yesterday, about 8 or 9 have a "colder" white balance. Basically they look less "warm".
I shoot models so I can tell right away because of the skin tones and the over all scene changing.
At first I thought it was a color problem with my Einstein Flashes not keeping up while shooting rapidly (The camera is on Low Speed at 3fps anyway and at about 10% of power, so recycling shouldn't be a problem) but I notice this also happens when using available light.
This happens every day on random images and I am concerned at the moment thinking I might have a faulty sensor or light meter... 
I have the latest firmware and use a Canon 24-70 F2.8L II...
Anyone has the same issue? Please let me know.
I am a CPS Gold Member and could send the camera to Canon for a checkup...
BTW I shoot jpg not RAW

As you can now see in the 4 samples (The left being the "off" WB) there is a considerable difference in warmth. Out of 500 images I shot yesterday, 20 were off. I can easily correct the WB in Aperture, but the bug bothers me. 
Anyone else has experienced this problem? 
Cheers

Pat


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

*Re: 1D X White balance problem on some images...*



clicstudio said:


> dgatwood said:
> 
> 
> > That's really weird. Are there any examples you can post? Do the EXIF tags confirm that the shots were taken at the same WB setting? If you take the original RAW files and process them with Lightroom, Aperture, Camera RAW, or some other tool at a fixed WB setting, do you get consistent results, or do you still see the same variation?
> ...


Check out the follow up with samples... http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=15276.0


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

*Re: 1D X White balance problem on some images...*



dgatwood said:


> clicstudio said:
> 
> 
> > I shoot jpg ...
> ...



I shoot girls. Skin tones always look like crap on RAW. Its hard to make them look natural. I like what I see on the jpg version and can't get even close even tweaking for minutes on a RAW file.
Aperture's RAW processor is really bad. I don't like Lightroom and Photoshop CS6 does a great job but hair and skin always look yellowish and over sharpened. When you shoot models, sometimes TOO MUCH detail is not good... That means more skin corrections and smoothing... Not good for me. I shoot about 30 girls per month so the RAW workflow would be a pain. Not to mention storage. I have 16GB CF cards and I shoot from 300 to 800 images a day. I would need more memory, more hard disk space and more time. Most of my work ends up online anyway. If I know I am going to print something, I'd probably shoot it RAW+jpg.
This problem is not related to the shooting mode. I always shot jpg on my previous 1Ds, 1D Mark II, Mark IIN, Mark III and Mark IV... Never had this problem.
Thanx for your reply

P


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## victorwol (Jun 8, 2013)

Why you do jpg on this kind, or and kind, of Photography??? Is that a space problem? Use DNG with lossy compression, uses about the same space as the JPGs and still RAW and you can fix the WB...


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

victorwol said:


> Why you do jpg on this kind, or and kind, of Photography??? Is that a space problem? Use DNG with lossy compression, uses about the same space as the JPGs and still RAW and you can fix the WB...


I can Fix the WB on jpg Just fine. 
My problem is different. I might have a faulty camera or sensor.


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## neuroanatomist (Jun 8, 2013)

Anything in the hotshoe? On a Canon body, setting Flash WB isn't a constant 6000K no tint like it would be if you set it in a RAW converter (other than DPP). On-camera setting for Flash WB uses color information passed from a Canon flash, so the WB isn't a constant color temp - the idea is to compensate for color temp changes in the flash tube output. Perhaps with a CyberSync or other 3rd party trigger in the hotshoe, an odd signal comes back occasionally? You could try setting a Kelvin WB.


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## Harry Muff (Jun 8, 2013)

On my screen, the left ones look more realistic. It could just be the flash head output varying slightly for some.


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

neuroanatomist said:


> Anything in the hotshoe? On a Canon body, setting Flash WB isn't a constant 6000K no tint like it would be if you set it in a RAW converter (other than DPP). On-camera setting for Flash WB uses color information passed from a Canon flash, so the WB isn't a constant color temp - the idea is to compensate for color temp changes in the flash tube output. Perhaps with a CyberSync or other 3rd party trigger in the hotshoe, an odd signal comes back occasionally? You could try setting a Kelvin WB.


I have a pocket wizard mini TT1 in the hot shoe triggering Einstein flashes. No Canon flashes.
I am never happy with the WB at any setting. Auto is usually too cold and since the LCD on th camera is completely inaccurate, trying to get a Kelvin WB using the camera would be impossible. I can try a custom WB but since color temperature shifts according to the power of the flash and ambient light is always different, I rather stick with a preset value and then fix it in Aperture. 
I like a warmer WB anyway. Sometimes accurate WB makes skin tones look too pale or greenish, so I like to tweak ot to my taste.


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

Harry Muff said:


> On my screen, the left ones look more realistic. It could just be the flash head output varying slightly for some.


Is not about color accuracy. I'm trying to illustrate a random problem with the WB, not the accuracy.
20 images out of 500 are Different, that is the bottom line.
This happens everyday. Randomly.


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

BTW, Thanx to neuroanatomist for merging the topics. I didn't know how to do that


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## neuroanatomist (Jun 8, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> ... I rather stick with a preset value



My point is that on a Canon body, by selecting Flash as a WB setting, you're *not* selecting a fixed preset value, just a modified form of Auto WB. 

I wouldn't call this a 'bug' yet. Granted, it should be a fixed color temp with something other than a Canon flash in the hotshoe - but PWs do strange things sometimes, and I bet if you send it to Canon they'll not find an issue. 

BTW, what makes you think the issue is with the body and not one of the monolights?


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

neuroanatomist said:


> clicstudio said:
> 
> 
> > ... I rather stick with a preset value
> ...



Because it happens with ambient light as well without PW or flashes. It is a random issue. I don't know when it's gonna happen.


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## Skulker (Jun 8, 2013)

The "flash" WB setting is intended to work with speedlights that feed back info to the camera. It should be set at approx 6000K with other flashes. It could be that there is some sort of lack of feed back or faulty feedback between your kit and the camera.

You could set a custom WB. You can take a single shot of a white card and use that to set Custom WB. Then the WB should be set and be consistent. I do this using a color passport and get good consistent results, but any old 18% grey or light grey should do it fine.


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## ScottyP (Jun 8, 2013)

Hmm. Perhaps if you posted 50 or 60 more of those samples it would help to diagnose the problem.


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

Skulker said:


> The "flash" WB setting is intended to work with speedlights that feed back info to the camera. It should be set at approx 6000K with other flashes. It could be that there is some sort of lack of feed back or faulty feedback between your kit and the camera.
> 
> You could set a custom WB. You can take a single shot of a white card and use that to set Custom WB. Then the WB should be set and be consistent. I do this using a color passport and get good consistent results, but any old 18% grey or light grey should do it fine.


Thanks for your comment. But unfortunately it seems nobody understands the issue here. It's not a white balance problem or color inaccuracy. It's random images with the wrong color... 
Definitely not flash related problem. Because it happens with any WB setting even without a flash firing.


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

ScottyP said:


> Hmm. Perhaps if you posted 50 or 60 more of those samples it would help to diagnose the problem.


There are about 5000 "samples" on my website...
Http://www.clicstudio.com


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## Skulker (Jun 8, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> Skulker said:
> 
> 
> > The "flash" WB setting is intended to work with speedlights that feed back info to the camera. It should be set at approx 6000K with other flashes. It could be that there is some sort of lack of feed back or faulty feedback between your kit and the camera.
> ...



Well I certainly thought you were saying you were having problems with a "white balance bug". I'm sorry if I have misunderstood your problem that I was trying to help with. 

I didn't realise you had tried "any WB setting" I apologies if my attempt to help has waste your time and for not understanding your "issue" better.


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## wockawocka (Jun 8, 2013)

To rule out the flash setting variable I would do a test shoot of say, a beach ball but set the white balance with a grey card.

Then it'll be fixed and you can then see if it's truly variable.


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

Skulker said:


> clicstudio said:
> 
> 
> > Skulker said:
> ...


You didn't waste my time. We are all helping each other here and trying to learn at the same time... But the original post clearly states the problem. It's white balance shifting in some images, not a white balance color issue.
The samples are contiguous images side by side showing the problem.


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## Harry Muff (Jun 8, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> Harry Muff said:
> 
> 
> > On my screen, the left ones look more realistic. It could just be the flash head output varying slightly for some.
> ...




Lightbulb outputs fluctuate and this can affect colour temperature. Did you take any breaks? Can you correlate those breaks or set-up changes with the times that the images varied?


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## Skulker (Jun 8, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> Skulker said:
> 
> 
> > clicstudio said:
> ...



Your first post clearly stated you were using flash white balance. I still suggest that a custom white balance might help, but it seems you do not consider that you can learn anything from my help.

and BTW like someone else said in some of the side by side comparisons you posted the image you consider has a problem looks better to me than the one you have fixed.


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

Skulker said:


> clicstudio said:
> 
> 
> > Skulker said:
> ...



I said I used Flash and also ambient light. I didn't fix or process the images. I am merely showing the 2 images taken a second, or less, apart being different.
20 bad images out of 500 doesn't seem like a problem but 5% of anything bad is not good. 

Again, this is NOT a white balance accuracy problem...........


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## neuroanatomist (Jun 8, 2013)

To confirm: you see this issue with the WB set to something other than Auto or Flash?


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

neuroanatomist said:


> To confirm: you see this issue with the WB set to something other than Auto or Flash?


\
Yes, but it is always a "Fixed" WB. Never Auto.


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## risc32 (Jun 8, 2013)

can't help, but damn dude, good work. very nice shots of very nice subjects. what am i doing shooting weddings?


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## clicstudio (Jun 8, 2013)

risc32 said:


> can't help, but damn dude, good work. very nice shots of very nice subjects. what am i doing shooting weddings?


Thanx , it's a hard job but someone has to do it...


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## docholliday (Jun 9, 2013)

So what happens if you say, shoot a macbeth against a gray background, from a tripod in a dark room? 20 shots, each 5-10 seconds apart, fixed WB, manual everything? Then, use an eyedropper tool and measure the patches / background to see how much drift you're getting. Since it is a slow shooting process 10s apart (just because the strobe recycles doesn't mean that it'll push out correct color, unless you are shooting Bron or Profoto), the strobe should recycle fully and with no change

With strobes, I've had problems with most lights shifting +/-200K-400K in the past and that's why the high end lights are around. They are more accurate shot to shot. I am very color critical since slight casts and differences make the difference in the shots I do. The tints you show would be enough to drive me nuts. But, I shoot a MacBeth for every frame and I definitely don't shoot any PCB lighting products. Was loaned some for extra lights and gave them back quickly as they were trashing every shot sequence with inconsistencies. I know that the Einstein's are supposed to be accurate, but I still prefer Bron for true accuracy.

Ambient is whole 'nother ball of wax with the changing environment (the movement of a tree in the breeze has caused a reflected shift of color on subject's I've shot that made a few hundred K difference).

I use a Minolta Color Meter to do color temperature checks when necessary and dial into Kelvins - and still shoot a MacBeth in every shot when necessary. I've never had skin tone problems with RAW - especially in studio. The ColorChecker Passport has the patches for warming or cooling tones. The trick is to shoot it once at the beginning test shot, then get the temperature like you want it. Since the lighting doesn't change, it should be consistent shot to shot. So, I would automatically apply those settings to all subsequent shots until a lighting/set change and do it all again. There are reasons that tools like Capture One and Lightroom exists - if you don't "like" LR, you should quantify why and learn to work around it. It is a much better tool than Aperture for studio shooting, especially in tethered configuration. I can see exactly what each shot looks like a second after firing on a large monitor next to me that is color accurate and calibrated.


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## Shawn L (Jun 9, 2013)

> Skin tones always look like crap on RAW. Its hard to make them look natural. I like what I see on the jpg version and can't get even close even tweaking for minutes on a RAW file.



Some "off the top of my head thoughts" that might help -- though I make no promises =)


RAW files are 14 bit, JPG are 8 bit; that means some form of conversion is done when the JPG files are written out in the camera from the RAW data on the sensor
since you like the skin tones in JPG, but not in RAW, that conversion is clearly baking a white balance setting into the images for you
but JPGs are lossy and the color space transforms they do are a function of the image content
it's possible (and here I'm speculating) that slight differences in image content (more red background, more exposed hardwood floor), etc are causing the JPG file you get out of the camera to have subtle shifts in white balance
do you know if you see the same issue if you shoot RAW; if you do, that would seem more indicative of a sensor issue;
here, you're looking converted data, and the conversion process in question is known to be lossy and to be a function of image content; so, it might actually make sense that you're not always getting exactly the same results
also note, ambient light due to electric lights is going to fluctuate at 60 Hz; it's possible that two successive pictures would actually get a different amount (and potentially a different quality) of light hitting the sensor

Shawn L.


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## clicstudio (Jun 9, 2013)

docholliday said:


> So what happens if you say, shoot a macbeth against a gray background, from a tripod in a dark room? 20 shots, each 5-10 seconds apart, fixed WB, manual everything? Then, use an eyedropper tool and measure the patches / background to see how much drift you're getting. Since it is a slow shooting process 10s apart (just because the strobe recycles doesn't mean that it'll push out correct color, unless you are shooting Bron or Profoto), the strobe should recycle fully and with no change
> 
> With strobes, I've had problems with most lights shifting +/-200K-400K in the past and that's why the high end lights are around. They are more accurate shot to shot. I am very color critical since slight casts and differences make the difference in the shots I do. The tints you show would be enough to drive me nuts. But, I shoot a MacBeth for every frame and I definitely don't shoot any PCB lighting products. Was loaned some for extra lights and gave them back quickly as they were trashing every shot sequence with inconsistencies. I know that the Einstein's are supposed to be accurate, but I still prefer Bron for true accuracy.
> 
> ...



Very informative, thanx! Unfortunately, I work in a completely different way. I am not as technical or picky as you are.
I have been using PCB flashes for over 10 years and never had a problem.
They might not be Profoto but they work for me.
I have one camera and one lens. No backups or filters or polarizers.
I don't shoot tethered. I work really fast, hand held and moving around a lot. My girls don't pose, they move freely but listening to what I want them to do. When I see something I like, I shoot it. I don't have time for elaborate studio setups, and my clients don't care for delays either. I work alone. No assistants or any help and just the model and me. Nobody else in the studio.
I setup my 2 or 3 lights, do a couple of test shots, and if I like it, we start shooting. That simple. No color meters, no color charts...
My problem is not the flashes or the way I work or the flash brand I use. I never had this problem with my previous cameras. There is something wrong with my 1D X and I just want to find what it is. 

Why blame it on the photographer when it could be a defective sensor or processor... Nothing man made is infallible.
Specially technology.

I will call Canon and send the camera to be checked on Monday. We'll see what happens.

As far as LR. I love Adobe products. i've been using PS since 1993 but LR just doesn't do it for me.
I want to like it, I tried it, I even downloaded the latest trial version but it just doesn't work the way I like.
Aperture is so much faster at displaying images, comparing, smart albums... I love it... and since I've been using it for years now, I am comfortable with it. BWT, I am using version 3.2.4, not the latest 3.4.5 which I hate. All those grey icons are terrible and there are video glitches on dual screens... Apple should step up their game but it still works for me.
We will see Monday at the WWDC... Hopefully they haven't forgotten about us Pros and they will introduce a new Mac Pro and Aperture 4.0...

Again, thanx for sharing the way you work. I wish I had more time to be as precise and meticulous as you...

All the best,

P


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## docholliday (Jun 9, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> Very informative, thanx! Unfortunately, I work in a completely different way. I am not as technical or picky as you are.
> I have been using PCB flashes for over 10 years and never had a problem.
> They might not be Profoto but they work for me.
> I have one camera and one lens. No backups or filters or polarizers.
> ...



It sounds a lot like you want precision and straight-out-of-the-can accuracy, but aren't working in a method to do so (and that you can't/won't try). It sounds more like random chance that shots will be right. The bigtime pros have shown that chance doesn't get predictable results, just watch some of the top fashion and model shooters and their workflow. Hand meters, color meters, MacBeths, tethering - it all serves a purpose and not just in product/commercial photography, in fashion/modeling too. I've shot my share of fast paced fashion and dance where the model was just doing their thing and my shooting when I see a good frame. I shot by myself in my studio - and I still did the pre-work of metering, color balance, etc. And, I shot tethered, wirelessly and wired. Frames dumping by the hundreds onto the tether box. Still got to see my previews and lost no workflow speed, nor hinderances with the model's flow.

I'm not saying to change your workflow - I'm suggesting that you take 10 minutes of your time and do a simple experiment to remove variables in it that may or may not be causing the issue.



> Why blame it on the photographer when it could be a defective sensor or processor... Nothing man made is infallible.
> Specially technology.



I'm not blaming it on you - I *am* blaming it on possible equipment issues. But, you insist that your lights are fine and I'm saying for you to verify that just to be absolutely sure. I know that your current lights aren't 10 years old (they haven't been out that long), so there is a possiblity that they have some issues (bad caps, drifting IBGTs, tubes fade, etc - I am also an electronics engineer).

Well, then keep doing things your way...there's quite a few of us here who have offered you a way of trying to narrow down the possibilities of what is going on and every time, all we hear is "that's not me, it's gotta be the camera" and "I don't like LR, but I've never really tried to use it" and "my lights are perfect, can't be them". 
But it sounds like you'll just do what you want to do, so send it off to Canon and hopefully they'll find something wrong with it - that would be a nice speedy fix. Good luck!


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## clicstudio (Jun 9, 2013)

*UPDATE... RAW test with Temperature shift...*

Since all of you think the issue is related to jpg, I did a RAW+jpg shoot today. (203 images)

Somehow, just 2 images were "off". But, the problem still showed in the RAW version. 

The metadata in the jpg version shows 5000K (Tint 0) for ALL the images. Even the bad ones.
Now, in the RAW metadata, the Color Temp shown is 6341K (Tint 4)
The bad image shows 5885K (Tint -6)

Changing the Temp to 6341 makes it look more like the "good" image but it still not quite the same. Tweaking the red hues makes it look more like it...

So, at least in the RAW file I can see there is definitely a ~700K shift. Somehow too, it's always the same shift.

I will do another test tomorrow in RAW and see...

What do u all think? :-\


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## clicstudio (Jun 9, 2013)

docholliday said:


> clicstudio said:
> 
> 
> > Very informative, thanx! Unfortunately, I work in a completely different way. I am not as technical or picky as you are.
> ...



I am not saying it's me or the camera or the lights... I just don't know what to blame it on. 
All I know is that I work the same way I've been working for years and I never had this issue. 
It started happening with the 1D X and that is ALL I know...

I did try LR. For a few days. Just not for me. The Einstein Flashes are less than a year old. I have 5 of them and aside from a physical speed ring problem in one of them, they have been the best investment I've ever made (I was using X-800's before them). They are 100% digital. Super light, small and I can change the output power directly from the camera for up to 3 flashes using Pocket Wizard Mini TT1 with AC3 and plug-in PowerMC2's on each flash... I can also see everything I need to about flash output and modeling lights on the huge LCD screen... And the firmware can be downloaded and installed via MicroSD card... Works for me 

And yes, I do what I want to do. That's why I work alone and never had an assistant or a partner. My decisions are all mine. Everything that comes out of my studio is 100% mine. My good decisions and my mistakes, but that's how you are forced to learn and the way I like it and why my business has grown 1000% in just 10 years.

I have a lot of fun "working"... Although I never worked a day in my life  I don't want to lose that feeling.


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## docholliday (Jun 9, 2013)

Just for the record, I never said it was related to JPG. The compression in JPG would cause localized shifts, but not global shifting, unless the compression engine was wacked.

Don't worry, I've never "worked" either - I have a philosophy that when it starts to seem like work, it's time to quit. That's why I do everything myself too - if you want it done right, do it yourself!


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## clicstudio (Jun 9, 2013)

docholliday said:


> Just for the record, I never said it was related to JPG. The compression in JPG would cause localized shifts, but not global shifting, unless the compression engine was wacked.
> 
> Don't worry, I've never "worked" either - I have a philosophy that when it starts to seem like work, it's time to quit. That's why I do everything myself too - if you want it done right, do it yourself!



U know it Doc! 

So, now that I can read the temperature shift in the RAW file... What do u think it could be?


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## clicstudio (Jun 9, 2013)

Shawn L said:


> > Skin tones always look like crap on RAW. Its hard to make them look natural. I like what I see on the jpg version and can't get even close even tweaking for minutes on a RAW file.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Hi Shawn. I did a RAW test and found something interesting. Read my last post. 
Thanx
P


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## agierke (Jun 9, 2013)

i have experienced this phenomenon using the 5d2 in conjunction with DynaLites and pocket wizards during VERY meticulously controlled before and after shots for QVC clinical trials.

we use the same heads with the same modifiers (each on their assigned head) with all light positions tape measured and power settings recorded. same camera and lens shooting tethered through canon utility using the Kelvin WB setting. shots are typically a series of 3 shots over the course of 1 to 2 months. always against a white seamless. we measure and record all lighting/modifier/camera positions every time so that each shoot is as identical as we can possibly get them.

all shots are scrutinized by the legal department and must be identical in lighting or they get bounced and the client loses the ability to use the photos to promote whatever product they are pushing on air. 

under these controlled circumstances i have occasionally seen color shifts during same day shooting. it is a mystery to me as well but we deal with it by correcting the Raws in ACR. i would chalk it up to either inconsistent light output or just the nature of how the sensor works. it would be nice if the sensor performed exactly the same every shot for tens of thousands of consecutive shots but it is more likely that on occasion there could be a slight inconsistency. such is life...perfection is elusive if not impossible to achieve.


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## Shawn L (Jun 9, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> Hi Shawn. I did a RAW test and found something interesting. Read my last post.
> Thanx
> P



That does seem to nix the whole conversion process idea.

Other ideas:

Do you have either "Auto Lighting Optimizer" (3rd from bottom on second red menu) or "Highlight tone priority" (bottom item on second red menu) on?
What about "Spot Metering linked to AF pt" (2nd to last item on the first C.Fn1 page)?
Or "safety shift" (last item on the first C.FN1 page)?

I listed the above because they can affect exposure and/or how the images are processed.

Other than that, I'm tapped out.

Lots of luck, either way 

Shawn L.


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## docholliday (Jun 9, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> docholliday said:
> 
> 
> > Just for the record, I never said it was related to JPG. The compression in JPG would cause localized shifts, but not global shifting, unless the compression engine was wacked.
> ...



How about uploading two RAW files (with correct and drifted values) from the controlled test so we can have some samples to experiment with?


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## dgatwood (Jun 10, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> docholliday said:
> 
> 
> > Just for the record, I never said it was related to JPG. The compression in JPG would cause localized shifts, but not global shifting, unless the compression engine was wacked.
> ...



Sounds like a firmware bug to me. Actually, two firmware bugs:

1. The camera should not be doing a glorified auto white balance when it has a flash that is not E-TTL.

2. The camera should not be lying about the white balance temperature in the JPEG metadata.

Either way, setting a single, fixed white balance manually (by number) will probably work around the problem mostly if not completely.


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## clicstudio (Jun 10, 2013)

dgatwood said:


> clicstudio said:
> 
> 
> > docholliday said:
> ...




I will try it today! Cheers!


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## Mika (Jun 10, 2013)

Some people already mentioned the lighting. Usually, tungsten filaments are relatively color stable, but compact fluorescents or fluorescents are not. I did have a minute differences in the color balance when using available light inside a room, until I realized the effect of the CFLs. Does this color balance issue happen outside (when the illumination is stable)?


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## nightbreath (Jun 10, 2013)

clicstudio said:


> I have a problem with white balance shifting on random images on my 1D X...


We're experiencing the same kind of problem after the latest firmware update. In 2 out of 3000 photos we have noticed that WB was off (even colder than in your samples). Ambient light, RAW, conditions and framing remained the same. WB set to auto though.

Those pictures were removed as soon as we noticed the issue. I'll look closer to see if I can find another sample to share here.

Now I'm thinking over whether to roll the firmware back.


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