Who is Kelvin?

Light has temperature;  (www.wix.com/georgecordero/best)

Have you ever wondered why some photos shot indoors show a green cast?  It's because of Kelvins.  No not Kevin...Kelvins.  Light actually has a color temperature and it is measured in something called Kelvins.

Color Temperature                                  Light Source


  1000-2000 K                                                     Candlelight
  2500-3500 K                                                   Tungsten Bulb 
  3000-4000 K                                                   Sunrise/Sunset
  4000-5000 K                                                Fluorescent Lamps
  5000-5500 K                                                   Electronic Flash
  5000-6500 K                                             Daylight with Clear Sky 
  6500-8000 K                                            Moderately Overcast Sky
  9000-10000 K                                Shade or Heavily Overcast Sky

The above chart shows in Kelvins the output you get in more commonly known terms.  Some of the color that results from various light sources can be pleasing.  As an example "candle light", or "Tungsten" which is the color cast in most homes from light bulbs.  However take a photo under fluorescent lights and you get a green cast, and unless you are photographing a green bean it's not an attractive color for skin tones on people or pets.  The way you keep things neutral is to keep on your flash.  Flash will white balance your light source so that you get a result similar to being out doors on a clear day.  What you need to keep in mind is that a small compact camera or camera phones flash is limited in power and cannot balance the light in an entire room.  So you need to get close to your subject so that the skins tones of the people in your shot will benefit from the flashes white balance capabilities.

Some compact digital cameras and even cell phone cameras have the capability to have their white balance adjusted.  If your does you should take advantage of this and make your adjustments based on your shooting conditions. You will always get a better result from starting with the correct setting rather than trying to correct the color temperature after.  For those of you with a DSLR you have a much better chance of getting the right color in your cameras "Auto White Balance" mode, however helping the camera whenever you can by setting the "White Balance" to the correct setting based on your shooting situation will always improve your results.