Newbie pic taking question

[cmacmike]

Hey folks! I've got a Nikon Cool Pix L3 camera that works well for tank shots but I'm having trouble taking close ups with the right color showing up in the picture. Am I wasting time with this camera or is there a trick I should be using? I have the flash turned off.

Thanks for the help in advance

 

[cmacmike]

Seriously? No help here???

 

[Recty]

Use a program like Photoshop to adjust the white balance, saturation and color curves.

 

[jedininja]

its not the camera, but the tank lighting. As Recty said, you can adjust all that in photo editing software. Or if the camera has a setting for custom white balance, you can set it that was with something white in your tank. You'll have to read your manual for that one though.

 

[cmacmike]

Thanks folks, I appreciate the help, I'll look into that. I always thought that photoshop was a no no because people think you are trying to make the coral better than it really is, but I understand what you are saying.

Thanks again!

 

[Recty]

Thanks folks, I appreciate the help, I'll look into that. I always thought that photoshop was a no no because people think you are trying to make the coral better than it really is, but I understand what you are saying.

Thanks again!

You certainly CAN make your photos completely unrealistic while using Photoshop, but it doesnt mean you have to.

Any professional photograph you see nowadays has been edited in some type of photo editing program. The edits dont have to be anything drastic but it's very rare that you or anyone else takes a photo and the camera captures exactly what the eye sees. You have to do a little balancing to reproduce the shot correctly, it's just the way it works.

 

[roger5443]

Hey folks! I've got a Nikon Cool Pix L3 camera that works well for tank shots but I'm having trouble taking close ups with the right color showing up in the picture. Am I wasting time with this camera or is there a trick I should be using? I have the flash turned off.

Thanks for the help in advance

use a preset white balance setting on the camera before shooting. there should be several to choose from... cloudy day, florescent lighting, sunny, shady, etc.. one of them should give a better color to the image. or set a custom white balance and how it effects the image.

 

[TitusvileSurfer]

If you shoot RAW (most DSLR guys), photo editing is just shy of a complete necessity. If you are shooting JPEG, you are just letting the camera "photoshop" it for you. You are getting your blue colors because the camera is interpreting the scene wrongly, and making decisions based on false information. This is a bad type of automation!