D70 white balancing fail

[bernards]

Hi guys, today I was shooting in the hot afternoon sun. Took out my new Kodak gray cards and used the white face to do my white balancing. Surprise! I kept getting the 'no good' error. After maybe 10 times, I get a fix. Later in the day, same thing happens. Tried switching lenses, same thing happens for all three lenses.

Under the shade, white balancing works. Hmmmm. Is the Kodak gray card too reflective for white balancing use? It does state in the packaging the white side is good for such a purpose.

Damnit. I ordered a WhiteBal studio, and the fella still hasn't shipped after about 2 months. Maybe I'll just buy a Expodisc and get it done with.

 

[acroamatic]

Hmmm... hard to tell what the exact problem is. The card is supposed to be useable for WB purposes. Might or might not be the camera. Perhaps you can try getting help from one of the more knowledgeable people here. There's always the Nikon Council at Spinellis Peninsula. Failing which, there's the service centre...

 

[Zerstorer]

A custom WB can only be taken if the exposure is correct. Check the shooting mode used.

 

[bernards]

Sorry there, I don't quite understand the shooting mode part. I was using the common 3d matrix metering.

I am wondering is it due to the cards being to reflective then shining off brightly in the direct sun, causing my cam to be unable to create a WB profile?

acroamatic, I tried doing it indoors and under shades. No problem at all. I am wondering if it's the particular conditions.

 

[Zerstorer]

Sorry there, I don't quite understand the shooting mode part. I was using the common 3d matrix metering.

I am wondering is it due to the cards being to reflective then shining off brightly in the direct sun, causing my cam to be unable to create a WB profile?

That's the problem, if the exposure for the scene isn't correct, then the WB will be rejected. Either you use -EV or use the grey card for WB instead. You don't have to use white cards for white balance, you just need a neutral coloured object.

 

[BurgaFlippinMan]

erm...try EV compensation to 0? I encountered ur prob b4 in lowlight and EV set to +1

 

[bernards]

Ak ok. I'll try droppoing some EVs the next time I encounter this problem.