Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsPerfect Neutral Gray Card for Photography
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2012
I bought these cards primarily for the gray neutral tone card. The cards seem very durable (the exact same size as a credit card, but almost twice as thick). The only part I wasn't crazy about is how thick the lanyard is -- it could have been a much thinner lanyard. I replaced mine with one that I had gotten from a trade show (or somewhere else), that also has a quick-release. The quick-release is nice, but I find it easier to just pull the entire lanyard out over my head.
I understand this can be used for both video and photography. I use if for photography, and here's why I think this is a must-have for anyone who takes photography a bit more serious...
Unlike the human eye, cameras don't automatically "neutralize" the to lighting in the environment. That's why cameras usually have those lighting mode options (incandescent, fluorescent, cloudy, etc.) -- it's to help the camera shift the color tone to try to neutralize the color cast from the light (e.g., fluorescent emits a greenish light, while incandescent emits a yellowish light). The "Auto" feature also just tries to guess at the color casting by trying to find something neutral in the image.
If you're an intermediate or advanced photographer, you'll probably want to shoot in RAW format because you can do A LOT more adjusting in post-processing. RAW images capture the light as the camera sees it, no processing added (so they often look even worse at first than JPEG images do). RAW requires that post-processing software make the adjustments to white balance, and so on. That's where this awesome little card comes in... The neutral gray card is used to tell the post-processing software what a neutral color looks like with the given lighting conditions.
So, how do you use it? While taking shots out in the field (or studio), whenever lighting conditions change (e.g., going from indoors to outdoors, using a flash vs. no flash, sunlight to shade, etc.), take a photo of the gray card in the light (just hold it out a foot or two in front of the lens, and SNAP! (it doesn't even have to be in focus) Later, after uploading the RAW images into your software, use the eyedropper for the white balance (or whatever your software has) to set the white balance to the gray card -- yes, set the "white" balance using the "gray" card ("white balance" is kind of a misnomer for photography -- it should actually be "neutral balance"). Then copy the white balance settings from that photo to all other photos shot in the same lighting conditions. This will cause skin tones, etc. to be set properly without needing to fuss with the temperature and tint settings.
Enjoy!
