Appreciation for manual white balance

I usually just fix white balance in post processing.  However I can’t always get it right and I’m tired of the inconsistency in my photos.  I sat down and read my manual (for the millionth time it seems like) and figured out how to do it.  Today’s photos were taken with manual white balance and editing was so much simpler!  Plus I could actually get the kids’ skin tones right.

As an example, here’s our lovely dog Scout putting up with my ‘practicing’.  These were taken at night in our dark living room, with a torch lamp on a a side table lamp on.  I used my speedlight bounced at 45° behind me.

Auto white balance (I rarely use because it always seems washed out or too cool)

Incandescent (I never use)

Direct sunlight (I only use in actual direct sunlight)

Flash (I rarely use)

Cloudy (I use quite often)

Shade (I use most often because I like the warmth)

Manual white balance.  This actually captures the true color of the blanket and of Scout.

 

And cropped/edited  (I wish I would have been a slightly different angle…but I have to say dogs are SO much easier to photograph than toddlers!):