DONT BUY A WHIBAL!!!! - DPChallenge Forums

Sigma 30mm f/1.4 EX DC HSM for Nikon

11/14/2007 12:27:15 AM · #1

yea whibals work great for what they are meant to do... but i recently purchased this.. lens cloth for cleaning my lens but when i got it it said it doubled as an 18% grey card...YEA RIGHT! so i tried it...and WOW whites are white.. blues are blue... and im impressed... a $30 dolar difference... so may i suggest, for those of you who are tight on budget and need a grey card buy that! also not that whibals are bad.. its just that now i have my Whibal and my cloth which ever is more handy i will use...

just thought id save you al a lttle $$$$ but by all means i wouldnt say that whibals do not work

Message edited by author 2007-11-14 00:43:51.

jdannels

Nikon D300s

11/14/2007 12:29:47 AM · #2

Hey thats cool, when I place my next order I may pick one up!

11/14/2007 12:32:05 AM · #3

keep in mind i used it for custom white balance...i didnt try click white balance but im sure youll figure it out if you get it

11/14/2007 12:32:42 AM · #4

Would be cool to do some comparison shots in real world situations, just to see how they work out.

The Whibal guarantees that it is neutral on the A & B channels. Whereas an 18% gray card, which were designed for getting exposure readings, weren't necessarily designed to be neutral.

Just to add: I've WB'd on a grey card for quite some time.

Message edited by author 2007-11-14 00:37:19.

11/14/2007 12:34:41 AM · #5

tomorrow i will do some comparion with click WB and with custom Wb with my Whibal and my cloth... i wont say which is which just for comparison purposes..i will reveal it after you are sure which one is better

11/14/2007 12:39:22 AM · #6

Originally posted by Jib:

Cool, probably need to calibrate my monitor soon, anyway :-)

11/14/2007 12:45:38 AM · #7

i cant/dono how to calibrate mine...but thats half the fun! lol

So as not to hijack your thread this should help.

11/14/2007 12:57:24 AM · #8

Originally posted by Jib:

i cant/dono how to calibrate mine...but thats half the fun! lol

jaxter

Tamron AF 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 LD for Canon

11/14/2007 01:02:55 AM · #9

If my photo's look overexposed in the future it's because my lens cloth is dark blue. :oD

Message edited by author 2007-11-14 01:03:03.

11/14/2007 01:10:41 AM · #10

My lens cloth is whatever color of the t-shirt I have on :-)

jaxter

Tamron AF 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 LD for Canon

11/14/2007 01:14:39 AM · #11

Originally posted by fotomann_forever:

My lens cloth is whatever color of the t-shirt I have on :-)

LOL!!!

Jimbo_for_life

Olympus E-500 EVOLT

Olympus 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 Zuiko Digital ED

11/14/2007 02:00:07 AM · #12

two things, walmart eye center. and 99cents:P same one i got i believe

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II

11/14/2007 02:12:21 AM · #13

no i got it from B&H

dacrazyrn

Nikon D300

11/14/2007 08:58:32 AM · #14

Does it fade if you wash it?

Dirt_Diver

Nikon D3s

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED

11/14/2007 09:23:10 AM · #15

I had seriously considered buying a WhiBal card soon. I haven't yet but I can think of 2 advantages of the WhiBal card. The black glare sticker is very helpful. This sticker lets you know if you are getting glar or the true gray. Also the ability of it being a hard card that you can stick in your pocket or bag and not have to worry about it flapping around while you are trying to hold it or wrinkle it while storing it.

Telehubbie

Canon EOS-40D

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

11/14/2007 09:34:48 AM · #16

I have that same lens cloth, and have never used it for W/B, just adjusted it in RAW post. I might give it a shot now after seeing your post and save some time. Thank you.

Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.4D

11/14/2007 01:43:15 PM · #17

ok here is the comparison im not telling you whichone is which unless you PM me just to keep his thing unbiased... heere is the custom white balance.... i will have click white balance maybe tomorrow i am kind of busy now dont have time for anything else:
[thumb]613225[/thumb][thumb]613226[/thumb]
[thumb]613229[/thumb][thumb]613228[/thumb]
dont mind the blury one just look ath the colors

here are the clicks...

Message edited by author 2007-11-14 13:57:57.

option

Nikon D200

11/14/2007 01:51:05 PM · #18

I know a snowtog that has his gray cloth sewn onto the leg of his snowpants... :-P

11/14/2007 01:58:53 PM · #19

I'll be honest. I can't tell the difference. Now, whether I could with skin tones is a different story. I can't promise I could there either.

Olympus 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 Zuiko Digital ED

11/14/2007 01:59:22 PM · #20

ijus posted clicks too.. and thats not a bad idea at all option...but why nnot make the riders sew it to their pants? for even better WB LOL
ps.. where do you ride?
foto_man
//www.whibal.justgotowned.com

Message edited by author 2007-11-14 14:03:53.

Jimbo_for_life

Olympus E-500 EVOLT

11/14/2007 02:18:35 PM · #21

Man im gunna have that stupid song stuck in my head all stinkin night!!!! and im on 10 hours, its gunna be a long 10 hours:P

MikeJ

Canon EOS-1D Mark II

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

11/14/2007 02:29:54 PM · #22

The WhiBal works great for what it is designed for... a calibration point for when you process your images in Photoshop or some other photo editor. If you are using it to set a custom white balance in your camera, then you probably are not covering your camera sensor with the white area. If you don't cover the part of the sensor that is used to determine white balance you will get eronious readings and it will screw up your white balance.

Any cloth you use is going to change color over time... either from getting dirty, worn or fading from the sun or washing. Even the McBeth chart recommends you replace it regularly because color changes over time.

As a little known fact... it doesn't matter what color you use to do a custom white balance with... all the camera is looking for is neutral colors (that's where all 3 RGB numbers are the same). So a neutral green, blue, white or gray will work the same. If you can get them in a neutral color.

Mike

krafty1

Nikon D80

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II

11/14/2007 02:33:48 PM · #23

I see a difference but without a good color reference it's difficult to evaluate which is more accurate. Accuracy is after all the ultimate goal and the reason for using a white balance reference.

geoffb

11/14/2007 03:44:02 PM · #24

Originally posted by MikeJ:

As a little known fact... it doesn't matter what color you use to do a custom white balance with... all the camera is looking for is neutral colors (that's where all 3 RGB numbers are the same). So a neutral green, blue, white or gray will work the same. If you can get them in a neutral color.

The only time all three RGB numbers are the same is a shade of gray (or white or black). Any "colour" will have at least one number that's different. You're correct that the camera is looking for a neutral gray (all three RGB numbers are the same) when trying to determine white balance, but this does not include "neutral colours" as you've defined them. There is no shade of blue, green, or red (or any other colour for that matter) that will satisfy the camera as "neutral" for white balance purposes.

For exposure purposes, the meter doesn't care what colour it's dealing with--only lightness values. Perhaps that's what you were referring to.