DGK Color Tools Optek Premium Reference White Balance Card Set- 3 Card Set- 3 Card Digital Color Correction Tool
Electronics > Camera & Photo > Lighting & Studio > Light Meters & Accessories > Color Calibration Charts
About this item
- -- Includes three color calibrated reference cards, carry strap, user guide
- -- Each card 3.2" X 2.2" 0.1" (8.3 by 5.0 cm) waterproof plastic
- -- Works with any camera JPEG, RAW, film or digital
- -- Dependable performance and accuracy.
- -- You must buy from DGK Color Tools to get guaranteed genuine DGK Color Tools Product
Reviews
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
These get a lot of use at my weddings!
These get way more use then my full-size gray card. I shoot Nikon, so you have to fill the entire frame with you're gray card in order to set a custom white balance. But it is a pain in the butt to carry around a full-sized card and find somebody to hold it for you, especially if you're using off camera flash as I always do. With this, I just set my white balance too one of the presets, leave my quality set at RAW. And take a picture of these cards every time I walk through a doorway (that is the mental trigger that I use to remind myself when to take a picture of them, I don't actually stand in the doorway and take the picture… I go inside the room first). In lightroom it is very easy to set your white balance based off of the gray card, and if your exposure is way off… you can utilize the black-and-white cards in Photoshop to set your curves. I don't use that function very often, but it's nice to have.
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
No excuse for lousy color balance: get these
In the old days, if you wanted critical color, you bought a few 20-packs of refrigerated 35mm color slide film of the same batch, shot about 12 bracketed frames of a color chart and an 18% gray card under controlled conditions. Had the lab pull out a strip of film from the cartridge, equivalent to the frames you shot (more or less) and return the cartridge with the unexposed frames along with the mounted slides. Or you would blow the whole roll, depending on the budget. You'd examine the slides for color and exposure and determine the optimum exposure and color correction filters you might need. You kids now have it easy. Just fan out one of these, include it in the first frame and go on shooting. When you load up your photos in Lightroom or whatever you use, click on the thingies to fix your color balance and use the same settings for the rest. (Of course, you're shooting RAW and you should set your camera's white balance manually for best results.) I keep one of these hanging around my neck on location or a studio. Just keep ’em clean. And your nose, too, while you're at it.
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
Absolutely essential for color-balancing photos
Bought this as a gift for a photographer friend. (I already had a similar one for my own photography.) She likes it.
Here's why you need this: If you're making a series of photos in the same light, take the first one with the gray card in the picture. Then, when color-balancing a photo in Photoshop, turn on the Info panel. Move the mouse pointer to the gray card in the photo. If the R, G and B values are approximately the same, your photo is color-balanced. Even if your computer display isn't calibrated, using a gray card and getting R, G and B about equal, will color balance your photo.
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
Excellent Product, High Quality, Waterproof
I ordered this item to help me improve my photo taking, more specifically, my to help with my post-processing workflow. The cards are plastic and not laminated paper stock like some and they are waterproof and easily cleaned with water or household cleaner. They are compact and fit easily in either a pocket or your camera bag. The included lanyard is a nice convenience feature also.
I've always had trouble finding the correct white balance in post processing and this tool has helped immensely. I'm sure I have not used it to its potential yet, but I got it just before Christmas and used it on Christmas Eve during setup at my parents' house for Photos of the grandkids. It did a fantastic job of helping me correct the color balance of the pictures during post processing.
It's very simple to use: just take a photo of one (or all - one each) of the cards under the lighting conditions that you will be shooting under. When you go to post process you correct the color balance in your photo editing program for the test photos and copy the settings to the entire shoot. I personally use Lightroom and it was a very simple process to complete that took under 5 minutes total to correct all of the pictures I took that night.
I would highly recommend this product for any photographer who is starting to take their craft more seriously. For under $10 you can't go wrong with this product.
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
Get it - You just can't go wrong!
This is so handy and makes it easy to get your color matching right. Color Matching?! Yep. I am a real estate photographer, and for years I have tried to satisfy my clients by getting accurate wall and fabric colors (they are SO picky!). In the past - believe it or not - I have done just fine in my editing software by simply searching for something I know is medium gray in the image, and clicking on that. Works at least 80% of the time.
But THIS little bad boy works 100% of the time even in mixed lighting. When I know the color is going to be critical, I just toss this reference card down in an area where it can be photoshopped-out quickly after clicking on it. Sounds goofy but is a great time saver.
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
Durable, functional and cheap--what's more to ask?
These 3 cards are precisely the size of a credit card, so they will fit in your wallet or a cc holder. The surface of each card is matte black, white, or gray...which reduces color casts from reflections. Each card colors is solid through the plastic; the finish won't scratch off. To my eyes, the three shades appear perfectly neutral, but since plastic often yellows with age, I'll keep these away from sunlight and open air. For the price, they look very durable; the lanyard them secure on outdoor shoots. If there's any downside to these cards, it's that the size is a bit too small for getting a positive reading off wider angle lenses. So far in use, these cards have helped me accurately set white balance; I'm a very satisfied buyer. Made in USA.
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
Gets the job done for a most reasonable price
Perfect for what I needed it for. 18% gray.... only a photographer would know what that is and what to do with it, I think. I am redoing a photo studio and wanted perfect little swatches for determining wall color and these did the job to a T. Now I also have them for setting color balance when needed. They are rugged enough (plastic, not laminated paper) and washable and the price can't be beat. Depending on what your needs are these should serve you well.
For those wondering about size, they are about the size of a credit card which might be too small for some in cameras' white balance setting, but fine for post processing custom white balance.
BOTTOM LINE: price can't be beat and these little card get the job done. The lanyard is a nice addition.
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
Good for what they do.
I used these a lot when I did event videography, and they are great. I can't ever remember the white balance being off and if it was when I checked in the software is was very minimal. A pro and con are they are small. It is more of a pro because I threw them on my neck and forgot about them until I needed them. Clients loved them as well. It made me look more "professional" :) Perception, perception, perception when in business right. :) The con is I have misplaced them a few times but that is just me trying to do to many things sometimes at once.
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
Works great
Bought this set to use with food photography. Having accurate colors is incredibly important when doing food photography.
This set works like a charm. Fairly accurate, the cards are a thick plastic that seems quite durable, you can wipe dirt and such off the cards with a wet rag to clean them, the lanyard clips off at the bottom making it easy to hand these to a client quickly!, they hang around your neck which helps keep them constantly at hand! I usually get quite flustered on shoots and tend to stuff everything in my bag but with this lanyard I finally KNOW where I put it! lol
Great buy and well worth the $8 that I paid! I have recommended this item to friends and strongly think that it is a must for people who shot a lot! (WORKS GREAT WITH MULTIPLE SPEEDLITE AND STUDIO LIGHT SETUPS EVEN OUTDOORS!)
★★★★★
Verified Purchase
Compact and waterproof
I use these for under water video. I like that its compact and waterproof. I attach it to retractable lanyard and just pull it out in front of camera and done. Later in post editing I use the three cards to color correct and the results are great. Does what it's supposed to.
Question & Answer
Question :
Hello..are these cards 18% cards? Thanks
Answer :
Thanks for your question. I could give you the straight yes or no answer, in which case, my answer would be that the card doesn't appear to be calibrated. Your question though, specifically your asking if "these cards" are 18% leads me to believe that you have heard of "18% gray cards" as being the standard, and you are endeavoring to improve the quality and/or consistency of your photos by adding this basic tool. First, please understand what the "18%" refers to; it is a measure of reflectivity which in the world of printing (with ink) represents what is supposedly a midpoint between black and white. Practically speaking, it is an arbitrary but repeatable standard.The correct way to use an 18% card (by the way, only one card in a graduated set can be 18%. "These" cards can never be 18%, for it would mean that they all reflect the same. In theory, the three card set you are inquiring about here, one each of white, gray, and black is intended to represent 0% reflectance, the gray is designed to represent a mid-gray point, roughly halfway between black and white, and the white card is intended to represent 100% reflectance. Although an actual 0% reflectance would trap all light and an actual 100% would reflect all light, in practice, this is not only impossible, it is unnecessary. Neither your camera, nor your eye will capture as high a dynamic range of brightness to darkness as is available in the real world under particular common conditions. The current technique to overcome this limitation is the various methods that digital cameras use to produce so-called HDR (High Dynamic Range) photos. The point of metering is to reproduce the desired range of tones in a way that the photographer can exercise control over. For example, some photographers like to consistently underexpose their photos by a small amount (usually less than 1EV). In critical applications you could go through the process of doing a series of test shots including the gray card and your typical subject and lighting. You would then make prints of your photos (assuming you're not using slide film) then meter with a densitometer comparing the actual gray card to the reproduction of the gray card in your photos. A more productive use of your time might be to Create a series of photos of typical (for you) subjects under typical lighting, and vary the exposure over an appropriate range, for instance, you could create one photo as the camera meters it, then make other exposures 1 full stop over and 1 stop under in half stop increments. Of course the more crucial step to creating properly exposed, reproducible results is to calibrate your monitor and your printer. I am presuming you are shooting with a digital camera here, and not film. I would suggest that you not worry so much about whether the card is 18% or not. A more appropriate use of this set of cards is as a reference for black, white, and neutrality (color balance.) Good technique dictates that your photos should reproduce black as black while maintaining some detail in the shadows, and reproduce white as white again while maintaining detail. Spectral hilights, that is, relections of sunlight off of shiny objects, etc, should be the only whites in your photos devoid of detail. Of course you are at liberty to break these standards for creative reasons, but you should have control over the process. The 18% standard reflectivity is non-essential to getting properly exposed, reproducible results. I hope this is a help to you.
Question :
Are these large enough to use to set custom WB in-camera vs. in-scene post processing? thanks
Answer :
Yes you can put them close to your lens. You need to close to your subject to get the same light. Your camera does not need to be in focus to get the reading. As said previously, just be sure to fill the entire frame. Alternatively you can take the picture with the card in scene before your shot and use it as reference in post processing (the lanyard is useful to hang it anywhere in the scene)
Question :
What do you use the white and black cards for?
Answer :
The same thing. 18% grey is generally considered the benchmark for setting white balance, but some cameras and some photo editing software prefer or work better with white or black cards. Likewise, in certain situations, you may find they provide a better measurement for white balance than the gray card.
Question :
I'm new to using custom white balance in camera, do you use the white card or the gray? using cannon ef f1.8 stm lense
Answer :
Generally I use the grey card because it's a happy medium. But I also use white card when I need to get a real contrast to the grey card reading, then I have a better idea of how to balance my color either in camera or post process.
Question :
Did anyone else receive two black cards and one white card but no gray card?
Answer :
No, I received a white, a gray and a black.
Question :
Does it come with a strap?
Answer :
It comes with the lanyard that is pictured.
Question :
I use a white paper sheet for a manual WB but How do you use the 3 cards?
Answer :
I use DGK because the white of the paper varies depending on the kind of paper until a 5%, and the paper changes its color as time goes by. This is not aceptable in the kind of work I do. The DGK has ever the same gray. www.molinarifoto.com
Question :
Is this good for use underwater?
Answer :
It depends on how far under water you are talking about. You have to remember the deeper you go the the more the light levels change. This would change how the cards register in the camera meter. Less than 20' it's probably okay.
Question :
I have another set of somewhat larger dgk cards that have different tools on the back. what does this set have on the back of the w g b cards?
Answer :
Nothing on the backs. If you read the comments section, you will see some of the complaints . . . some object to glare (I didn't notice it), some to the size (some thought the cards too small) and so on. One even critical of the gray card, noting it was one stop off. Perhaps if you are a "professional" photographer, you'll want to find another set but for most photographers, these are handy, inexpensive, and handy with the lanyard.
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