Post
by BluBob » Sat Feb 28, 2015 6:58 am
I find this interesting, but in a different way.
A light source which is the ONLY source, will be measured in a specific Kelvin degree. A Kelvin measurement will fall somewhere on a scale which is the scientific temperature scale used to measure the exact temperature of objects.
The Kelvin scale runs from approximately 2,800K to over 12,000K. The Kelvin numbers yield different colors/results depending on where it lays on the Kelvin scale.
Incandescent light bulbs which you are likely to find in our house will emit low-color temperatures of 2,800 to 3,400 degrees Kelvin. This light has a yellow to orange cast. If you heat a carbon rod, it will glow orange at approximately 3,200 degrees Kelvin. At 4,800 degrees Kelvin it will glow a greenish color and at 5,600 degrees Kelvin it will begin to emit a blue color. The color of light is measured using these Kelvin temperature readings.
If the Camera is properly white balanced by the Photographer, most everything will appear very close to it's natural/realistic color. Most people will allow the Camera to make *color-balance* decisions. This is not good. In today's world of iPhone Photography, almost no one takes the time, or has the knowledge to properly color balance their pictures.
SO BOB, PLEASE GET TO THE POINT ...
What you see in the picture is an image which is improperly color balanced. It does have a reference of WHITE in the upper right-hand corner, but remember that the burnt-out white in the picture is completely void of any detail. It would be called "white without detail" or 255 in the 8-bit world. This may also be referred to as "BLANK WHITE."
Given the area of blank white, one makes an assumption that the dress is not white, and needs to assign a luminescent, and color value. ("K" value) In the case of this dress, what the viewer sees is not a natural, or real-world value. Any object which is misrepresented in a picture, will be falsely identified by the viewer!
TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, this picture was created under a MIXED-LIGHT condition. This situation presents very complex problems For example; when Photographing, one might be forced to deal with a scene which has light shining through a window mixed with the light from a desk lamp, or fluorescent light mixed with track light sources. This presents an almost impossible situation, and can create the type of picture which is the topic of this image.
TO MAKE MATTERS EVEN WORSER
Every one of us has a Monitor, Smartphone, iPad, etc., which will not have a color management system built in. In other words, there is no true color device STANDARD! Almost everyone who observes an image, looks at it with their own unbalanced viewing device. These devices are all different. (Ever go into a TV store and observe how every one of those TV's has a different color cast?) If so, you know what I mean!
WHEW ... I am way long.
This whole deal while fascinating, is entirely understandable.
It's all Trompe-l'œil !
Best,
Bob~
and now, on with the show ...
