90 Better Available Light Digital Photography
Cloudy, overcast, and rainy days produce soft light; the only problem is that there’s not enough of it! This
photograph of a Tokyo street was shot at ISO 800, and the use of the camera’s Cloudy mode added some
warmth that might have otherwise been missing from the scene. Exposure was 1/250 sec at f/6.3 in Program
mode. © 2003 Joe Farace.
Fluorescent light
Fluorescent light produces a greenish X Files look and some
cameras, such as the Pentax K100D series of digital SLRs,
offer several options: D is for Daylight (6500 K)–balanced
tubes, N works best with Natural White (5000 K) lights, and
W is suggested for White (4200 K) fl uorescents. Out here in
the real world, it’s a mix-and-match situation, so many times
all three types of tubes will be used in a single light fi xture.
The best advice is to make a few test shots using each of
the three settings to fi nd out which one works best. If you
don’t like any of them, that’s the perfect time to try the
camera’s Manual setting. All of these White Balance settings
have creative uses, too, and any of the Fluorescent options
can be used to add a dash of pinkish warmth to sunrise or
sunset images.