Just realized most people are using the wrong white balance for Milky Way photos

I was at a star party in Joshua Tree last month and looked at 10 different people's Milky Way shots on their cameras. Every single one had the white balance set to auto or daylight. The thing is, auto white balance makes the sky look brownish-green because it tries to correct for the natural red glow of hydrogen gas. I learned this the hard way after 3 years of shooting, then switched to a custom 4000K setting and my colors finally looked right. Has anyone else noticed this ruining their night sky photos?

2 comments

2 Comments

nancy1545d ago

Whoa actually 4000K is too warm for the stars, try 3500K.

derek_burns5d ago

Nah, 4000K gives them that nice warm glow like old bulbs, way better for mood lighting.