Coz
Reged: 02/04/2002
Posts: 395
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I don't know if I should have posted this here, or in the help forum, but here goes:
Someone took a photo of me with my Nikon D40 and my hair came out ginger. I always have this problem on photos, but not usually to this extent. I tried putting it on different white balance settings and asking them to take more photos of me, but it either didn't make any difference, or it was worse than on auto white balance. What is it that needs changing? Everone else's hair looked ok, but their hair is either black or white - mine is dark blonde. It must have been something in the room or the lighting, as I had one taken when I got home and my hair was it's normal colour. So I just wondered how I could fix it if it happened again?
The flash was being bounced off the ceiling, but I don't think it was pure white - it was off white. Could that be it? But that doesn't explain why it happens with every other camera with no flash gun being bounced.
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Adesw
The phantom flasher
Reged: 07/02/2008
Posts: 685
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are you using jpeg mode?
If so you may need to tone down the saturation.
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Coz
Reged: 02/04/2002
Posts: 395
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Yeah, jpeg. But the rest of the image isn't over saturated, so everything else would be too muted.
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Adesw
The phantom flasher
Reged: 07/02/2008
Posts: 685
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Could you possibly post an example pic?
saturation is still the most likely. Though maybe you're really ginger but in denial 
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El Sid
Going potty
Reged: 14/04/2003
Posts: 9160
Loc: Sussex-by-the-Sea
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I suspect that you are seeing the effect of the flash being bounced from the non-white ceiling possibly coupled with ambient lighting. Was the room illuminated by tungsten light as well? If so it's possible you've picked up a bit of colour caused by the much redder tungsten light and this has exaggerated the effect. What mode was the camera in?
One way to minimise this is ensure you shoot in S mode (shutter priority) with the shutter set at or close to the sync speed of the camera (normally the camera will set this, or the closest possible speed dependent on lighting conditions, for you). This will probably eliminate most of the ambient light and use the flash as the sole source of light. The downside is that the background is liable to go a bit dark...
Another method is to use a custom white balance if the camera does this (see the manual for if and how) by shooting a white or grey card under the same lighting conditions and allowing the camera to calculate the colour temperature from this.
Alternatively just selectively fiddle with the colour of your hair in PS or whichever editing package you use...
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Nigel
Completely BSRIPN 
ElSid Gallery
A camera in the hand is better than one in the cupboard........
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Coz
Reged: 02/04/2002
Posts: 395
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Quote:
Could you possibly post an example pic?
saturation is still the most likely. Though maybe you're really ginger but in denial
lol, I'm not, honest! I would post a pic, but it's not a very good one of me, so I'd rather not. Unless I clone my face out.
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Coz
Reged: 02/04/2002
Posts: 395
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Yeah, it was tungsten light. The camera was on auto mode, as follows: 24mm, f4, 1/60 sec, ISO400.
I wouldn't want the background to go dark.
I might just have to change my hair in PSE, as the rest of the picture looks fine.
I don't think adjusting the saturation would work, as I adjusted the red hue on my monitor, just out of interest to see what would happen. And although the brightness of the ginger reduced abit, it was still ginger, but it took too much red out of the rest of the photo.
I even had this problem with certain professional photos I had taken as a child. I used to think I had ginger hair as a child, but my mum asuures me it just looked like that on the photos. So if pro photographers couldn't get it right, how am I going to manage it? haha.
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El Sid
Going potty
Reged: 14/04/2003
Posts: 9160
Loc: Sussex-by-the-Sea
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Quote:
I even had this problem with certain professional photos I had taken as a child. I used to think I had ginger hair as a child, but my mum asuures me it just looked like that on the photos. So if pro photographers couldn't get it right, how am I going to manage it? haha.
I suspect then that you have a similar issue to bluebells... Bluebells look blue to us but they reflect quite a bit of light just outside our visual range and because film - and to some degree digital sensors - is slightly more sensitive to this light they do tend to come out with a reddish purple tinge. I suspect that your hair behaves in a similar fashion...
The presence of tungsten light won't help either...
On the plus side at least it's much easier to selectively correct your hair in PS than it ever was with wet prints.......
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Nigel
Completely BSRIPN
ElSid Gallery
A camera in the hand is better than one in the cupboard........
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Fen
BAD WOLF
Reged: 12/03/2002
Posts: 19552
Loc: Currently Unknown!
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If you take the shots in RAW you might be able to adjust the colour easier by altering the white balance 
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Fen.
- Fen's Flickr Fotos -
"One good photograph does not a photographer make."
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Burgy
Grateful not to have one
Reged: 13/04/2001
Posts: 5185
Loc: This far, from beating 7 shade...
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Sounds like a mate of mine, claims he is dark blond, but he really is a Ginger
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Cheers
Burgy BSRIPN, BSc, DSO and Bar (now open 24/7).
it's not what you've got, its who you do it to
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NorthernNikon
Bulls Hitter
Reged: 16/12/2005
Posts: 5312
Loc: Harrogate, North Yorks
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Quote:
So I just wondered how I could fix it if it happened again?
Wear a hat?
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www.BarneyAllen.com the new home of ComicShots.
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Adesw
The phantom flasher
Reged: 07/02/2008
Posts: 685
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Quote:
Quote:
Could you possibly post an example pic?
saturation is still the most likely. Though maybe you're really ginger but in denial
lol, I'm not, honest! I would post a pic, but it's not a very good one of me, so I'd rather not. Unless I clone my face out.
You're worse then my Gf, ok, maybe not..
My point is obsolete, I misread the post and I think it is more to do with the lighting.
A white balance adjustment may help though ?
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Coz
Reged: 02/04/2002
Posts: 395
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LOL, thanks guys!
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Coz
Reged: 02/04/2002
Posts: 395
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I'm still getting this problem without the light on - just with the daylight coming through the window and flashgun. I tried every different white balance setting and it's ginger on every one! Our ceiling is white, too. It's so annoying, lol!
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Maui888
journeyman
Reged: 13/01/2007
Posts: 53
Loc: Hampshire, UK.
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How peculiar Coz! I back the 'bluebell' theory.
Just wondered if using hairspray might reduce the affect - effectively an 'anti-reflective/transmissive' coating. Also wondered how these hair thickening/volume shampoos worked? Might they affect things?
Obviously both totally impractical should you find yourself in an impromptu photo shoot!
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Coz
Reged: 02/04/2002
Posts: 395
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I use volume shampoo/conditioner and styling spray, so that doesn't make any difference.
I should dye my hair black then I won't have a problem, lol.
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