White Balance Presets Explained: Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Tungsten
A white balance preset is a fixed guess about the color of the light: Daylight assumes about 5,500K, Tungsten about 3,200K, Shade about 7,500K. Pick the one that matches the light and whites come out white. Pick a warmer one than the light and the photo goes golden; pick a cooler one and it goes blue — which is exactly how presets are used creatively.
By Mountain Lion Data · Last updated
The presets on the Kelvin scale
Every preset, what it assumes and what it does
| Preset | Assumes light of | Use under | What it does to the image |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auto (AWB) | varies | Anything | Camera guesses from the scene; removes genuine warmth |
| Daylight / Sunny | 5,200–5,600K | Direct sun | Neutral reference; leaves sunsets warm |
| Cloudy | 6,000–6,500K | Overcast sky | Warms slightly to cancel the blue of cloud light |
| Shade | 7,000–7,500K | Open shade under blue sky | Warms a lot; the “make it golden” preset |
| Tungsten / Incandescent | 3,000–3,200K | Bulbs, halogen, tungsten video lights | Cools strongly to cancel orange |
| Fluorescent | 3,800–4,200K + magenta | Tubes, many shop LEDs | Cools a little and adds magenta against the green spike |
| Flash | 5,500–6,000K | Speedlights, strobes | Like Daylight, a touch warmer |
| Kelvin | you choose | Anything | Manual temperature; tint usually separate |
| Custom / grey card | measured | Anything | Exact for this scene; sets temperature and tint |
Why the Shade preset makes photos warmer
This trips everyone up once. Shade light is blue (about 7,500K). The Shade preset exists to cancel that blue, so it adds amber. Use it in shade and the photo looks neutral; use it in daylight and there is no blue to cancel, so the amber shows and the photo turns golden. The rule: set the preset higher than the actual light and the photo warms; lower and it cools. That is why the temperature slider in Lightroom and in White Balancer runs from blue on the left to yellow on the right even though the Kelvin numbers run the other way.
When Auto is enough, and when it is not
Auto white balance is right for most everyday scenes: mixed colors, no dominant hue, ordinary light. It goes wrong precisely when the scene has a color of its own — sunsets, autumn foliage, a blue pool, snow, a wood-panelled room — because it assumes the average should be neutral and cancels the very thing you were photographing. On an iPhone, Auto is the only option in the Camera app; see white balance on iPhone for how to work around it.
Kelvin and custom: the two precise options
A Kelvin dial lets you enter the temperature directly — useful for video, where you want every clip to match. Custom (grey card) is the most accurate: the camera measures the light itself and sets temperature and tint. After the shot, sampling a neutral point does the same job; that is the White Balance Sampler. A digital gray card in one test shot makes either method exact.
White Balancer’s 13 presets, plotted
The app’s presets are looks rather than corrections, so they are spread across temperature and tint deliberately. Cooler presets like Blue Sky and Pool Side sit left with a touch of green; warm ones like Sunset Glow and Orange Booster sit right with added magenta. Hover a dot for its values.
| Preset | Temperature | Tint |
|---|---|---|
| Gym Selfie | 5,000K | +6 |
| Blue Sky | 5,200K | -4 |
| Yacht Life | 5,500K | -2 |
| Under The Sea | 5,600K | +5 |
| Brightener | 5,600K | +3 |
| Shopping Haul | 5,600K | +8 |
| Pool Side | 5,800K | -4 |
| Spa Day | 5,800K | +2 |
| Coffee Shop | 6,000K | +8 |
| Brunch Time | 6,200K | +8 |
| Autumn Forest | 6,500K | +12 |
| Sunset Glow | 7,000K | +20 |
| Orange Booster | 8,000K | +12 |
Frequently asked questions
What white balance should I use outside?
Daylight in direct sun, Cloudy under overcast, Shade when your subject is in open shade under a blue sky. Auto is fine for mixed scenes but strips the warmth from sunrise and sunset — use Daylight or Cloudy then, or fix afterwards by sampling a neutral.
What white balance should I use indoors?
Tungsten (Incandescent) under ordinary bulbs and halogen, Fluorescent under tubes and many shop LEDs. Modern LED bulbs vary a lot, so a custom white balance from a grey card — or sampling a white wall afterwards — is the reliable option.
What white balance for sunset?
Daylight or Cloudy keeps the warmth; Shade exaggerates it; Auto removes it. On an iPhone, which has no preset, shoot and then warm it afterwards with a preset such as Sunset Glow or by sampling a cloud away from the sun.
What white balance for snow or night?
Snow under a blue sky wants Shade or Cloudy to cancel the blue cast; at night under street lights, Tungsten, or set Kelvin around 3,000K. Mixed city lights rarely balance perfectly — pick the light on your subject.
Is auto white balance good?
For everyday mixed scenes, yes — it is right most of the time. It fails predictably on scenes that are supposed to be warm or cool (sunsets, autumn, snow, water) because it assumes the average of the frame should be neutral.
What is daylight white balance?
A fixed setting around 5,200–5,600K that matches midday sunlight. It is the neutral reference: under daylight, whites come out white, and under any other light the photo shows that light’s true color.
What is tungsten white balance?
A setting around 3,000–3,200K that cancels the orange of incandescent and halogen bulbs and tungsten studio lights. Used outdoors it turns a photo deep blue, which some photographers use deliberately for a moonlight look.
