Operation Manual

Working with RAW camera files | 559
White balance
White balance is the process of removing unnatural color casts from images so that image colors appear as they do in real life. White
balance takes into consideration the lighting conditions in which a photo was taken and sets the color balance to produce realistic image
colors.
By default, when a RAW camera file is brought into Corel DESIGNER, it reflects the camera setting for white balance. This setting appears
as the preset As shot in the White balance list box. If you are not satisfied with this setting, you can have the white balance adjusted
automatically by choosing the preset Auto. You can also apply any of the following presets: Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Tungsten,
Fluorescent, or Flash. These presets let you simulate different lighting conditions.
In addition, you can use the Eyedropper tool to automatically adjust the contrast in an image according to the white or gray point that you
sample in the preview window.
If the White balance options do not produce the results you want, you can use the following controls to remove color casts:
• Temperature slider — lets you correct color casts by adjusting the color temperature of an image to compensate for the lighting
conditions at the time the photo was taken. For example, to correct a yellow color cast caused by taking a photo indoors in dim
incandescent lighting, you can move the slider to the left. Conversely, to correct a blue color cast caused by intense lighting conditions,
you can move the slider to the right.
• Tint slider — lets you correct color casts by adjusting the green or magenta in an image. You can add green by moving the slider to the
right; you can add magenta by moving the slider to the left. Moving the Tint slider after using the Temperature slider lets you fine-tune
an image.
Tonal adjustments
You can use the following controls to adjust the tone of RAW camera files.
• Saturation slider — lets you adjust the vividness of colors. For example, by moving the slider to the right, you can increase the vividness
of a blue sky in an image. By moving the slider to the left, you can reduce the vividness of colors.
• Exposure slider — lets you compensate for the lighting conditions at the time the photo was taken. Exposure is the amount of light
allowed to fall on the image sensor of a digital camera. High exposure values result in areas that are completely white (no detail); low
values result in increased shadows. Exposure values (EV) range from -3.0 to + 3.0.
• Brightness slider — lets you brighten or darken an entire image. If you want to darken only the darkest areas of an image, you must use
the Shadow slider.
• Shadow slider — lets you adjust the brightness in the darkest areas of an image without affecting the lighter areas. For example, a
bright light behind a photo subject (backlighting) at the time a photo is taken can cause the subject to appear in shadow. You can
correct the photo by moving the Shadow slider to the right to lighten dark areas and reveal more detail.
Using the histogram
While you are making adjustments, you can view the tonal range of the image on the histogram to check for any clipping of shadow or
highlight areas. Clipping is the shifting of image pixels to white (highlight clipping) or black (shadow clipping). Clipped highlight areas
appear completely white and contain no detail; clipped shadow areas appear completely black and contain no detail.
The button on the left side of the histogram displays a warning if the image contains shadow clipping. The button on the right side of the
histogram displays a warning if the image contains highlight clipping. You can also choose to apply shading to the clipped areas in the
preview window.
To adjust the color and tone of a RAW camera file
1
Click File Import.
2 Select the RAW camera file or files that you want to import, and click Import.
3 From the Color depth list box, choose one of the following options:
• 48-bit (16 bits/channel)
• 24-bit (8 bits/channel)
4 To remove a color cast, select the Auto option from the White balance list box.