LX3 - Problems setting a custom white balance?

[mofongo_max]

Granted, I think there are only a handful of SB posters who use this camera. But I'll give it a shot anyway....

Has anyone else noticed that this camera does a poor job of setting a custom white balance at depth? I've brought down white and gray slates as well as taken readings from white sand. Every time the camera sets a wb that is way blue or green. My only other experience shooting underwater was with a Canon A590IS and it set wb at depth phenomenally better than the LX3. It's to the point where the wb is almost the same when left on daylight or cloudy. For the most part, I shoot with strobes, but it's frustrating when I want to shoot some natural light stills or video.

Does anyone have any tips?

 

[AmyKB]

I am also using the LX3 - and am very new to underwater photography - however, I was advised to shoot in RAW and then correct WB afterwards in an editing program. I would be interested to know what settings you generally use - my aim is to master the use of natural light before I indulge myself in strobes... mixed results so far.

 

[Gilligan]

Granted, I think there are only a handful of SB posters who use this camera. But I'll give it a shot anyway....

Has anyone else noticed that this camera does a poor job of setting a custom white balance at depth? I've brought down white and gray slates as well as taken readings from white sand. Every time the camera sets a wb that is way blue or green. My only other experience shooting underwater was with a Canon A590IS and it set wb at depth phenomenally better than the LX3. It's to the point where the wb is almost the same when left on daylight or cloudy. For the most part, I shoot with strobes, but it's frustrating when I want to shoot some natural light stills or video.

Does anyone have any tips?

I don't have your camera but I shot JPG for years with my Olympus cameras and was always calibrating the white balance underwater. I now have a Canon G10 and was also calibrating my white balance off a white card. I finally switched to shooting RAW.

What I will tell you is there is no substitute for shooting RAW, especially when it comes to non-strobe shots.
Use the software that came with your camera to process the white balance before you convert the RAW file to a JPG. Calibrating white balance off a dive slate or the like can't compare to shooting RAW. My Canon DPP software has an eyedropper tool to click on various areas of the RAW photo to obtain the best white balance. Your Panasonic software probably has the same ability.

Shooting your strobe shots in RAW will give you the added plus of comparing different color results with the eyedropper tool.

Try it and it will make a believer out of you.

 

[shaker]

I also have the Lx3, custom white balance will never be accurate in deep water. I also shoot RAW. For movies you will need a red filter if you don't have video lights.