HC9 Video Ambient Light White Balance

Hello-

New to Wetpixel. This is a video question- posting here first but realize there is a video forum.

Have new HC9 + Light & Motion newest housing for it + Sunray 1000 LEDS. Have been diving with one push white balance and it works most of the time under the lights with slate- almost never with ambient light, whether shallow or deep, slate, red filter, white sand, close/far or even shooting up at sun. Has anyone been diving with the HC9 and manually white balancing successfully?

Thanks,

DP

Moved it to the video forum.

Most of the time, if you have having trouble MWB then it's a lack of contrast and light. However, since you say it doesn't work most of the time underwater. Make sure it works at all. Go to a room with fluorescent lighting and MWB, then turn off the lights and light it with tungsten. Try to MWB then. If it does work but not underwater, then it's not the housing or camera but conditions. Try using the red filter to get back more contrast.

There's the rub. It works fine on the surface, outside the housing and in. And fine underwater with the lights. Just not ambinet, whether bright near surface or at 100 ft low light. Red filter helps not. Just curious what any other HC9ers are experiencing. Thanks.

Most of the time, if you have having trouble MWB then it's a lack of contrast and light. However, since you say it doesn't work most of the time underwater. Make sure it works at all. Go to a room with fluorescent lighting and MWB, then turn off the lights and light it with tungsten. Try to MWB then. If it does work but not underwater, then it's not the housing or camera but conditions. Try using the red filter to get back more contrast.

Are you using electronic white balance? I've seen the hacked lanc EWB fail to cycle the WB underwater for some reason. I'm not sure why though. Check with LMI. I haven't delved into it enough to understand it myself.

Hello-

 

New to Wetpixel. This is a video question- posting here first but realize there is a video forum.

 

Have new HC9 + Light & Motion newest housing for it + Sunray 1000 LEDS. Have been diving with one push white balance and it works most of the time under the lights with slate- almost never with ambient light, whether shallow or deep, slate, red filter, white sand, close/far or even shooting up at sun. Has anyone been diving with the HC9 and manually white balancing successfully?

 

Thanks,

 

DP

I dive with the exact same rig and have trouble with WB past about twenty feet in the Great Lakes. I removed my CC filter to make room for a rubber lens hood to block out excess light bouncing around in the housing so I don't have any experience with it. I've velcroed a 12x12 piece of white plastic/lexan to the bottom of my rig to both stabilize it as well as use it for WB. Even filling the frame with it and trying to WB - no dice past 20-30 feet. The algae bloom is quite high this summer and much greener than usual. That might be it too.

Thanks Drew for helping me address this issue. Also helpful reading your latest post on questions concerning Peter's comments on the HC7/HC9 white balance chain. In answer to your question the white balancing I'm using is not electronic as I am able to mechanically change it by pressing the touch screen on the side of the housing.

I'm attempting to find someone using the L&M housing and the HC9 who is having success with ambient light WB. That way at least I'll know others are figuring out how to make it work- then there is likley a problem with my particular camera- although I suspect it is a user problem and the weakness in the prosumer quality. But with over 50 dives last month in Komodo I most likely tried every combination I could think of. thanks again.

Thanks Chris. Good to know someone else is out there shooting this rig. I carry 2 slates, the Amphibo one on the bluer side and a white one I made. All the L&M folks suggested was holding it closer- which I've already tried. Nature of the beast I guess.

Got a L&M - HC9 over here, I have yet to dive with it as it's not mine but I will check it out when I do and share my thoughts.

That would be great.

What I'm discovering is just how great the rig is, and yet how many limitations there are.

I am shooting the hc7 in the L&M housing and I found that if I took a white plastic trash bag and put it over the lens and hit the one push button I was able to get it to white balance.I also tried white slates and my hand but the camera didnt always balance but with the bag it does every time.

Hope this helps.

Try it fully zoomed in on target slate but not in tele mode -- your sensors may be "overlooking" your target not to mention potential water noise (clairity). Hope this helps..........

So Wagsy, did you ever take some dives with the L & M HC9 rig? Thanks

Random thought, have any of you folks tried a "pink" slate? Take a white slate and mark it up with red permanent marker. This gives the sensor more red at depth (where red light as fallen off). Since "white" is the sum of all colors, at depth the red is gone completely and makes it difficult for the smaller cams to calibrate to a WB value. The addition of more red makes it easier for the sensor to lock a value. The image will be cooler (actually much closer to what you need to get blue vs. purple water). Anyway, l would be interested to know if this helps.

-shawn

Thanks Shawn. Heading to Raja Ampat in a day so I'll definitely see what that does. Anything to try and fool the slightly myopic prosumer camera. Will let ya know. - D

HC9 in a Gates housing. No luck with the one push WB past a few feet. This is with the gates white slate on an arm swinging the slate in front of the port.

It. just. won't. work.

I got a HC9 in a gate housing and I came up with a little trick for those who are using light or do night dive take apart your red filter and replace it a white disk or disc of the same diameter

... replace it a white dick of the same diameter

Errr care to explain this pls?

Errr care to explain this pls?

Sorry about that I made a mistake I mean DISK or DISC

And why just night or with lights... curious. What about the day as well if manual white balance won't lock in on a slate?

I read somewhere once that the consumer grade HC7/9 can only WB up to a certain kelvin color temp... not as much as the "pro" three chip cameras can. My limited experience seems to confirm this.

I too WB to a slate, and experience that only in shallower waters, in bright light, will it lock on WB.. with or without a CC filter. I'm talking about 30' or less. Down deeper.. it dont lock on.. so I put some light fill video light on the slate.. and then it locks. Deeper dives.. 100' I just WB on the slate filled with video lights.. much as a night dive. Of course, it WBs fine at night, or closeup on a well lit slate (from video lights).