auto white balance

Is anyone aware of a problem with auto whitw balance on the Pentax DS SLR. Works fine except for tungsten. Advice would be appreciated

I've been very impressed with the AWB on the *istDS - white walls, for example, have stayed impressively white in a variety of conditions.

However, if you are using tungsten light it would be logical to assist the camera by using the tungsten setting, that's what it is provided for! I wouldn't expect AWB to be the panacea in all circumstances, especially extreme ones.

I agree with JR. SLRs have a choice of settings because the camera can't get it right all the time.

If you are shooting indoors without flash, and especially if you have a mixture of light sources, it's a good idea to use manual white balance.

Using MWB allows for some creativity, too. The camera (they are very trusting) will believe that whatever you show it when setting MWB is white or grey. So if you show it a white card with a bit of blue on it, it will compensate by adding a little yellow, thus giving you a slightly warmer picture.

G

Thank you John and G.
I take your point about light condition selection for WB, but my CASIO digital does a great job with auto WB in all conditions whereas the DS appears not to make any correction at all for tungsten. Just thought it was odd for a camera of this sophistication not to at least make an effort. Never mind I'm learning to appreciate what it can do. It's great to have an SLR in my hands again.

Thanks again
Boyd

You can, of course, shoot in RAW mode. That way you can choose and adjust the whitebalance after the shot - when you process on the computer.
(And if you use Capture One LE, you'll get much much more control over exposure, highlights, shadows, as well as whitebalance)

Only downside is 14Mb per shot

Matt