Urgent help needed! Background color matching

[larsfass]

Im working on a series of images from a photoshoot.

I am having massive problems with getting the background of each image to match with one another. Each image seems to have a slightly different shade background, so basically they all look inconsistent together.

Is there anything i could do which would easily match the background from the different images together?

Using curves doesnt really help and when i do get it right (slightly similar), skin tones are then off.

The photos are done in a studio and evenly lit, the backgrounds are pale blue!

Please, I need urgent help!!!!!!

[igot2pman]

Hello and WELCOME to RTP!

Sorry to hear about your problem....

Did you shoot in RAW??? If so you can just set the white balance to the same amount, very easy if you have Light room (Lr). RAW records the exact WB temp used, so matching them is easy. JPEG does not record the temp.

What’s happening is the white balance (WB) is different in every picture. If you have it set to lazy AUTO it will give you something different every time. Next time you shoot I would recommend shooting in RAW or manually setting the WB. This will at least keep your balance the same in every image. You could then just use curves or color balance once and automate it into all the pictures.

I don’t think there is a batch way of doing this for JPEG unless you shoot a grey card in the pictures and had a consistent WB. If AUTO was set then you are probably going to have to do each picture manually in color balance. If you’re going to do this, I would suggest changing the color balance in Lr or in PS "LAB" color space. Lr only has two sliders for WB, and PS "LAB" only has 2 sliders. The downside in PS is that you have to edit shadows, mid, and highlights separately. Hope you have good eyes and monitor calibration.

Sorry, hope it helps,
-Keven

[larsfass]

They are JPEG and it was all shot by a professional photographer so im unsure of the settings which were used. i have literally received them over FTP with instructions to make them all match etc.

Im at a loss.

[igot2pman]

Originally Posted by larsfass

Using curves doesnt really help and when i do get it right (slightly similar), skin tones are then off.

Just make a layer mask and hide where the subject (model) is.
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I would start with color balance in LAB color space... then try the other methods.

All the below suggestions will require you to mask the subject:

Channel mixer and edit only the blues.

Another option is hue/sat, make a selection with the dropper if BG is all one color.

-Keven

[Craig Willes]

I had this problem with a wedding once, the bride was anal about the churh walls color match with images from three different camera bodies each with a different lens.

I found the easiest way to fix it was using Capture NX software because of the u-points that you can adjust just the one color.

[imagic]

How about running the jpegs through camera raw and setting the white balance there?

[Craig Willes]

Yes and no.

In my case I talked about, I didn't need to change the skin tone, which would change if you do a WB change, but I needed to make sure the walls in the background matched.

And as I said, the u-point adjustments of the Nikon NX software is great for such problems.

[Daviskw]

If you don't have a lot of pictures then just use layers set to color and sample good color form one picture and paint over the other.

If luminosity is the trouble try looking at both with B&W adjustment layers used then use dodge and burn to equal luminosity then delete the adjustment layer and paint on a layer set to color to match.

Butch

[holgaman]

Try taking an HSL reading from the background you want to match and write the numbers down. Then go to hue/saturation and make adjustments (reading the same area if possible) until the output numbers match.