Olympus Pen E-P5 review – White balance and colour
Image: The red b&w filter effect is used with the monotone picture mode in this scene to add drama to the tones in the sky. Given that the subject was still, I had time to take a spot-meter reading from the white horse to ensure highlight detail wasn’t lost
When used in its natural picture mode, the colour rendition of JPEGs from the E-P5 is pleasing and even punchy in bright conditions. As such, I only used the vivid and i-Enhance picture modes on the odd occasion in flat lighting. Raw files are a little less saturated. I did, however, find great pleasure using the monotone picture mode, to which b&w filters can be added. The green filter makes midtone detail more obvious, which is great for bringing out the detail in a person’s skin, while the red filter enhances sky and is perfect for landscapes.
By default, flicking the rear switch to ‘2′ enables the rear dial to directly control white balance. The auto white balance (AWB) is perfectly fine for most situations. Furthermore, it has a ‘keep warm colours’ option, which operates exactly as it claims. At times AWB can be a little cool, so activating this option is worthwhile. A custom white balance reading is easy to record – all one needs is a sheet of white card with which to fill the frame under the prevailing lighting, and follow the simple on-screen instructions.
