Nikon Custom White Balance for Underwater Photos and Video [VIDEO]

By Logan Wood

If you're shooting without lights in clear, sunny conditions, then setting custom white balance can be a first step to bringing out more reds, oranges, yellows, and purples in your underwater photos and videos. This video will show you how to set custom white balance on your Nikon Z6, Z7, or Z8 mirrorless camera inside of an underwater housing.

 
 

Method One: “i” Menu

The first method is the most universal between Nikon camera bodies.

Press the "i" button to open up the "i" menu on your camera. Find the white balance setting and scroll over to "preset manual" now click and hold the “OK” button until your screen changes to your image with a small yellow box.

Fill that yellow box with something white or middle gray and press "OK" to set your white balance. Underwater this could be a white balance card, your hand, a gray scuba tank, or even the sand at the bottom.

Your “i” menu and white balance preset will stay the same as long as you don't scroll off of that setting, making the whole process much quicker.

It’s important to be able to quickly set your custom white balance underwater while shooting with a Nikon camera. We find this first method to be the quickest and easiest when using your camera in an underwater housing.

 

Method Two: Dedicated WB Button

If your Nikon camera has a dedicated white balance button, like the Nikon Z8 does, then you can perform the same function by pressing it once and then once again and holding.

However, since it’s on the top of the housing, you may find it quicker just to go through the "i" menu like in the first method.

Though it's nice to have a dedicated WB button, we find it quicker to use the first method with the "i" button.

If you have any questions about this technique or anything underwater photography related, please reach out to ikelite@ikelite.com.

Additional Viewing

Nikon Z8 Underwater in the Great Barrier Reef // Ikelite 200DL Underwater Housing [VIDEO]

Nikon Z8 Underwater Review // Josh Blank Ditches the D850 [VIDEO] 

Nikon Z7 and 8-15mm Fisheye Underwater Photos with Compact 8 inch Dome

In the Water with the Nikon Z6 Full Frame Mirrorless Camera

Manual White Balance for Underwater Still Photography
 

 

Logan Wood is a published photographer, cinematographer, and Producer at Ikelite. Stemming from a great appreciation for the outdoors and living an active lifestyle, his work focuses on capturing and sharing the natural world through the latest technologies. When not in the studio, Logan can be found cruising on his bike, going to concerts, and researching where to go next. You can see more of his work at loganwood.net and on Instagram @jlowood