A measure of the ‘warmth’ or ‘coolness’ of light sources and colors. Measured in Kelvin degrees. A higher color temperature light source will appear whiter (colder). The human brain automatically compensates for different color temperatures – a film or video camera cannot, thus what we see as white may appear to have a blue or green tint when no color correction is used for video. Most video cameras have a ‘White Balance’ control to make color temperature adjustments, to ensure white looks white on camera.
Daylight is approximately 5600 Degrees Kelvin, Tungsten Halogen is approximately 3200 Degrees Kelvin and standard incandescent lamps are 2800 Degrees Kelvin. Many discharge light sources are use in modern theatrical productions using discharge followspots or moving lights – color correction filters are used to balance the color temperatures.
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