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ColorBalance
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ColorBalance

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ColorBalance[image]

adjusts the colors in image to achieve a balance that simulates the effect of neutral lighting.

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ColorBalance[image,ref]

adjusts colors in image so that the reference color specified by ref is mapped to white.

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ColorBalance[image,reftarget]

maps the reference color ref to target.

Details and Options

  • ColorBalance is typically used for white or gray balancing, removing unrealistic color casts from images. This usually results in representing objects with neutral colors as gray.
  • ColorBalance works with images with explicit color spaces. Images with ColorSpace->Automatic are converted to "RGB" or "Grayscale" before being adjusted.
  • Either of the ref or target can be any of the following:
  • colorexplicit color
    whitepointnamed white point as used as a setting for WhitePoint
    temperaturecolor specified by a temperature
    {temperature,tint}color specified by a temperature and a tint
    {pos1,pos2,…}mean color at positions posi in the original image
    markerimagemean color sampled according to a marker image
  • The mean color above is computed in the Lab color space.
  • The temperature can be specified as a value in Kelvin, typically in the range 2000 K and 20,000 K. The tint can be given in units of , typically in the range and .
  • Temperature and tint can be visualized in the MacAdam chromaticity diagram below, where the curve corresponds to a radiating blackbody and tint adjustments are moves on isothermal lines, orthogonal to the temperature curve.
  • ColorBalance takes a Method option. Possible settings include:
  • "GrayScaling"scaling the mean of the image
    "RGBScaling"scaling in the RGB space
    "LMSScaling"scaling in the LMS space
    "ChromaticityScaling"scaling of the chromaticities in the LMS space
  • With the method "LMSScaling", the scaling is performed using the Bradford transformation matrix to convert between XYZ and LMS.
  • With a given {temperature,tint} pair, Method"ChromaticityScaling" is always used; otherwise, Method->"LMSScaling" is used. »

Examples

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Basic Examples  (1)Summary of the most common use cases

Automatic white balancing to correct for blue cast:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-ey3vc9
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Scope  (8)Survey of the scope of standard use cases

Specify the white reference using a specific color:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-ee0wy6
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Specify the white region using a list of pixel positions:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-u476ub
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Specify the white region using a marker image:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-lettnx
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Specify the reference white temperature:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-vk9339
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Specify the reference white temperature and tint:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-gp2e8i
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Specify reference and target colors:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-py3kqf
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Perform a chromatic adaptation by specifying the reference and target WhitePoint:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-f8v9ze
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Perform a chromatic adaptation by specifying the reference color and the target WhitePoint:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-hbx5bu
Out[1]=1

Options  (6)Common values & functionality for each option

Method  (6)

Use Method->"RGBScaling" to rescale the image in the RGB space:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-viyaaw
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When a strong color cast is present, scaling the pixels in the RGB space may not fix the color cast:

In[1]:=1
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-ty52m9
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-q6z6ql
Out[2]=2

Use Method->"LMSScaling" to scale the pixels in the LMS space:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-qlhtra
Out[3]=3

Use Method->"ChromaticityScaling" to make the average color neutral (a shade of gray):

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-d2eek8
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Use "RGBScaling" with no reference or target colors:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-x6x4hd
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-wfdmx9
Out[2]=2

This corresponds to transforming the max color value to 1 for each channel:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-okdj4n
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"ChromaticityScaling" typically creates a more balanced image:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-wlcj8r

Notice that it is computationally more expensive:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-xd0jts
Out[2]=2

If the color is specified using temperature and tint, Method->"ChromaticityScaling" is used:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-v205th
In[2]:=2
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-g1hjik
Out[2]=2
In[3]:=3
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-h5vks5
Out[3]=3

With no reference or target colors, available methods make assumptions about the image scene:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-honpxf
In[2]:=2
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-rh82dl
Out[2]=2

"RGBScaling" and "LMSScaling" assume that the image contains a white object:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-tyoauu
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-15omlb
Out[4]=4

"ChromaticityScaling" assumes that the average color is neutral (i.e. gray):

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-g66n5
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-vuc43p
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-k7n6e2
Out[7]=7

Applications  (4)Sample problems that can be solved with this function

Underwater images  (2)

Correct a strong blue color cast, assuming there should be some white in the picture:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-qbr50m
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If white pixels are present already, Method"LMSScaling" will have little or no effect:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-feeyhj
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-2btj2i
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The default assumption of a neutral average color may yield extreme results:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-g871fo
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Manually specify a region where the average color is computed:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-n991xq
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Time of day  (1)

The same scene appears differently depending on its illumination:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-2sw9gs

Use a low temperature to simulate early sunrise:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-bhk5o9
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5500K is the typical vertical daylight temperature:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-ofld9l
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Use a higher temperature to simulate a hazy sky:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-rh0h1u
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Remove Yellowing  (1)

Correct for age yellowing in a document:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-4607gk
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Properties & Relations  (2)Properties of the function, and connections to other functions

When an image has dark pixels, ImageAdjust yields a result similar to the "RGBscaling" method:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-krqmm5
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The chromatic mapping performed by ColorBalance is generally not invertible:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-ztzx3z
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-3fvfky
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-cad6gl
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Possible Issues  (1)Common pitfalls and unexpected behavior

Balancing of a scene illuminated by multiple light sources may present issues.

This scene is lit both by reflected sunlight at dusk and by incandescent light from the street lamps:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-xypbwd

Balance using the incandescent lamps as reference:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-kelc34
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In[3]:=3
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-hpbc11
Out[3]=3

Compare with balancing using the sky and the water reflection:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-74mifd
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Interactive Examples  (1)Examples with interactive outputs

Dynamically adjust the color temperature using a mouse click to specify the reference white:

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https://wolfram.com/xid/0rsvi8qju-fivsqr
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Wolfram Research (2015), ColorBalance, Wolfram Language function, https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html.
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Wolfram Research (2015), ColorBalance, Wolfram Language function, https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html.

Text

Wolfram Research (2015), ColorBalance, Wolfram Language function, https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html.

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Wolfram Research (2015), ColorBalance, Wolfram Language function, https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html.

CMS

Wolfram Language. 2015. "ColorBalance." Wolfram Language & System Documentation Center. Wolfram Research. https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html.

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Wolfram Language. 2015. "ColorBalance." Wolfram Language & System Documentation Center. Wolfram Research. https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html.

APA

Wolfram Language. (2015). ColorBalance. Wolfram Language & System Documentation Center. Retrieved from https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html

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Wolfram Language. (2015). ColorBalance. Wolfram Language & System Documentation Center. Retrieved from https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html

BibTeX

@misc{reference.wolfram_2025_colorbalance, author="Wolfram Research", title="{ColorBalance}", year="2015", howpublished="\url{https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html}", note=[Accessed: 12-May-2025 ]}

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@misc{reference.wolfram_2025_colorbalance, author="Wolfram Research", title="{ColorBalance}", year="2015", howpublished="\url{https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html}", note=[Accessed: 12-May-2025 ]}

BibLaTeX

@online{reference.wolfram_2025_colorbalance, organization={Wolfram Research}, title={ColorBalance}, year={2015}, url={https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html}, note=[Accessed: 12-May-2025 ]}

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@online{reference.wolfram_2025_colorbalance, organization={Wolfram Research}, title={ColorBalance}, year={2015}, url={https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ColorBalance.html}, note=[Accessed: 12-May-2025 ]}