If your food looks dull, gray or changes color shot-to-shot, it’s probably not your recipe – it’s your white balance. Full-time cooking content creator Philip Lemoine says the number one mistake he sees is creators filming on Auto White Balance. His fix is simple and powerful: lock your white balance. Watch and read as he explains more below:
Philip’s Rule: Match Your Lights & Lock White Balance
Lemoine films many of his videos, especially overhead shots, with the FX30 (Buy Now), 16-55mm f/2.8 G (Buy Now) and ECM-B1M Microphone (Buy Now). To get the best shots with the best gear, he needs his lighting to be on point.
“All light has color, and it’s measured in Kelvin,” he explains. “The lower the number, the more yellow the light. The higher the number, the more blue. I like to set my lights to 5,000 Kelvin, and then in my camera I’ll set my White Balance to 5,000 Kelvin as well to match the color of my lights. So that way, my whites look white and all of the colors in my food pop and look true to life.”
Why 5000K?
- 5000K is a clean, neutral “daylight” look that flatters most foods.
- It’s easy to replicate across shoots for consistent color.
- Many LED panels and bulbs can be set precisely to 5000K.
Quick Start: How To Lock White Balance
1. Choose your key light temperature.
–Set your main light to a specific Kelvin (e.g., 5000K).
–Turn off or block stray mixed lighting (like warm ceiling bulbs or window light) that can contaminate your scene.
2. Set your camera WB to the same Kelvin.
–Switch your camera from Auto WB to Kelvin/Manual WB.
–Dial in 5000K (or the exact value of your lights).
3. Test with a white or gray reference.
–Place a white plate, paper towel, or a proper 18% gray card in the scene.
–Check that whites look neutral (not creamy or blue). Adjust a little if necessary.
4. Lock it and leave it.
–Keep WB fixed for the entire shoot so colors remain stable between angles and takes.
Check out Lemoine's complete guide to lighting cooking videos here.
Watch more videos like this one on the Alpha Universe YouTube Channel.
See more of Philip Lemoine’s work on Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
