Almost every modern LED video light has a colour temperature setting, usually a dial or a number in kelvin like 3200K or 5600K. It is one of the most useful controls on the light, and one of the most overlooked. Set it well and your skin tones look natural, your lights match each other and the room, and your footage needs far less fixing in the edit.
This guide explains what colour temperature is, how LED lights produce different colour temperatures, how to set it on your light step by step, and the real benefits of getting it right.
Shop Bi-Colour LED LightsTL;DR
Colour temperature is how warm or cool a light looks, measured in kelvin (K): around 3200K looks warm, around 5600K looks like neutral daylight. Bi-colour and RGB-WW LED lights let you set it right on the light, by dial, menu, or app. Match the light to the room's ambient light or to your other lights, set your camera's white balance to the same number, and fine-tune the green and magenta tint if needed. The benefits: no gels, no lost brightness, lights that match in seconds, consistent skin tones across every shot, and an easier edit.
What Is Colour Temperature?
Colour temperature describes the colour of white light. Not all white light is the same: household bulbs lean orange, while daylight and especially open shade lean blue. It is measured on the kelvin scale, and the scale can feel backwards at first. Warm, orange light has a low number, and cool, blue light has a high number.
Here is where common light sources roughly sit, which is useful when you are matching an LED light to a room:
| Light source | Approximate colour temperature | How it looks |
|---|---|---|
| Candle flame | About 1,900K | Deep orange |
| Household bulb | About 2,700K | Warm orange |
| Studio tungsten | 3,200K | Warm white |
| Midday sun, flash | About 5,500K to 5,600K | Neutral white |
| Overcast sky | About 6,500K to 7,500K | Slightly cool |
| Open shade, blue sky | About 8,000K to 10,000K | Cool blue |
Two numbers matter most for LED lighting: 3200K, the classic warm "tungsten" standard, and 5600K, the classic "daylight" standard. Most LED lights, camera presets, and gels are built around one or the other.
How colour temperature is defined and measured in kelvin, per Color temperature, Wikipedia.
Why It Matters for Your LED Lights
Your camera's white balance can only treat one colour temperature as neutral at a time. Any light warmer than that setting records orange, and anything cooler records blue. So if your LED light is set to 5600K but the room is lit by warm 2700K bulbs, either your subject or the background will always look wrong.
That is why setting the colour temperature on your LED light is so important. When every light in the scene sits at the same colour temperature, and your camera is set to match, white looks white, skin looks like skin, and the image looks natural.
How white balance decides what your camera records as neutral, per Color balance, Wikipedia.
How LED Lights Produce Different Colour Temperatures
Not every LED light can change its colour temperature. It depends on the type of LEDs inside:
- Daylight LEDs are fixed, usually at around 5600K. They are simple and bright, but to warm them up you need a gel.
- Bi-colour LEDs contain two sets of LEDs, one warm and one cool. By blending them, the light produces any colour temperature across its range, typically from about 2700K or 3200K up to 5600K or 6500K.
- RGB-WW LEDs mix red, green, and blue with warm and cool white LEDs, giving you the full colour temperature range plus any colour you like.
For most creators, a bi-colour light is the sweet spot: full control over white light, in a simple, familiar package. If you want to compare the three types in detail, read our guide to daylight vs bi-colour vs RGB LED lights.
How to Set the Colour Temperature on Your LED Light
The exact buttons vary between models, but the process is the same on almost every bi-colour or RGB-WW light:
- 1. Decide what you are matching. Look at the main light already in the space. Warm bulbs suggest around 3200K, window daylight around 5600K. In a fully controlled studio, simply pick the look you want.
- 2. Set the light. Turn the colour temperature dial, choose it in the menu, or set it in the light's app. Many lights show the value in kelvin on the screen.
- 3. Match every light. Set your other lights to the same number, so key, fill, and background all agree.
- 4. Set your camera to the same kelvin. Put your camera's white balance on the same value as your lights, rather than auto, so it stays consistent.
- 5. Fine-tune the tint. If skin looks slightly green or magenta, use the light's G/M adjustment, if it has one, to correct it.
- 6. Lock it in. Once it looks right, leave it alone for the whole shoot, especially for video, so every shot matches.
Good to know: colour temperature runs from warm to cool, but some light sources, such as older fluorescent tubes and cheap LEDs, also lean green or magenta. That is a separate shift called tint. Many quality LED lights include green and magenta adjustment so you can correct both.
App Control Makes It Even Easier
Many modern LED lights, from Godox, amaran, and others, can be controlled from a phone app. That means you can set the colour temperature of several lights at once, save presets for looks you use often, and change everything from behind the camera without walking to each light.
The Benefits of Setting Colour Temperature on the Light
Being able to dial in colour temperature on the light itself, rather than relying on gels or fixing it later, pays off in several ways:
- No gels needed: you do not need to carry, cut, or clip coloured filters to warm or cool a light.
- No lost brightness: gels absorb light, but changing colour temperature on the light keeps far more of your output.
- Match any room in seconds: walk into a location, check the ambient light, and match it with a turn of the dial.
- Consistent results: every light, and every shot, sits at the same colour, which keeps multi-light and multi-camera shoots looking uniform.
- Natural skin tones: matched light means faces look healthy and true, with no orange or blue casts.
- Creative control: set a warm, cosy look or a cool, modern one on purpose, or use a cool background light against a warm key for depth.
- A faster edit: getting colour right in camera means far less colour correction later, especially for video.
One thing to keep in mind: bi-colour lights are often slightly less bright at the very warm and very cool ends of their range than in the middle, so if you need maximum output, check the spec sheet for the colour temperature you will use most.
Bi-Colour Light Options
A few favourites from our bi-colour range, from compact travel lights to studio powerhouses.
Compact and portable
Godox ML60II Bi
A small, travel-friendly bi-colour COB with a battery handgrip kit.
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Portable with more power
Godox ML100Bi Kit
A 120W portable bi-colour light with 15 and 36 degree lenses.
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Studio all-rounder
Godox Litemons LA150Bi
A 190W bi-colour COB for interviews, portraits, and small studios.
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Serious studio power
Godox Litemons LA300Bi
A 330W bi-colour COB with the output for large modifiers and spaces.
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Not Sure Which Light You Need?
CameraStuff has been lighting South Africa's creatives since 2006, with bi-colour lights from Godox, amaran, and Neewer, all genuine stock with local support. Tell us what you shoot and where, and our team will help you find the right bi-colour light for your space. Pop into our Randburg showroom to see them side by side, or get in touch online.
Visit Our StoreColour Temperature FAQs
What is colour temperature in simple terms?
It describes how warm or cool a white light looks, measured in kelvin. Low numbers, around 2,700K to 3,200K, look warm and orange. Higher numbers, around 5,600K and above, look cool and blue.
What colour temperature is daylight?
Photographic daylight is usually treated as about 5,500K to 5,600K. Real daylight varies a lot, from warm at sunrise and sunset to very cool in open shade under a blue sky.
How do I set the colour temperature on an LED light?
On a bi-colour or RGB-WW light, use the colour temperature dial, the menu, or the light's app to choose a kelvin value. Match it to the room or your other lights, then set your camera's white balance to the same number.
Do I need a bi-colour light?
If you shoot in real-world locations with mixed or changing light, a bi-colour light is very useful, because you can match any room without gels. If you only ever shoot in a controlled studio, a daylight light can be enough.
Conrad Knuist
Head of Marketing and Photography Specialist
Conrad Knuist is Head of Marketing and Photography Specialist at CameraStuff, South Africa's specialist camera and lighting retailer. With over 18 years of hands-on experience across portrait, event, and commercial photography, Conrad has personally handled hundreds of lights and helps South African creators get their colour right in camera.
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