Farbstich

Farbstich is a term used in photography, imaging and related fields to describe an unwanted color tint that biases the overall appearance of an image or object. It occurs when the light source, subject, or processing steps introduce a dominant color cast, causing whites and neutrals to lean toward hues such as yellow, blue, green, or magenta. Farbstich can affect photographs, film, video, printed media and digital displays. Common examples include a warm yellow-orange cast under tungsten lighting, a cool blue cast in shade, or a green cast from certain fluorescent lights.

Causes of Farbstich include lighting with biased or mixed color temperature, insufficient white balance calibration, sensor or film response characteristics, aging of materials, incorrect color profiles, or color-management gaps between devices. It can also arise during scanning, printing or color grading when devices or software apply improper color corrections.

Prevention and correction rely on color management and accurate white balance. In photography, shoot in RAW to preserve color information, and use a custom white balance or a neutral gray card to set it correctly. In post-processing, adjust white balance temperature and tint, and apply targeted color corrections or grading as needed. Use color targets during shooting and maintain consistent lighting to minimize drift.

For prints and displays, employ proper color management with ICC profiles and ensure monitor calibration. When scanning film or negatives, use appropriate color profiles and avoid automatic adjustments that can introduce bias. In video and cinema, controlled lighting, on-set white balance, and color grading guided by waveform and vectorscope help manage and correct Farbstich.

Farbstich is not always undesired in art, but in most technical contexts it is corrected to reproduce colors faithfully.