Colour temperature is a way of measuring the quality of a light source. It is based on the ratio of the amount of blue light to the amount of red light, and the green light is ignored. The unit for measuring this ratio is in degree Kelvin (K). A light with higher colour temperature (larger Kelvin value) has "more" blue light than a light with lower colour temperature (smaller Kelvin value).

Colour TemperatureLight Source K Candlelight K Tungsten Bulb (household variety) K Sunrise/Sunset (clear sky) K Fluorescent Lamps K Electronic Flash K Daylight with Clear Sky (sun overhead) K Moderately Overcast Sky K Shade or Heavily Overcast Sky

Auto White Balance Custom Kelvin Tungsten Fluorescent Daylight Flash Cloudy Shade