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Colour Temperature Calculator

Work out colour temperature instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Colour Temperature Calculator

Filters shift colour temperature by a fixed number of mireds, where mireds are a million divided by the Kelvin value, which is why the scale is used instead of Kelvin directly. A filter that shifts 5600 K to 3200 K will not shift 3200 K to 1800 K, but it will shift any source by the same mired amount, which is what makes gels predictable.

Formulas

Mired value

mireds = 1,000,000 / temperature in Kelvin

Required shift

shift = target mireds - source mireds

Worked example

With the default values below, Colour Temperature Calculator returns Mired shift required of 133.93. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Light source temperatureaccepts 1,000–20,000 K
5,600 K
Temperature you wantaccepts 1,000–20,000 K
3,200 K

Results

Mired shift required
133.93
Filter to use
Warming filter needed, about 134 mireds (amber)
Source in mireds
178.57
Target in mireds
312.50

Step by step

  1. 1Values used
  2. 2Mired value
  3. 3Required shift
  4. 4Mired shift required= 133.93
  5. 5Filter to use= Warming filter needed, about 134 mireds (amber)
  6. 6Source in mireds= 178.57
  7. 7Target in mireds= 312.50

Assumptions and limits

  • The result is derived only from the 2 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
  • In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
  • Figures are rounded for display to 2 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is the Colour Temperature figure worked out?

mireds = 1,000,000 / temperature in Kelvin. Filters shift colour temperature by a fixed number of mireds, where mireds are a million divided by the Kelvin value, which is why the scale is used instead of Kelvin directly.

Why does this matter?

A filter that shifts 5600 K to 3200 K will not shift 3200 K to 1800 K, but it will shift any source by the same mired amount, which is what makes gels predictable.

What do I need to enter?

Enter light source temperature, temperature you want. The defaults shown are a realistic worked example — swap in your own figures to get a result you can use.

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Colour Temperature Calculator | Calcrivo