Colour Temperature Chart

"Colour temperature" is a standard method of describing colours for use in a range of situations and with different equipment. Colour temperatures are normally expressed in degrees kelvin (K).

For video operations the relevant temperatures range from around 2,000K to 8,000K - these are common lighting conditions. In practical terms this usually means selecting lights, gels and filters which are most appropriate to the prevailing light or to create a particular colour effect. For example, a camera operator will select a "5600K filter" to use outside in the middle of a sunny day.

Technically speaking...

Colour temperature means the temperature of an ideal black body radiator at which the colour of the light source and the black body are identical. (A black body is a theoretical radiator and absorber of energy at all electromagnetic wavelengths.)

According to the The International System of Units (SI), colour temperatures are stated in kelvins, not in degrees Kelvin. The "degrees" part of the name was made obsolete in 1967, although it has remained in common use in media industries.