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What does white balance do

This question is best answered with a comparison to human vision. The human eye automatically adjusts to the changing colors (temperatures) of light. We see a person's white shirt as white in tungsten, fluorescent, or daylight light; in other words, regardless of the type of light in which you view a white object, it appears to be white. Digital image sensors, however, aren't as adaptable. To distinguish white in different types of light, you must set the white balance to an approximate or specific light temperature.

Light temperature is measured on the Kelvin scale and is expressed in degrees Kelvin (K). Once you set the white balance to specify the light temperature, the camera then renders white as white. On the 5D Mark II, a preset white balance option covers a range of light temperatures, which is more an approximation than a specific setting. A custom white balance is a specific light temperature that renders neutral color in the image.

The white balance options and their corresponding color temperatures (in Kelvin) are: