Still here

Had a bit of time this weekend to shoot something different. A dedicated Infrared dSLR. In this case, a Canon 10d (shhh! don't tell anyone I'm using a Canon, it's a secret between you and me) since it's been directly converted to capture Infrared only, you can use it as a normal camera, no more clunky filters or long exposures.

As you can see here, the white sections are the heat, with the darker being cooler parts. Works well also for smoothing out skin blemishes.

I borrowed a 50mm f/1.8 lens from a friend, which works well with portraiture.

It is taking a bit of time to re-adjust to the new control layout, and some things on the 10d are extremely awkward to adjust.

Learning from Failure

A local photography group had a themed shoot where the main focus point of the image should be the colour red. Being an inventive sort, prone to thinking outside the box, I thought I'd shoot in infra-red.

Well, too clever for my own good it seems. I'd scored a mint condition Nikon D1x (with buffer upgrade even) on eBay for pennies (literally, it was condition unknown) which I thought would make a perfect IR camera. Grabbed a 720mm IR filter and went to town on the shoot.

Sadly, the day was partially overcast and the IR-look I was after didn't quite pan out. There were several challenges in getting this shot, one, the bike was sandwiched in a parking lot between several large cars, so I had to decide how best to isolate it from the background clutter. This meant getting down low, so I broke out the tripod, set the camera for a 2 second exposure on my 17-35mm lens, and fired. 

I did this about 10 times from different angles and positions until I was happy with the result. A little post processing and here you have it. More Black and White than IR, but it was a learning experience. In addition, when I get the spare cash laying around, I'm converting the D1x to a pure IR camera so be on the lookout for some (hopefully) otherworldly shots.

Back to basics

Many years ago I experimented with Infrared Photography, with reasonably pleasing results but I was new in the world of cameras, so I tried a bit of everything and it fell by the wayside as I concentrated on other subjects and techniques.

This weekend, along with the colour run (see below) I dug out my ancient Nikon D1x, my 720nm filter and had a go at IR work again.

Still the same old problems with using the filter, focusing is off (because the camera focuses on visible spectrum, not the IR one) so the image is soft, setting the shutter speed is highly dependent on the sun (or lack thereof) and a million other issues (the D1x hasn't been used in years and it's developing hotspots on the sensor) but if you don't look too closely at the image, it's acceptable.

One day I will get a dSLR converted to full time IR, but not this year, unless anyone wants to donate a dSLR to me, then I'll take pics in your honour.

Old Boat

False Infrared old boat from Belize. It was a Black and White image with the colours reversed to simulate IR. One day I'll have a dedicated dSLR converted to shoot only IR, but in the meantime I deal with LightRoom and PhotoShop

Accident by Design

Despite what it may look like, this image isn't photoshopped or retouched in any way. It's straight from the camera.

The effect is gained by stacking two circular polarizers on top of my Nikon D1x, and maximizing the amount of light they block, only allowing near infrared through.

A Different View

Same place, viewed via infrared. Infrared isn't for every shot, but the way the trees form a canopy over the road, and the path stands out, gives this image an otherworldly appearence that I love.

Sky

On the way back from a weekend drive, a passed by a small field with a lone chimney being overtaken by Nature. I shot the image in infrared as the cloud formations in the background were especially pleasing.

Car Show

I was invited to a muscle car show a little while back. Most of the cars there, although interesting from a historical standpoint, were packed too close together to get a good image of any one car. This image was the best of the lot, and that's not saying much. It's an infrared shot of dual 4 barrel Holley carbs.

More

False colour imagery. I am especially pleased at how the clouds turn out when adding colour to an IR image.

Riverline

This is a true IR image. The Hoya filter renders everything in shades of red, but once converted to greyscale, the infrared comes through. A beautiful world is revealed in an otherwise ordinary image.

From my reading, I am given to understand that not only landscapes, but people as well, have a hidden reflection, and I look forward to finding it out.

Alien

It's not an alien world, but rather the local park captured in Infrared. The colour is false, but it is based on the heat signatures. The brighter it is, the hotter it is.

Tree leaves appear white, as do clouds, from reflecting all that heat. Even in the "true IR" black and white imaging, I love this area of exploration.

Expect to see more soon.

Redux

Straight from the camera with the IR filter. No other modifications. Interesting look.

Infrared

I know the picture has terrible composition, it is an experiment in digital infrared photography. Bascially, the camera is recording the heat given off the subject, making for an ethereal landscape.

I will be doing more, and hopefully getting better at it, so look for better pictures soon.