This the second of the three shots I'll be posting that were taken using a Hoya R72 infrared filter (which I borrowed from Andrew Thatcher earlier this week). Of the three, this is probably the least dramatic, but I did think it was worth posting too.
From a technical point of view, shooting using an IR filter is relatively straightforward, but if you do decide to give it a try there are a few things you need to bear in mind. First, you need to compose your shot before attaching the filter as you can't see through them, i.e. they block available light.
Second, you will need to work out the exposure manually as your camera's meter will suggest a near-normal exposure – which will be way off. For example, this one was shot in bright sunlight, yet the exposure was around 20s at f/8.0.
Third, judging whether you have a correct exposure is a bit difficult as the exposure will be heavily biased towards the red channel. If you use the brightness histogram on your camera you risk overexposing the shot, so switch to using the RGB histogram. That way you can check the red channel and make sure there isn't any clipping.
On a totally different matter: I was interviewed by Scott Anderson from foliopodcast.com a couple of weeks ago. If you're interested, you can listen to the interview here:
I prefer this one over yesterday's!
These are the first digital photographs I've ever come across using the IR 72 filter on a high-end camera, very interesting. I was under the impression that most modern digitals filtered out pretty much all the IR, only certain models (Nikon D100 being one I believe) could be modified to remove the offending filter. This and the previous picture, show that not to be the case, albeit with exposure times being rather on the long side...
comment byStephan at 08:03 AM (GMT) on 20 June, 2009
Thanks for the general tips on taking IR photo. I never did this, but I imagine it could be an interesting thing to try. Concerning the photo: I really like the angle and placement of the boat. Plus the faded 'airplane stripe' to the right in the sky really adds some spice to the composition. Did you try a 2x1 crop as well? Looks to me that it could have worked too.
Roy: all DSLR's can be modified - take a look at lifepixel.com - but the Hoya filter does seem like quite a good option too, not least because the increased exposure time adds an interesting twist when there's some movement in the shot.
Stephan: I didn't try a 2x1 crop with this one, but yes, I think that would work too.
It appears to me that this is an exercise of expertise and experience, and on the other hand the result may not be so attractive in some cases, and the postprocesing is crucial as well. Perhaps I'll never use this filter but now I can say how to use it, thanks for sharing your knowledge with us.
comment byManuelaR at 01:59 PM (GMT) on 20 June, 2009
This is a stunning composition!
comment byCarlos Garcia at 02:07 PM (GMT) on 20 June, 2009
Dave,
Great interview... good to put a voice with a face :)
This is totally subjective - the red-ish/rust-ish coloring is not may favorite so, for me, the tone of the image is not appealing. As usual, the composition is wonderful. Your images reveal an acute attention to balance and an ability to achieve it as well, regardless of the subject matter. Sort of like the importance of white space in a publication, or the importance of a rest in the middle of a Mahler symphony.
C.
comment byEugene at 07:29 PM (GMT) on 20 June, 2009
I love the composition here. The deep ruby red makes for quite the dramatic image. My question is this: can you not replicate the effect of the IR filter using, say, a three-stop neutral density filter and some post-processing work in Photoshop?
Eugene: yes, and no. In this instance the exposure - without the IR filter - would have been around 1/500s, so I would have need a 13 stop ND filter rather than a 3 stop one. Also, the tonal balance of the image would have been different; i.e. the IR filter allows much more infared to reach the camera's sensor, and proportionally less blue and green. As such the boat would have been a lot darker and the sky would have been much brighter.
comment byClaus Petersen at 07:51 AM (GMT) on 21 June, 2009
A very unusual color toning, but it actually look pretty good in this one!!
comment bysimonGman at 08:38 PM (GMT) on 21 June, 2009
This the second of the three shots I'll be posting that were taken using a Hoya R72 infrared filter (which I borrowed from Andrew Thatcher earlier this week). Of the three, this is probably the least dramatic, but I did think it was worth posting too.
From a technical point of view, shooting using an IR filter is relatively straightforward, but if you do decide to give it a try there are a few things you need to bear in mind. First, you need to compose your shot before attaching the filter as you can't see through them, i.e. they block available light.
Second, you will need to work out the exposure manually as your camera's meter will suggest a near-normal exposure – which will be way off. For example, this one was shot in bright sunlight, yet the exposure was around 20s at f/8.0.
Third, judging whether you have a correct exposure is a bit difficult as the exposure will be heavily biased towards the red channel. If you use the brightness histogram on your camera you risk overexposing the shot, so switch to using the RGB histogram. That way you can check the red channel and make sure there isn't any clipping.
If you're interested, the original is here:
.../archives/wyre_wreck_17.php
On a totally different matter: I was interviewed by Scott Anderson from foliopodcast.com a couple of weeks ago. If you're interested, you can listen to the interview here:
Powered by Podbean.com
You can also subsribe to the podcast in iTunes.
I prefer this one over yesterday's!
These are the first digital photographs I've ever come across using the IR 72 filter on a high-end camera, very interesting. I was under the impression that most modern digitals filtered out pretty much all the IR, only certain models (Nikon D100 being one I believe) could be modified to remove the offending filter. This and the previous picture, show that not to be the case, albeit with exposure times being rather on the long side...
Thanks for the general tips on taking IR photo. I never did this, but I imagine it could be an interesting thing to try. Concerning the photo: I really like the angle and placement of the boat. Plus the faded 'airplane stripe' to the right in the sky really adds some spice to the composition. Did you try a 2x1 crop as well? Looks to me that it could have worked too.
Thanks for sharing.
Roy: all DSLR's can be modified - take a look at lifepixel.com - but the Hoya filter does seem like quite a good option too, not least because the increased exposure time adds an interesting twist when there's some movement in the shot.
Stephan: I didn't try a 2x1 crop with this one, but yes, I think that would work too.
ohhhhh DAVID!!! AMAZING.. WONDERFUL!! REALLY BREATHLESS...
i love the tone... BELLISSIMA!!!!
It appears to me that this is an exercise of expertise and experience, and on the other hand the result may not be so attractive in some cases, and the postprocesing is crucial as well. Perhaps I'll never use this filter but now I can say how to use it, thanks for sharing your knowledge with us.
This is a stunning composition!
Dave,
Great interview... good to put a voice with a face :)
This is totally subjective - the red-ish/rust-ish coloring is not may favorite so, for me, the tone of the image is not appealing. As usual, the composition is wonderful. Your images reveal an acute attention to balance and an ability to achieve it as well, regardless of the subject matter. Sort of like the importance of white space in a publication, or the importance of a rest in the middle of a Mahler symphony.
C.
I love the composition here. The deep ruby red makes for quite the dramatic image. My question is this: can you not replicate the effect of the IR filter using, say, a three-stop neutral density filter and some post-processing work in Photoshop?
Thanks everyone :)
Eugene: yes, and no. In this instance the exposure - without the IR filter - would have been around 1/500s, so I would have need a 13 stop ND filter rather than a 3 stop one. Also, the tonal balance of the image would have been different; i.e. the IR filter allows much more infared to reach the camera's sensor, and proportionally less blue and green. As such the boat would have been a lot darker and the sky would have been much brighter.
A very unusual color toning, but it actually look pretty good in this one!!
Great image Dave. Enjoyed the interview.