Infrared photography

[Caryn]

I planning on taking some bridal protraits for a friend of mine and am interested in trying out infrared techniques. I'm familiar with doing infrared photography with film cameras, but I haven't seen anything in my camera manual about it.

I have a Minolta DiMage A1, which seems to have every other bell and whistle! Is there an on-camera way to take infrared images? How about off-camera? Or is it even possible with digital cameras?

[kgosden]

Many digital cameras infrared capabilities exceed what you could do with difficulty on film. The simple test is to aim a TV remote at your camera and take a photo while pressing any button on the remote. If your camera is IR sensitive then the IR LED on the front of the remote will glow brightly on your camera's display and in the photo.

At this point you can just stick a IR filter in front of your lens and you are ready to shoot IR. None of that nasty, hard to handle film. And one big plus, at least for us point and shoot owners, the LCD display will still show you a preview. You can actually see through the IR filter with a digital camera! While some of the polyester and gel filters are a bit more aggressive at blocking visible light, I tend to stick with a Hoya R72. I have also used a Kodak Wratten 89B and a Calmumet 87. The Hoya glass is just less delicate and doesn't get soft and distorted on those hot summer days in Atlanta or out in the Arizona desert.

[ReF]

Originally Posted by Caryn

I planning on taking some bridal protraits for a friend of mine and am interested in trying out infrared techniques. I'm familiar with doing infrared photography with film cameras, but I haven't seen anything in my camera manual about it.

I have a Minolta DiMage A1, which seems to have every other bell and whistle! Is there an on-camera way to take infrared images? How about off-camera? Or is it even possible with digital cameras?

There is a thread about this in the CANON DIGITAL SLR CHAT section. be warned that many of the new digi cams have very good hot mirrors (blocking out IR) installed, so they may require very long exposures, which may not be suitable for people pics. Seems the older 2000 or 2001 high end cams are best for this kind of stuff, or you could try and remove the hot mirror and replace it with optical glass. This is risky business though, and could render your cam unsuitable for regular shooting. best of luck to ya

[D70FAN]

Originally Posted by Caryn

I planning on taking some bridal protraits for a friend of mine and am interested in trying out infrared techniques. I'm familiar with doing infrared photography with film cameras, but I haven't seen anything in my camera manual about it.

I have a Minolta DiMage A1, which seems to have every other bell and whistle! Is there an on-camera way to take infrared images? How about off-camera? Or is it even possible with digital cameras?

Or... You could use software to convert your images to IR with more creative control than using a filter. There are several PS plug-ins costing from $0 to $35.

http://www.cybia.co.uk/pseudoir.htm

or

http://www.thepowerco.com/product_812_detailed.html

I have tried both, and, of course, the $35 plug in gives you a little more control, but with a little practice pseudoir does a great job as well.

Bon Foto.

[natsuki]

PseudoIR works well, It's easy to use and output is quite nice.

Thank you for your recommendation.