Infrared Photography Fun
Infrared Photography at the Los Angeles Arboretum
I ventured out to the Los Angeles Arboretum on Sunday and took photos using an infrared filter for my Canon SX1 IS digital camera. Pretty cool, eh?
Infrared light is invisible to the naked eye but with the help of a filter, you can see the world from a completely different perspective. Objects which are bright in visible light become dark. And objects normally dark become bright. Very cool and eerie at the same time.
More infrared photography - at the Learning Garden in Venice, CA
What do you need to get started?
An infrared filter such as the Hoya R72, a digital camera that can take add-on filters (Digital SLRs and some prosumer cameras like my Canon SX1IS), and a tripod. You’ll also need a photo editing program like Adobe Photoshop for post production.
Links for further reading
Getting Started Guide to infrared photography
101 Absolutely Breathtaking Infrared Photographs
Comprehensive Digital Camera Infrared Photography Guide
cool pix!! would you mind elaborating on how you took these infrared pictures? I also have an SX1 and a Hoya R72 filter but having the most difficult time. In my photos, the tree leaves never come out white. If I use AWB, it’s nothing but red all over the frame. with custom WB, the foliage comes out a sage-looking green, regardless of what I balance it against – green grass, white paper, same effect.
Thanks!
There’s a couple of things to consider: time of day and type of vegetation. You want to shoot when there’s a lot of sunlight. Usually mid-day when the sun is high in the sky. The subject needs to be fully exposed to the sun. So don’t shoot stuff that is in shade. In my experiments, I have found that not all type of vegetation will turn white. Some will stay dark. You just have to experiment for yourself to see which ones work.
After the shoot, you need to edit the photos in a photo editing where you can change color channels. Here’s a link to a tutorial that explains it pretty well: http://www.tutorial9.net/photography/infrared-photography/
Good luck!