Infrared shot in Luckenbach, TX

[terrib]

I converted one of my old cameras to infrared a few months ago. I haven't had a chance to really get to know it but here is a shot that I took last month. It's processed in LR and Silver Efex Pro. C&C always welcome.

[xpatUSA]

I converted one of my old cameras to infrared a few months ago. I haven't had a chance to really get to know it but here is a shot that I took last month. It's processed in LR and Silver Efex Pro. C&C always welcome.

Lots of vegetation there to get the "IR look". A difficult sky it seems, preventing that high contrast look so often found in IR shots with an almost black sky. Was the sky slightly overcast?

In the camera conversion, was an IR pass-filter put on the sensor or do you use filters on the lens?

How do you handle the slightly different focusing needed for IR?

I like IR and so-called "full spectrum" shots. One of my Sigmas is permanently used for those kinds of shots.

[Mike Buckley]

This works nicely for me mostly because of the composition. Lots of opportunities to photograph that scene in many ways throughout the year, given the trees, road and cemetery.

[John 2]

That's quite striking Terri and I like it a lot. I've been dying to try something like this but it really needs the right subject.

[xpatUSA]

This works nicely for me mostly because of the composition. Lots of opportunities to photograph that scene in many ways throughout the year, given the trees, road and cemetery.

Was thinking similarly, Mike. Perhaps a bit more cemetery and a bit less veg. Maybe just the headstones and trunks with the road receding into the distance? Or, oppositely, the whole tree and more classic "black" IR sky? Puffy, stark white clouds often help, too.

[Shadowman]

Nicely captured.

[terrib]

Lots of vegetation there to get the "IR look". A difficult sky it seems, preventing that high contrast look so often found in IR shots with an almost black sky. Was the sky slightly overcast?

In the camera conversion, was an IR pass-filter put on the sensor or do you use filters on the lens?

How do you handle the slightly different focusing needed for IR?

I like IR and so-called "full spectrum" shots. One of my Sigmas is permanently used for those kinds of shots.

Yes the sky was overcast so I wasn't able to get that contrasting sky. I don't live near there so it was just one of those "take what you get" days.

The camera sensor was converted at Life Pixel using the "super color filter" option described here: Filter Options

The camera was calibrated using the "universal calibration" described here: Focus Calibration So I'm supposed to use Live View and Auto Focus but since I'm not accustomed to using Live View, I forgot when I took this shot. But since I was using a 16mm focal length, the DOF is so great that I don't think it is evident I didn't focus correctly.

Here is a color version of the shot, but I've yet to master the color processing mostly because I haven't yet decided how I want the end result to look. But I find them interesting.

[terrib]

Thanks everyone for your comments. I agree, Mike, that there are lots of opportunities here.

Ted, here is a different crop maybe close to what you suggest.

[PRSearls]

Hi Terri. That is a wonderful subject for IR. The tighter crop looks like a stronger composition to my eye. I too, had the same conversion done a few months ago. I am enjoying the "new" look. Jason P. Odell (http://luminescentphoto.com) has a very good video on digital IR processing. It helped me a lot. I've experimented with color IR but like the B & W conversion better.

[rpcrowe]

Ted wrote;

"How do you handle the slightly different focusing needed for IR?"

The older manual focus lenses often had an "IR" mark with which you focused normally and then when shooting IR film, you would switch the IR point to the focus distance. The IR focus point is the red dot on this image of a lens...



Some companies that convert digital cameras to full time IR, request that you send the lens that you will be using along with the camera to be converted.

Others state that you should shoot around f/11 or f/16 and let the DOF take care of the focus; which is how I shoot my IR...

I shoot a lot of my IR with the Tokina 12-24mm f/4 lens. Although this is a lens designed for crop sensors, it is capable of mounting on a camera that has an EF mount. Canon's early DSLR cameras such as the D30, D60 and 10D did not accept EFS mount lenses, that makes the 12-24mm f/4 Tokina a good choice for my old D60...

I do most of my IR PP in B&W...

I like the contrast of the white foliage with the very dark sky.

Apropos of nothing... Kodak once manufactured an infra red camouflage detection Ektachrome film which showed live foliage in a bright red and dead foliage or imitation foliage in black. This was mostly aimed at aerial camera film sizes but, it was also supplied in 35mm film size...

[bnnrcn]

Beautiful shot Terri