For quite a while I’ve been playing with the idea of infrared photography. Infrared film is a specie at the verge of extinction. So I have to scratch infrared film photography off my ”Love to shoot” list. Recently I bought an infrared filter to convert myself my Nikon D100 to infrared light from Life Pixel.com. Because my infrared pictures are ocassional, I decided to leave a perfectly working camera as is and went the Hoya IR-72 filter way. Infrared filters are expensive, since I was going to experiment, buying a 77mm IR-72 filter was a little steep for a filter I’ll use every now and then on my Nikon 17-55 AF-S F/2.8. Actually, the price of a 77mm Hoya IR-72 in many reputable web dealers is as high as almost having my Nikon D100 converted to IR. Given the price factor, I decided to go with a smaller version of the infrared filter and ordered a 52mm. It is substantially cheaper then the 77mm counterpart. Once I got the filter, I was amazed to see how much light is lost with it. If you ever seen one of those goggles iron workers use, you can get the idea of how dark this Hoya Infrared filter is.
With a 52mm filter, I’m somehow limited to 2 lenses I have, my Nikon 35mm F/2 and 50mm F/1.4. All infrared pictures shown here have been taken with my Nikon D200 coupled to the Nikon 35mm F/2. My local camera dealer, gets every now and then the new Nikkor 18-55 DX lens. This lens is included as a kit on the Nikon D40, D40x and D50. Many folks usually upgrade to another lens giving the 18-55 as trade in. Since the Nikon 18-55 is a very modest lens, it can ne found in the $70-$99 range depending on condition. You’ve guessed it, I’m getting a Nikon 18-55 exclusively for infrared photos and still I’m saving money compared to the 77mm filter for my
17-55 AFS-F/2.8.
With the infrared filter on front of your lens there are a few downsides. First, forget about auto focus, since the filter is so dark, there’s nothing your camera can ”see” to focus on. You have to manually focus your scene and then attach the filter to the lens. But hey, be careful, lenses are designed to focus visible light; since the image you are recording is done with light invisible to our eyes (and your camera), your pictures might turn out blurry, out-of focus. There are markings on your lens especially for IR. Usually a colored dot on your lens, if in doubt, refer to your lens manual. I have tested mine in several ways and mostly, a little trial and error is involved to achieve the correct focus. However, I found good results when using my lens near to infinity.
Shutter speeds with infrared photography when using a filter: This can be dissapointing and challenging as well. The pictures you are seeing on this page were taken in ISO 800 between F/5.6-F/8 at noon for shutter speeds in the 3 to 7 seconds. Needless to say, a sturdy tripod is mandatory. Given this factor, wind becomes our enemy when shooting at these speeds. Because of the wind, our pictures depicting foliage may look blurry due to the movement during the exposure. In this case, our photographer greatest virtue (patience) is our ally. I usually shoot on very calm days. Depending on the wind conditions, it is wise to wait camera on tripod and shoot when it becomes calm. In no time you will develop your own skills and judgment to overcome this drawback. Please bear in mind that the Nikon D200 has a very strong IR filter already built in and that’s why shuuter speeds are very long. Longer than the D70. So if you have a Nikon D70s, the camera could be better suited for this type of images because Nikon has a weaker IR filter on front of the sensor. But don’t be discouraged by this, if I was able to do it with a D200, so can you!
-RAW or JPEG?
-Actually it up to you, however I strictly shoot RAW.
-If shooting with a Nikon D200:
-Should you shoot color or Black and White directly on my camera?
It is also up to you but I prefer to photograph in color. The files out of the camera will have a red overall cast on the pictures. If you use AUTO LEVELS in Adobe Photoshop (or the photo editing of your chioce), you will see like magic how your infrared pictures will have a distinctive tint especially on the sky known as ”false color”. You can later on enhance this using the Channel Mixer.
-Should you convert your camera to Infrared or should you stick to a filter?
I can’t answer that, in my personal case I’ll be shooting IR every once in a while, so although I almost got converted my Nikon D100, I changed my mind at the last minute. Having the camera converted has some advantages. The best one is the ability to shoot pictures at faster shutter speeds and not being constrained to a tripod, you cameras will focus and meter as normal.
-You’ve heard that noon is not the best time for normal photography right?
Since Chlorophyll in foliage reflects infrared light, I found that the harsher the noon light, the cooler looking pictures I get.
Indeed, a polarizer filter adds a postcard touch to your pictures
you probably have seen those beautiful landscapes pictures with fluffy clouds against beautiful deep blue skies. You might have seen them also in those travel magazines showing inviting pictures of Emerald green and Turquoise Caribbean beaches. Well, there is no secret that photographers use polarizer filters to increase and dramatize these images. Good thing is that you don’t need to go to the caribbean to get polarized pictures. See, that one on the left was taken in the plain corn fields of Farmington, MN. What you should know is that not all scenes can NOT be polarized if you are not in the right position and/or the light is not favorable. There will be times when honestly, a polarizer will do little or nothing for your pictures.
First time buying a polarizing filter?
A polarizer filter polarizes the light entering your lens. You should know before you buy that there are two different types of polarizing filters. Linear and Circular: First, linear polarizing filters were designed for manual focus lenses and they are not really friendly with today’s modern auto focus lenses. If you are using an auto focus system (and I bet you probably are), the filter to order before you press place order on your on-line camera supplier, is the Circular Polarizer. Again, Circular polarizing filters are the ones to go with your AF (auto focus) lenses.
Polarizing is fun,
in my case I wear eye glasses and my prescribed sun glasses are polarized, thus I see a ”polarized” scene without having to mount the filter on my lens. You can also raise the filter and rotate it around the scene you intend to photograph, this will give you an idea if it’s worth mounting the filter on your camera or not. If you don’t see any effect while rotating, don’t you even bother. You must know that a polarizer filters cuts about 1½ stop of light. So if it is not doing anything in favor of your picture, then don’t use it and use the extra light and speed on your favor. Polarizer filters are not only to emphasize beautiful skies and clouds on your pictures. They also come handy when taking pictures of high reflective non-metallic surfaces like glass and water. Go outside to your driveway and rotate the filter, you’ll see how the asphalt even turns to a deeper black either if it is wet or dry. Same happens when shooting landscapes with waterfalls. It removes unwanted reflections on wet rocks and even some glare on leafs. If you shoot landscapes you shouldn’t leave home without one of these. They are great to pop-up the greens on foliage.
But which circular polarizer filter?
Well, there are plenty to choose from including generic brands. The best Polarizer filters are made by Hoya/Hama, Heliopan, Nikon, Tiffen and being the top of the line in my honest opinion, Singray and B+W. As a good lens, a polarizing or even a good UV filter is an investment for years to come. Many folks use a ”thin” filter on their 17-55 (or 3rd party equivalent) lens. This prevents dark corners on the pictures caused by the filter’s metal ring. I have yet to experience this problem on my 17-55 AFS F/2.8 because this focal length equals around 25.5-82mm. However, if you are intending to use a polarizing filter with lets say a 12-24, Sigma 10-20, Canon 10-22, ect. I strongly recommend one of the ”thin” also known as ”slim” version. Failure to use a thin or slim filter on one of these lenses, may result in dark corners. Click on this link to see a picture and you will get the idea.
Rule of thumb: I’ve seen this so often, please DO NOT stack a polarizing filter over your UV (ultra violet) filter. Besides polarizing, your filter will also work against UV rays. Stacking both filters will increase the amount of dark corners as seen on the link above. You are degrading the quality of your image by adding more glass on front of your lens and last but not least, your are inviting unwanted lens flare to your photos.
With the announcement of the new Nikon D300s and D3000, Nikon also introduced an improved version of their hot seller 70-200 AF-S F/2.8. The promise is better corner rendition on FX format cameras, better low light capabilities and superb image quality thanks to its 7 special ED glass elements and NANO coatings technology which will reduce image ghosting and flare. Nikon also promises better rendition at wider appertures.
Last but not least, a new version of the popular 18-200VR has been revised as well. This lens corrects the famous ”zoom creep” that annoyed so many adopters of the first 18-200 zoom lens version.
Key features on the new revised Nikon 18-200VR-II
Today Nikon announced 2 new cameras that have been rumored on the internet for the last few months. The new D300s comes with a new set of features more notable the capacity for an extra SD card along with the already included Compact Flash slot. Also HD makes its debut but sad to say that it won’t be 1080p as some of us were expecting. Rather it stays at 72op as is the Nikon D90. It’s been a while since Nikon added the letter S as a designation on one of their DSLR’.
New key features on the Nikon D300s:
Compared to the old D300:
* 720p HD video, including autofocus while recording
* SD card slot in addition to existing CF slot
* Faster continuous shooting (7fps, vs. 6fps)
* Socket for external microphone
* Live View and Info buttons
* Discrete ‘OK’ button in multi controller
* Interactive settings display screen
* Auto and Extra High Active D-Lighting options
* Quiet drive mode
* Virtual horizon
Nikon D3000
This camera will fill in for the Nikon D60 its latest compact DSLR. It will be the company’s least expensive DSLR and inherits the 10.2 MP DX-format CCD sensor and 3fps continuous shooting rate from the D60. It also adds a larger, 3.0 inch LCD and the 11-point AF system with 3D tracking we saw in the D5000 and D90. Targeted towards beginners and experienced compact users, the camera features a new Guide mode to help learn how to get the most out of a DSLR. The recommended selling price will be $599 with 18-55mm VR lens.
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