Infrared & Olympus E-20

[fredsphotos]

Is the Olympus E-20 capable of producing infrared type images with

the Wratten/Tiffen 87 or Hoya R72 filters (or others)? Thanks!

[peter nelson]

What are "infrared <B>type</B> images"? Don't forget that what makes infrared film images look the way they do is that the IR film lacks an antihalation layer, not merely that it's sensitive to IR wavelenghs.

[fredsphotos]

Oops! Sorry - i'm mostly after the look you get with B&W infrared film.

[ed_tobin]

I will admit that I am no expert on IR images but I thought it was the film that

created the IR.

 

have you tryed doing it after the fact with photoshop? I have seen this

described in photoshop books.

[peter nelson]

<I>Oops! Sorry - i'm mostly after the look you get with B&W infrared film.</I><P>

 

You won't get that with a digicam.<P>

 

Here's a simple way to fake it in Photoshop. Select the red channel only and throw out the other two. That gives you your black blue-skies and white skin tones, etc. Then make a duplicate layer. In the duplicate layer, only, apply a gaussian blur. Then blend the two layers until you get the amount of "glow" you're looking for.

[__jon__]

>What are "infrared type images"? Don't forget that what makes infrared film images look the way they do is that the IR film lacks an antihalation layer, not merely that it's sensitive to IR wavelenghs.

 

Uh, not quite. The 'glow'(halation) is caused by the lack of antihalation layer. The black sky/white vegetation (Wood Effect) is a function of the sensitivity of the IR wavelengths. The sensitivity has much more to do with the 'look' than the antihalation layer.

 

And, Kodak HIE doesn't have an antihalation layer. Maco 820 does. Maco Aura doesn't. Konica does.

[__jon__]

>You won't get that with a digicam.

 

Fred, you might want to do some searching with google.com, you aren't getting very good advice here. Many people do digital IR. The first time I did it was three years ago, with a Nikon 950.

 

Try some of these links:

 

http://www.echeng.com/photo/infrared/

http://infrareddreams.com/gallery_penn2.htm

 

 

If you do want to do your IR in a photoeditor, try Fred Miranda's Photoshop action:

 

http://www.fredmiranda.com/DI/

 

Or Land and Sky:

 

http://www.nickgallery.com/web_pages/technical%207.htm

 

For a guy that is very good with photoshop IR, see here:

 

http://www.animalu.com/pics/photos.htm

 

For general info on both film and digital IR, see the FAQ:

 

http://www.cocam.co.uk/CoCamWS/Infrared/INFRARED.HTM

[tom_brabant]

I read an article about this within the past year or so, and I think it was in Outdoor Photographer. I tried it with my Olympus, but did not have a deep enough red filter, so I didn't pursue it. As I remember, the article mentioned that some digital cameras had a filter of some sort behind the lens that prevented this inf-red process. Crazy as it may seem, the article suggested that you could test your camera with a TV remote changer, which uses inf-red. If you could see the reflection of the inf-red beam when pointed toward the lens, then you could use the filter with effect. Or was it the other way around? Maybe you can find a reference to that article on the net.

[bill_hopkins__jr]

Here is a very good website on Infrared basics...found this a while back....

 

Infrared basics for digital Photographers

 

http://www.cliffshade.com/dpfwiw/ir.htm

[richheath]

I have been using my Oly C4040 very successfully for IR for a few days now (see pic for latest trial). I have heard that the E-20 wasn't as good for IR as some previous cameras but I'm not sure. If you want to try it cheaply, see if you can find one of the Ilford SFX filters. They are gelatin so you may need a holder but if you want a cheap way to experiment before getting a proper round filter then they're worth a go. I believe they are equivalent to a Hoya R72 (but a LOT cheaper!). Give it a go, it's given me hours of fun. You can also add the glow effect later in photoshop with the diffuse glow feature. It doesn't give quit the same feel as a proper film IR but it can be close and it sure is a lot cheaper, faster and more convenient!! Good luck.<div></div>

[panmedia]

Richard,

 

What is your typical time (shutter speed) / aperture to take a digital IR photo under daylight using Olypus 4040?

 

Fred,

 

E20 and E10 is not ideal digital IR cameras. Canon D60 is not. Nikon D100 is not.

 

- philip

[richheath]

Philip,

 

I usually use a shutter speed of about 3.5 secs if the subject is in full sun. Aperture usually F2.3. Ofcourse the problems with this are less DOF than I would like and subject movement (best not to go out on windy days!). I usually use -0.7 exposure compensation to get some detail in the highlights and to make the shadows a little more full bodied.

Hope this helps.