1st attempt at IR with an S1

[css01]

is this the best that I can do? I think this picture would be awesome if it was anywhere close to being sharp.

any help on what I can do to get a sharper photo?

http://server6.uploadit.org/files/skills01-infrared.jpg

File Name
IMG_0020.JPG
Camera Model Name
Canon PowerShot S1 IS
Shooting Date/Time
7/11/2004 1:07:55 PM
Shooting Mode
Shutter Speed Priority AE
Photo Effect Mode
Off
Tv( Shutter Speed )
2.5
Av( Aperture Value )
4.5
Metering Mode
Center-weighted averaging
Exposure Compensation
0
ISO Speed
50
Lens
5.8 - 58.0mm
Focal Length
5.8mm
Digital Zoom
None
Image Stabilizer
Off
Image Size
2048x1536
Image Quality
Superfine
Flash
Off
White Balance
Daylight
AF Mode
Continuous AF
Color Space
sRGB
File Size
1066KB
Drive Mode
Self-Timer Operation
Owner's Name

[css01]

the filter I used was a Hoya R72 Infrared.

[Andy_T]

Most likely you used a tripod, with 2.5 secs exposure. Right?

Did the camera focus correctly?

To me, it looks as if the photo was not in focus. MAybe you could try to focus manually and put the aperture to f/5.6.

Best regards,
Andy

[css01]

Most likely you used a tripod, with 2.5 secs exposure. Right?

Did the camera focus correctly?

To me, it looks as if the photo was not in focus. MAybe you could try to focus manually and put the aperture to f/5.6.

Best regards,
Andyyeah, I used a tripod. I was worried that pressing the shutter would cause the camera to shake, so I also used a two second timer.

[whowie]

Couple of things:

Traditional B+W IR film photography was never sharp. To that end, to recreate an IR look in the digital world we often add a bit of gausian blur to the image to make it look more authentic.

Secondly, and the problem you may be experiencing here, is that light in the near IR focuses at at different point than visible light. Older lenses, in fact, would have a small red arrow on the focus barrel that indicated the IR focus point. You would focus in visible light then turn the focus barrel until the visible light focus distance lined up with the red arrow. It wasn't a great difference but, a difference none the less. I think what's happening in your image is that the autofocus is set up for visible light (as it would be) but you are recording the slightly out of focus IR spectrum. I can't remember if the IR focus point is behind or in front of the visible light focus point so, manually focus your shot then alternately try backing off and adding to the manual focus point until you find the IR focus.

Check this site for some digitally created "faux infrared" images: www.lightimages.org .

[whowie]

One more thing comes to mind. Is the sensor in Powershot S1 actually capable of recording the IR spectrum adequately? Not all digicams do a good job. Check some WEB sites and find out. You may be better off shooting your image normally then creating the faux infrared effect in Photoshop.

[stopbath]

Did the camera actually achieve focus on this image?

Perhaps the camera could not lock exposure and just when for the best guess (which was wrong.)

It also looks a bit underexposed (muddy).

This photo would likely be better at another time of day when the water falls were in sunlight instead of shadow.

[css01]

Did the camera actually achieve focus on this image?

Perhaps the camera could not lock exposure and just when for the best guess (which was wrong.)

It also looks a bit underexposed (muddy).

This photo would likely be better at another time of day when the water falls were in sunlight instead of shadow.

It's tough to see what the focus was like on the LCD, the image is very dark and it was pretty bright out. I'm guessing that's a problem, though, as IR doesn't focus the same as visible light.

spent $40 bucks on the filter, so I'll keep experimenting, trying new things.

[ryuwulf]

The best way i found is bracket your times. Im talking about 8 seconds on down to 1. Thats the best way for IR IMHO.

I used a G3, hoya IR filter, and a hoya red filter.
Talk about pitch black. Very hard to focus, but i got a shot in

here is a quick pic that i took

G3
IR filter
red filter
tripod
f 5.6 (i think)
8 seconds
http://www.ryuwulf.net/photo/albums/userpics/g3/normal_infrared.jpg
no photoshop touch up
remember i had to bracket for the best exposure.Use the maxium F stop you can.
im sure you already know this but in film photography, its always good to use a red filter and a polarizer for deeper/contrastier results. thats why i used the extra red filter, it stops blues and greens and allows red. Your hoya filter by itself will work just fine, i just made it harder for myself, to get a little extra contrast out of the shot, by adding the red

[css01]

The best way i found is bracket your times. Im talking about 8 seconds on down to 1. Thats the best way for IR IMHO.
I'm not sure I understand this.

Are you saying that I should take a series of photos, starting with an eight second expsure down to one second?

[ryuwulf]

Are you saying that I should take a series of photos, starting with an eight second expsure down to one second?

yes chances are you will get a good shot :D


Its called bracketing. Take the first shot at 8 sec, next 7, 6, etc. remember to leave your f stop alone.

The meter on your camera will always be under exposed slightly, when it comes to IR.

Infrared is tricky business and you will hardly ever get it right the first time.
There is some tweaking involved, to get it right. Same applies for film photography, if you are not sure about a shot meter the scene, then bracket one stop up and one stop down.

remember to max out your f stop to get a better DOF.

on the link i posted, i went thru at 9 shots before that one turned out.