INFRARED (R) PHOTOGRAPHY

Visible light is a spectrum of seven colours (380 – 700 nanometers) – violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange and red. Beyond red is ‘infrared’, which we cannot see. But between red and infrared, lies ‘near-infrared’ which also we cannot see. When we say that an image is an infrared capture, we are actually referring to the capture of nearinfrared. Near-infrared spectrum lies between 700 and 1200 nanometers. (1 nanometer is equal to one-billionth of a meter).

- Rohinton Mehta

At the outset, let me clear a myth. Some photographers think that when we use an infrared camera (or a standard camera with an IR filter attached) we are recording the heatwaves given off an object. That is incorrect. That genre of photography is known as ‘thermal imaging’.

Why Infrared Photography?

IR photography opens up a new way of recording things. Tones, colours, and textures look very different. Some people love it, some don’t.

When to shoot in Infrared?

Normal (non-Infrared) photography is generally done when the light is ‘soft’ or ‘medium soft’ (early mornings/late evenings). Infrared photography is done when the light is harsh (nearing noon).

Requirements for IR photography

You can attach an IR filter to the lens or you can use a standard camera converted to IR.

Advantages / Disadvantages

Simply attaching an IR filter on to your lens is obviously the simpler and cheaper way out. The disadvantage is that the shutter speeds will get too long for hand-held photography. This means you can only photograph static objects. And even if you do use a tripod, you cannot stop subject movement with such long exposures.

An infrared-converted camera allows you to use any and all shutter speeds, thereby not limiting you to photograph only stationary subjects.