Hello,
I am trying to understand Digital Infra Red Photography with an M8, and I have read this:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57158&highlight=infra+reda couple of questions:
And I still have a question:
Is the M8 specially good for this purpose, or there are better choises for IR photography?
Thanks in advance for any help!
Ernesto
In short, there are probably better choices for
infrared photography.
However (beginning of the long answer) the M8 (I don't have one, but I know about them) is very sensitive to infrared as digital cameras go. All CCD based digital cameras are sensitive to IR light - it's just the nature of a CCD sensor. Most digital cameras (including the M8) put a bluish piece of glass, called a "hot mirror" in front of the sensor to exclude infrared light, as it can effect the color of various objects, notably cotton cloth and foliage. These "hot mirror" filters vary in strength. The one incorporated in the M8 is particularly weak - that is, it doesn't exclude a lot of the IR. This is the reason that Leica sends IR cut filters (external "hot mirrors") to those customers who want to exclude more IR. So, as digital cameras go, the M8 is very sensitive to IR light.
An IR filter is an opaque (or nearly so) filter that lets IR light through, but blocks visible light. By placing one of these over the lens of an M8 camera, only IR light reaches the sensor. This is what gives the IR effect (light foliage and clothing, dark skies and water) that you see in these pictures. Some other cameras that also have weak internal IR filters so that IR pictures (with an IR filter) can be taken hand held are Nikon's D100, CP950 and the Sony 717. The M8 has better specs that any of these and has excellent lenses available, so it DOES make a good IR camera -
if you want to shoot IR only occasionally.
However, the BEST way to shoot digital IR is with an IR converted camera. IR conversion involves removing the internal "hot mirror" filter and replacing it with an IR filter. That way the sensor will see only IR light. Unfortunately, a converted camera will no longer be able to take regular color pictures. (Replacing the internal filter
IS reversible, but it is an expensive, and time consuming operation.) Converted cameras are easily hand-held, often more sensitive than the original visible light incarnation.
I have a Nikon D70 that was converted for IR use. I shoot it as I would any normal camera, and
usually the picture turns out fine. But the IR content of light is not always obvious. So with the IR camera, I pay close attention to the histogram of the picture, and adjust the exposure accordingly. Strong sunlight, tungsten light and flash has a lot of IR and makes good illumination. Golden hour light, although rich in red, can be weak in IR, as are CFL bulbs and regular fluorescents. Computer screens (and TVs) have almost no IR at all.
My preferred IR medium is film, however the BEST IR film, Kodak's HIE is no longer made, and my refrigerated supply is dwindling. This film was so sensitive to IR, and
insensitive to green (and other visible) light, that it only required a red filter, not the usual opaque IR (Wratten 89B, or 87) filters. The best current IR film is Fotokemica's (Efke, Mako, etc.) Aura. It has many of the same characteristics as HIE, but lacks it's insensitivity to green, and it's speed.
So, back to the short answer, the M8 is not the best camera for full time IR photography, a converted camera is, but for occasional IR with the majority of photos taken in visible light, it's a good one.
