Infared and Time on Your Hands

By Patrick Fulks

2 August 2007

I had purchased an infrared filter for my Nikon D200 and of course had to take it out and play with it. The initial images that I got were ok but I wanted to do something a little different from the average shots of trees and grass that usually come out white with a infrared filter versus darker tones in a standard black and white. I wanted to get creative.

So I contacted a model that I regularly work with and we got to work. We decided that the eerie effect that an infrared filter can give was perfect for cemeteries (which you will find infrared of gravestones and such on several sites on the internet) but to be creative we decided to work with the multiple exposure feature of the D200. We were going to create a duplicate of my model and make her visit her ghost self in front of a grave marker.

To do this I had to first set my camera for shooting in black and white. If you leave your camera set to shoot in color you will get nothing but a red image. This is caused by the infrared filter does not allow for any visible light to get through. Only light from the upper spectrum (above 720mm) passes to your sensor.

Next I had to set the camera for four exposures of the image. I set the ISO at 100, f3.8 and exposure at 125 The first three of the four exposures I set for 8 seconds each. The reasoning behind why I did three exposures of the exact same thing would be to make the model appear solid. I had the model stand next to the grave marker and place her hand approximately 1.5 inches above the top of the marker. Now here comes the hard part. She had to remain perfectly still for each of the first three exposures and not even blink. If you want to get an idea of how difficult this is stand up and hold your arm out, don't move a muscle or blink for 24 seconds. It's tougher than it looks. (got to give the model her due!) We took the first three exposures and had her move to the other side of the marker, kneel on the ground and place her hand on the top of the marker to give the appearance of her hand being under where the hand was placed in the first three exposures.

I set the camera for 15 seconds on the last exposure to get enough light in to make her visible over the first three exposures.

The blur effect of the models dress when standing was caused by the slight wind that was blowing that day and you can see this in the leaves of the trees in the background. It is highly recommended that if you are going to do prolonged exposures of more than a couple seconds that you try this on a day where there is very little or no wind to get a crisp clean image. Personally I like the effect, and feel that it adds to the overall eerie feel of this picture.

I do want to note that the settings of my camera are strictly what I used for this shot and are not a standard by any means. It will vary depending on time of day, and if it's overcast or direct sunlight. Play with these settings to get the desired effect. To do this you will not be able to see through the viewfinder of your camera as I stated before, the infrared filter does not let any visible light through. You will have to basically aim the lens and shoot. Then check your image and adjust to frame out your shot. I can't imagine how difficult this must have been before digital cameras were commonplace and trying to frame a shot with film.

Should you decide to try infrared photography I wish you luck and happy shooting!

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