Summertime. Here in Arizona, the light becomes harsh in short order. One of the things I do to increase my shooting time is to switch to the infrared camera.
High sun and infrared capture lead to some interesting high-contrast images. I had a Lumix G6 converted to an infrared sensor by Life Pixel. Being an old traditionalist I use the standard 720 Nanometers (NM), which can give a standard IR look. It can also be processed in a different using toning techniques, which I’ll share in another post.
Work the scene
When you see a subject that you feel might be interesting don’t make one image and go on your merry way. Investigate. Try different angles. Use different focal lengths from your camera. Many times you will find that with further exploration you’ll end up with a solid photo. And more!
The log
Here’s a case in point. I was hiking through Watson Lake Trail in Prescott, AZ. I noticed a fallen tree below. Knowing that the scene would be in black and white I wanted to try different looks as composition sells the subject. The leaves of the deciduous tree next to the fallen log soldier made an excellent counterpoint. Leaves rendered a bright glowing white.
I forgot to make a color image of the scene for reference but know that at this time of day, the scene was pretty blah. Pre-visualizing made me work it the way I did. I feel there are a few compositions that work.
My favorite
Here was my favorite of the series.
Let me know your favorite of these three. For more on infrared shooting, check out this article.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
