IR Photography with the T30

[tomcat]

Tested out the T30 today for IR shooting and found that it was surprisingly sensitive to IR. It was actually possible to compose the shots on the LCD screen after covering the lens with a Hoya R72 IR filter.

The main problem with the T30 in IR photography is that there is no filter thread to mount the IR filter and there is no custom white balance function. The filter has to be held in fron of the lens and it is quick easy for the fingers to get into the angle of view and ruin the shot.

Nevertheless, it is possible to shoot handheld IR pixs with the T30 especially in sunny conditions. These are some handheld test pixs taken at Auto camera settings after post-processing.

#1

1/8s, f/3.5 at 6.3mm ISO 320

#2

1/8s, f/3.5 at 6.3mm ISO 320

#3

1/3s, f/3.5 at 6.3mm ISO 320

#4

1/6s, f/3.5 at 6.3mm ISO 320

#5

1/6s, f/3.5 at 6.3mm ISO 320

Better results could probably be achieved by using a tripod, selecting lower ISO speeds and increasing the EV by the right amount to get a proper exposure.

[kcuf2]

i dunno how to say...but something is wrong somewhere with the colours..i think its the white balance..

anyway hi fellow ntuian, results coming out soon :P

[tomcat]

umm... I thought I did state that these are Infra Red pixs and not normal coloured pixs

[nathan]

so Tomcat, all the above is hand held is it?
I will try it tomorrow.......thanks

[tomcat]

Yes, all handheld.... guess the Super Steadyshot image stabiliser does work

[tomcat]

The weather was really sunny today. So I decided to have another go to see how the T30 perform under such conditions.

#1


#2


#3


#4

[Zann Tiang]

IR with T30, wow. kudos to you.

seems a little dark, like as if i can see the ND/IR filter~

but well~ it's a T30 eh?

[tomcat]

Thanks for viewing.

From my experience, different cameras generally produce different IR effects depending on the sensitivity of the sensor to IR. The overall IR effect produced by the T30 seems to tend towards dull and low contrast IR images when used under Auto mode like in these photos. The overall contrast might be improved somewhat if I had increased the EV, used ISO 100... and used a tripod which would then be necessary, but I didn't have a tripod with me at the time and had to shoot them handheld.

I think also that the lack of a Custom White Balance mode could have contributed to this. My Nikon Coolpix 950 looked to be slightly more IR sensitive than the T30 but could produce higher contrast images... and it has Custom White Balance which I always used when shooting with the Coolpix 950. Examples are here:
http://www.pbase.com/pschia/nikon_coolpix_950

[psychomatic]

Wah! I also want try IR with my T5. What IR filter you use? Any IR filter will do?

[vortex]

hey tomcat...u know which other sony compact models can shoot IR or not? W30/w50?

im thinking of getting a compact cam...lazy to use my nikon at times

[tomcat]

Originally Posted by psychomatic Wah! I also want try IR with my T5. What IR filter you use? Any IR filter will do?

Any IR filter should do but the commonest IR filter is the Hoya R72 which was the one that I had used on the T30.

[tomcat]

Originally Posted by vortex hey tomcat...u know which other sony compact models can shoot IR or not? W30/w50? im thinking of getting a compact cam...lazy to use my nikon at times

I have not tried out the other Sony digicams but I think other users in the Sony forum of dpreview had and they seem to be IR-capable.

I think that your D70 should be much better for IR than these Sony digicams though.