Sunday, January 3, 2010

Evolution of the Revolution




Over the past 6 months, we have converted close to 100 cameras to digital Infrared for our clients.  These conversions are usually at 715nm, which produces files that are very similar to the classic black & white infrared images we had with film photography.  Our continued partnership with Precision Camera has enabled us to provide an outstanding service to our clients who are looking for solid advise and experience. Precision Camera has also selected Digital Silver Imaging as their preferred partner for Infrared Conversions.

Once we have converted the cameras, we can then advise people about how to work with their files.  The images that come up in the camera and in your photo editing software will still have to be adjusted to produce a true Infrared image.  This is what you can expect your digital file will look like:

The file looks red or magenta.  We have found that working with Nik Silver Efex Pro software yields the best results for all of our black and white digital work, and especially when we're working with digital infrared files from our clients. 

We open our RAW file in Photoshop and then launch Silver Efex Pro and look at the preview file again.



In this side by side comparison, we can still see the RAW file on the left and the initial black and white conversion on the right.  Nik gives you some basic presets on the left hand side as a good starting point.  For many of the Infrared files we have received, we have found that the preset for "High Structure" yields great results.  You may have to reduce the amount of structure depending on the individual file.

Neutral Setting                              High Structure



Of course you can continue to tweak and edit the file according to your own needs.  We like to add in one of the preset film types that comes with Nik Silver Efex Pro.

 

Digital Silver Imaging is offering a special package price on Infrared Conversions and Silver Efex Pro software.  We can provide conversions on most major digital cameras, from compact point & shoot models to full frame DSLR's like the Canon 5d.




Save $10 on any compact camera model or $25 on any DSLR model when you buy Nik Silver Efex Pro from Digital Silver Imaging.



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