Does anyone know if there is someone doing English Speaking Infrared Workshops in person using OpenSource software eg Darktable. There are several around but all using Windows and Photoshop. I use Linux, Darktable, Ansel andGimp.
I live in Ireland, so somewhere in the UK or EU would be preferred.
Despite having been shooting IR for well over 25 years, and Digital IR for nearly 20, I still have problems from time to time with White Balance.
Thanks in advance.
I would imagine that an open source photography workshop is pretty niche on its own, and infrared even more niche. The Venn diagram isn’t looking good.
I do some infrared photography on darktable but mostly process as monochrome, and have pretty much done it all with trial and error.
I would suggest the best approach might be to post some problematic images on a new thread as a PlayRaw.
Maybe you already watched this video, but It might be helpful to other people
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Have you seen these. I think also there is a guy…Rob Shea that has done several videos…
https://www.youtube.com/@IRreCams/videos
Edit
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Would you also like a response to the above?
Sven of IRrecams in Gemany has an excellent Youtube channel (both German as well as English) which is fully centered around Darktable. He also did my Pentax K-3 full-spectrum conversion.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYXPpv49U9yGxdKIQdqBl4X5T1VxgPExJ
Yes please, all ideas welcome.
Many thanks to you all for your very helpful suggestions.
I will be checking them all out.
Regards
Francis
I’ve done IR with Sigma Foveon DSLRs SD10 thru SD1M with their easy-to-remove UV/IR blocking filter in the lens-mount, and also have a Panasonic DMC-G1 converted to “full spectrum” by LifePixel.
I find the term “white balance” to be a misnomer in IR work with the enormous color unbalancing involved in that work. Certainly with the Sigmas, all the the proprietary converter can produce is a magenta with no green at all.
On the other hand, the Panasonic produce reasonable images a brown sky and quite nice foliage because LifePixel didn’t remove the CFA from the sensor. So on that camera, I shoot with the camera WB set to the lowest possible Kelvin and take what comes to an editor with a three-channel and don’t care what the xyY white point ends up as.
So I wouldn’t bother thinking about “white balance” per se for IR work.
Thanks for taking time to tell us what you do, @cedric . Interesting.
I do rather like to see something in the camera near what you would expect when taking the shot. Just a personal preference. I know the WB can be adjusted in post processing, but it does help me decide which filter to use when I am out and about.
All the best
I assume you’re trying to do “false colour” infrared with some visible light in the mix - you haven’t mentioned much about the kit you’re using.
I have gone through a few bits of kit over the last few years but these days I have a 720nm-converted Fuji X-T2. With that setup I generally tend to spot white balance off some foliage in-camera and then use the picker in color calibration to “white balance” the image. It being 720nm, at that point the image is nearly monochrome anyway but I do like the ever so slight bit of colour that’s left and I mostly leave it there. If the colour is distracting I’ll do a simple monochrome conversion (in a second instance of color calibration) using all three channels equally.
I use an Olympus OM-D Camera converted to 630nm by LifePixel with 700nm and 830nm filters to use as and when.
Fortunately that camera has 4 WB Presets, so I can setup the WB and save to a preset for each filter. I did have a pretty good setup, but then lost the settings, so I am now trying to get them back to the way they were. The 830 is not really a problem it is the subtle difference between the others that is the problem.
Unfortunately there is considerable inconsistency in selecting some foliage eg grass or tree for the WB. Repeating the setting and saving it, taking a photo and repeating does not give consistent results which is very frustrating.
As @elstoc says his 720nm, my 700nm, have really nice soft tones which I love. Getting the correct WB is half the battle. That is part of the joy of IR of course. The experimentation both in the Camera and Post Processing.
I am a Linux user ( have been for well over 25 years) with Darktable or Ansel and Gimp mainly.
I still think it would be nice to see something as a PlayRaw. Always good to see what others use infrared for.
At 630Nm, you should be able to white balance from a gray card. Higher than that, and you’re in b/w territory. Its all made up colors anyway, just make 'em pleasing.
Thanks, @elstoc, I see where you are coming from, however I am trying to sort out the camera, not any Post Processing, so I will pass on that for now.
Now that is a good idea @paperdigits, I will give that a try with a proper card.
I have tried with light grey rock (I live in a rocky place), but even using the same rock it is not consistent.
Oh, I guess I’m only now re-reading your posts and realising that you were referring in-camera white balance all along. I thought you were talking about white balance in editing.
If you’re shooting raw images, the only thing you really need white balance for is to prevent the camera accidentally clipping one of the channels (since the camera histogram uses the converted jpeg to get its data). Apart from that I would prefer to fix that stuff in post.
I’ve also found that using a monochrome style in camera can help with assessing exposure.
Thanks for that, @elstoc, There is always something new to learn. Keeps the brain going!