old joe
Member
any thoughts or tips on doing it with this camera
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Dimage 7 for IR photography
- Thread starter old joe
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neilt3
Veteran Member
The Dimage 7 works fine for I.R photography , unmodified .
Get a good quality filter , B+W or Hoya , mount on a sturdy tripod and go for it .
Use either the 10 second self timer or remote release to avoid camera shake .
.
Do not get the Dimage 7i or later models as they used a stronger Infrared cut filter on them .
.
I normally use a Sony NEX 3 for my infrared shots that I removed the hot mirror on and replaced it with a plain one so I could use it for full spectrum .
There is someone here that regularly uses a Dimage 7 for infrared .
See this thread http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3977051
He also has a good selection on Flickr ;
https://www.flickr.com/photos/turbguy/albums/72157617845585164
Get a good quality filter , B+W or Hoya , mount on a sturdy tripod and go for it .
Use either the 10 second self timer or remote release to avoid camera shake .
.
Do not get the Dimage 7i or later models as they used a stronger Infrared cut filter on them .
.
I normally use a Sony NEX 3 for my infrared shots that I removed the hot mirror on and replaced it with a plain one so I could use it for full spectrum .
There is someone here that regularly uses a Dimage 7 for infrared .
See this thread http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3977051
He also has a good selection on Flickr ;
https://www.flickr.com/photos/turbguy/albums/72157617845585164
old joe
Member
thanks very much
neilt3
Veteran Member
A few other websites you might be interested in are ;
http://www.ayton.id.au/gary/photo/photo_infrared.htm
https://www.lifepixel.com/
I've started doing a lot more film photography again and I am in the process of building a darkroom as I'm using 35mm , 120 and 5"x4" cameras .
I've recently got hold of some Rollei Infrared film , so I'm giving that a go in a Minolta Dynax 9 and Bronica ETRSi , so should give interesting results .
It'll be interesting to see how they compare to digital I.R , you can't get film that goes into the far I.R , but this seems to be sensitive in the range I use most .
.
The Dimage 7 cameras are available cheaply if you don't already own one so are a good choice to try out .
It would be worth sending Wayne a P.M asking for advice and tips on it as it's been his main I.R camera for many years .
.
I bought a NEX 3 specifically to convert to full spectrum as it can use any lens you already own via a cheap adapter .
It was very easy to work on too for a DIY job , but not for the faint hearted !
.
If you find the D7 is limiting you but get the bug with I.R , I notice your a Pentax shooter , so you could consider getting either a Pentax K20d or Samsung GX20 and converting it to I.R .
They are now a cheap camera that gives good results ( I also have the Samsung and a few Pentax bodies ) with the bonus of live view .
There are a couple of firms in this country if you want to have it done for you .
.
With live view , even though you should be shooting RAW , set the JPEG's to black and white and the image you see makes it clear what you'll get in the final shot .
Looking at a red image trying to focus is very difficult .
On the D7 you might have to set the camera to capture RAW + JPEG to do this , just import the RAW's onto your computer though .
.
I have some of my infrared , U.V and full spectrum images in an album on Flickr here ;
https://www.flickr.com/photos/neilt3/albums/72157629595783904
.
Hope this helps .
Regards , Neil .
http://www.ayton.id.au/gary/photo/photo_infrared.htm
https://www.lifepixel.com/
I've started doing a lot more film photography again and I am in the process of building a darkroom as I'm using 35mm , 120 and 5"x4" cameras .
I've recently got hold of some Rollei Infrared film , so I'm giving that a go in a Minolta Dynax 9 and Bronica ETRSi , so should give interesting results .
It'll be interesting to see how they compare to digital I.R , you can't get film that goes into the far I.R , but this seems to be sensitive in the range I use most .
.
The Dimage 7 cameras are available cheaply if you don't already own one so are a good choice to try out .
It would be worth sending Wayne a P.M asking for advice and tips on it as it's been his main I.R camera for many years .
.
I bought a NEX 3 specifically to convert to full spectrum as it can use any lens you already own via a cheap adapter .
It was very easy to work on too for a DIY job , but not for the faint hearted !
.
If you find the D7 is limiting you but get the bug with I.R , I notice your a Pentax shooter , so you could consider getting either a Pentax K20d or Samsung GX20 and converting it to I.R .
They are now a cheap camera that gives good results ( I also have the Samsung and a few Pentax bodies ) with the bonus of live view .
There are a couple of firms in this country if you want to have it done for you .
.
With live view , even though you should be shooting RAW , set the JPEG's to black and white and the image you see makes it clear what you'll get in the final shot .
Looking at a red image trying to focus is very difficult .
On the D7 you might have to set the camera to capture RAW + JPEG to do this , just import the RAW's onto your computer though .
.
I have some of my infrared , U.V and full spectrum images in an album on Flickr here ;
https://www.flickr.com/photos/neilt3/albums/72157629595783904
.
Hope this helps .
Regards , Neil .
A Dimage 7 will work for IR, as it was built with a weak "heat mirror" (IR blocking filter). But...it still has a heat mirror, and it's sensitivity is still reduced. It is just barely hand-holdable in bright sunlit scenes and low ISO using an IR720 filter (say, 1/20th at f3.5 at ISO 100). A tripod helps a LOT to keep image quality high. The EVF still works, as does auto-focus, so IR focus shift is not an issue.
I use IR720 filters, BUT, to avoid vignetting at wide angle zoom settings, you MUST use a 62MM filter and a 49-62mm step-up ring, which means the original lens hood won't fit with the filter attached. For my set-up, here's a shot of two Dimage 7 cams arranged for stereophotograpy. I use metal 62mm wide angle lenshoods (this photo itself is a stereo pair):
I use the camera for infrared HDR, using 1 EV bracketing and jpeg recording. I find that setting the cam to B&W eases a lot of post-processing. False-color IR is possible, but you will probably experience a color-shift "hot spot" in the image center. A "Hot spot" is much less noticeable in B&W.
It is not possible to perform a custom white balance setting with a IR720 filter attached, so if I am doing false color work, I prefer to set the cam to tungsten WB, but that is a matter of personal preference.
When I look for a Dimage 7 on eBay, I make certain that it is a Dimage 7, NOT a Dimage 7i! The Dimage 7i has a much stronger "heat mirror", making it unsuitable for IR work. A view of the left side of the cam shows the model number. A front view of a Dimage 7 shows the red self-timer lamp as a vertical rectangle. A Dimage 7i has a horizontal oriented rectangle. Sellers tend to mis-identify the model, so be careful. Also, there are several other things to watch for. The camera must be listed as working. Also, the zoom mechanism is very fragile and can be broken, so I tend to ask "Does the zoom work?". I try to obtain cams for $35 or less, shipping included. You will spend just as much or more for a filter/step-up ring/metal lens hood/ batteries afterwards!
You MUST use high-quality Ni-MH rechargable AA cells (eg, Enloops) to get decent battery life. Even then, don't expect more than 100 shots on a fresh set. With Alkalines, don't expect more than 10 shots. The battery contacts MUST be clean, too. Using the EVF instead of the LCD increases battery life considerably.
The maximum size CF card usable is 2GB. The cam's firmware can be upgraded easily to a 7UG, which provides a real-time histogram on the viewfinders, plus several other enhancements, such as faster file writing. I have the upgrade files and instructions if you need them.
Even with the upgrade, the cam is slow to write files to the card (say 1-2 seconds for a large jpeg, 15 seconds for RAW, and longer for TIFF). The buffer can hold three large jpegs for HDR work, but at times I must wait for it to write files before another large jpeg shot.
Expect hot pixels with these old cams...
I use IR720 filters, BUT, to avoid vignetting at wide angle zoom settings, you MUST use a 62MM filter and a 49-62mm step-up ring, which means the original lens hood won't fit with the filter attached. For my set-up, here's a shot of two Dimage 7 cams arranged for stereophotograpy. I use metal 62mm wide angle lenshoods (this photo itself is a stereo pair):
I use the camera for infrared HDR, using 1 EV bracketing and jpeg recording. I find that setting the cam to B&W eases a lot of post-processing. False-color IR is possible, but you will probably experience a color-shift "hot spot" in the image center. A "Hot spot" is much less noticeable in B&W.
It is not possible to perform a custom white balance setting with a IR720 filter attached, so if I am doing false color work, I prefer to set the cam to tungsten WB, but that is a matter of personal preference.
When I look for a Dimage 7 on eBay, I make certain that it is a Dimage 7, NOT a Dimage 7i! The Dimage 7i has a much stronger "heat mirror", making it unsuitable for IR work. A view of the left side of the cam shows the model number. A front view of a Dimage 7 shows the red self-timer lamp as a vertical rectangle. A Dimage 7i has a horizontal oriented rectangle. Sellers tend to mis-identify the model, so be careful. Also, there are several other things to watch for. The camera must be listed as working. Also, the zoom mechanism is very fragile and can be broken, so I tend to ask "Does the zoom work?". I try to obtain cams for $35 or less, shipping included. You will spend just as much or more for a filter/step-up ring/metal lens hood/ batteries afterwards!
You MUST use high-quality Ni-MH rechargable AA cells (eg, Enloops) to get decent battery life. Even then, don't expect more than 100 shots on a fresh set. With Alkalines, don't expect more than 10 shots. The battery contacts MUST be clean, too. Using the EVF instead of the LCD increases battery life considerably.
The maximum size CF card usable is 2GB. The cam's firmware can be upgraded easily to a 7UG, which provides a real-time histogram on the viewfinders, plus several other enhancements, such as faster file writing. I have the upgrade files and instructions if you need them.
Even with the upgrade, the cam is slow to write files to the card (say 1-2 seconds for a large jpeg, 15 seconds for RAW, and longer for TIFF). The buffer can hold three large jpegs for HDR work, but at times I must wait for it to write files before another large jpeg shot.
Expect hot pixels with these old cams...
old joe
Member
thanks for all the information Neil. carrying on with K5 11s at the moment using 720 and 680 filters to see just how much i do and if it warrants the cost of a converted camera
Doriandivy
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Turbguy1
Just got a Dimage 7 specifically for IR (got it thru Yahoo in Japan (the Japanese eBay)). Will be delivered by relative in August. Wanted to make sure latest firmware does not mess with the IR capabilities. It looks like the A1V123e firmware is the latest.
Thank you
Dorian
Just got a Dimage 7 specifically for IR (got it thru Yahoo in Japan (the Japanese eBay)). Will be delivered by relative in August. Wanted to make sure latest firmware does not mess with the IR capabilities. It looks like the A1V123e firmware is the latest.
Thank you
Dorian
neilt3
Veteran Member
The cameras abilities are hardware based , i.e the sensor and weak hot mirror in front of it allowing the infrared light through .
The version of firmware doesn't alter this .
Later models used a stronger hot mirror to block out more infrared light and are not suitable .
Enjoy your new camera , make sure you get a good quality I.R filter. I prefer the B&W 092 but also use a Hoya R72 .
The 092 allows more visible light in being around 695nm , good for if you want blue sky's .
August eh.......long wait !
Firmware upgrades do not impact the IR capabilities.
Is you are obtaining a JAPANESE camera, you will need the JAPANESE firmware upgrade. There were several "versions" based in the USA, EU and Japanese market models.
Be careful following the instructions when upgrading the firmware, otherwise you will brick the camera! I would not upgrade the firmware until you are familiar with the camera.
I recommend you re-read my older post again concerning what to expect and how to outfit and treat the camera.
Good luck!
Is you are obtaining a JAPANESE camera, you will need the JAPANESE firmware upgrade. There were several "versions" based in the USA, EU and Japanese market models.
Be careful following the instructions when upgrading the firmware, otherwise you will brick the camera! I would not upgrade the firmware until you are familiar with the camera.
I recommend you re-read my older post again concerning what to expect and how to outfit and treat the camera.
Good luck!
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