Surreal Photos: Digital Infrared Photography with the Nikon D70

Taking surreal photos using infrared techniques guarantees your photography will receive more attention and stand out from the crowd!

And I’m totally thrilled that the Nikon D7 is a very decent camera for digital infrared photography.


Although I’m still playing with all the possibilities, my impressions here are continually being formed and reformed! Some of the technical aspects of making surreal photos with infrared techniques are discussed by Bjørn Rørslett but for the practical scoop, the stuff you want to know to take spooky infrared (IR) photos right now, keep reading!


While there's always more than one way to take digital infrared shots, using the D70's native capabilities produces the best results. With the right camera filters, and this practical D70 tutorial, you're already there! (Be sure to read about how to convert you D70 to a dedicated infrared camera as well. Say good bye to that tripod, and hello to infrared portriats!)

First, as always, you’ll need the right equipment. This will one af a variety of IR filters to block as much visible light as possible for your camera – for all practical reasons I recommend a Wrattan 89B (or equivalent, Hoya R72 for example – which I use on my Olympus digital point & shoot camera). This will make sure that only the invisible light gets through to the camera sensor.

These special effects filters aren’t too expensive, and you can generally find them at any good photography supplier. And, of course, you'll need your sturdy, lightweight tripod.

Because the almost-black IR filters force you to use longer exposures, a tripod is a very real requirement!

Camera filters can be a problem for this camera. One thing that you really need to be aware of with the D70 is that with the 18 – 70 mm zoom lens it ships with, is susceptible to vignetting – the phenomenon where the outer corners of your image are noticeably darker than the rest of your images.

This is because of the construction of the lens, and it most noticeable at the wider zoom ranges (towards the 18mm-end); and more evident at the wide-open aperture of f/3.5.

What has this got to do with surreal photos and infrared photography filters?

Well, plenty! Since you MUST use a filter to capture the IR light, you can reduce the vignetting considerably by carefully choosing the format of the IR filter.

So rather than using a round, screw-in filter, I have found very acceptable results with a square filter and filter-holder. The filter itself extends way beyond the diameter of the lens, so there is less impact from the “shadow” of the thread mounts which are non existent in the slide-in type filters.

If you choose to use the Cokin Filter System , make sure you slide it into the slot closest to the camera lens (the filter holder has 3 slots – use the very skinny first one closest to the lens to ensure you block out as much visible light as possible – or else you’ll get all sorts of weird color shifts!)

Cokin Filters has just released a P Series 89B Infrared filter. I got mine from www.2filter.com I was impressed with their selection and prices – even when paying in Canadian mini-bucks!