Sarah Latour

Nikon D70 SLR ideally suits Digital Infrared Photography because of the power that its settings deliver. Next I will show you the camera settings that I use in taking digital infrared photos, thus helping you to get best results out of the Nikon digital SLR. Firstly, you should get a tripod, which is necessary for taking perfect infrared photos, and then choose an infrared filter that you desire – I personally prefer Hoya R72. Then, spend a little time in planning the digital infrared photograph. This will help to eliminate some uncertainties that digital infrared photography brings, that can result in just a photo which is OK, instead of a WOW!! photo. Just like always, there isnt a right way in achieving the results. However, these steps brought me the most success, using the D70 until now.

Type of image: I prefer shooting in RAW mode for the digital infrared photography. Even though Nikons native format NEF is very versatile, it don’t stand up to the quality that RAW mode gives, so any imperfections can just be edited using software like Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro.

ISO: Very Good results could be achieved when increasing ISO settings, however, the best results I got were with ISO 200. Otherwise, noise is too great that is my opinion at least. Also, I do a good amount of post processing using Photoshop, so the noise becomes a problem while working at high magnifications. Keep in mind that, unlike the infrared film, where graininess is an important part for the feel and look of the image, the digital infrared noise or “grain” really degrades the image. However, if you need to add an effect of grainy film, you should do this using Photoshop, or using other package.

White Balance: From my experience, setting custom white balance represents a key in GOOD Digital Infrared Photography using Nikon d70. Using a filter which blocks most of the “regular” light, then the camera’s inner white balancing mechanism cant give you an accurate measurement for colour temperature of the environment. Because foliage reflects the IR light, by making it the brightest, the whitest part from your photo, in this case you will need to “calibrate” the D70 in order to let him know visible light green equals infrared white. A couple of ways exists for doing this.

First: The simplest method for white balance is opening the menu of the D70, then to use the control button to get to the setting for white balance, and then change this to +3 fluorescent. Because in infrared photography, most likely you will be shooting under bright sunlight using a “red” filter, if you add some false color correction, this gives your IR image more “punch.” Also, I have found that the incandescent setting also works.

Second: Other way to adjust the white balance for your digital infrared photography using Nikon D70 is by taking a photo to green grass in full sun at midday. But, try and photograph only the grass – no trees, no feet, no sky. Simply point the camera towards the grass by looking at it straight down, then click! After this, in the menu, you will set white balance using this photo. Hence, go to the menu, and select the white balance, then preset then use photo then select image and then use the control dial for navigating at the image with the grass. The menu should say now “this image > set.” And now you are ready for shooting infrared!

Alex Don
http://www.articlesbase.com/digital-photography-articles/master-the-digital-infrared-photography-using-your-digital-slr-nikon-721904.html

Copyright (c) 2009 Kentaro Konika The Nikon brand is famous across the world. Synonymous with quality and durability Nikon has carved out a large market for themselves, competing with the likes of Canon for the top-spot in the camera world. The Nikon company started out small but has grown into one of the most successful commercial camera manufacturers in the world. The company started from humble beginnings shortly after the end of World War II, launching the Nikon I in 1948. With this as their starting point Nikon continued to build on their success, quickly introducing a second camera to the market, the Nikon M, one year later in 1949. During the 1950s the brand continued to grow with the NP 1957 being released as a rival to beat the industry leading Leica 35mm from Germany. The Nikon camera quickly came to be thought of as one of the top choices amongst camera technology at the time. Since these early years Nikon has grown into a powerhouse of the camera world. Numerous technological improvements have kept Nikon cameras at the top end of the camera market. The launch of the Nikon F SLR in 1959 was a landmark in the company’s history setting an industry standard for SLR design. As a result it quickly became the tool of choice for a variety of professional photographers, taking precedence over the German Leica cameras that reigned before it. By 1980 Nikon had proven themselves to be one of the best but continued to make improvements including the release of the F3 which was designed especially for astronauts on NASA space missions to use. The design was robust and easily usable by astronauts whilst they wore their restrictive space suits. It also functioned in zero gravity environments and was resistant to solar rays which posed a problem to camera technology in space previously. As a result of the success of this camera Nikon continued to design more cameras for NASA. The success of Nikon up to this time is evident, but it has continued through the 1990s to the present day. During the ’90s Nikon produced more top quality SLRs that served to retain Nikon’s place at the top of commercial camera equipment standings. In 1992 Nikon released the NIKONOS RS, the world’s first autofocus SLR camera usable under water. This was a big step for underwater camera use, enabling photos to be taken more easily than ever in sub-aqua conditions. Nikon went on to team up with Fuji Films producing the E2 and E2S digital still cameras in 1995. In 1997 Nikon then introduced their first digital camera called the CoolPix 100. As of then Nikon has kept itself at the top of the digital camera world with a constant stream of new releases improving digital camera technology year on year. The CoolPix S50C and P4 are both excellent compacts, particularly the P4 which is a high quality 8MP product with a large view-screen on the back. The S50C is a 7.2 MP camera boasting a huge 3 inch view-screen making taking great photos easier than ever.

Kentaro Konika
http://www.articlesbase.com/art-and-entertainment-articles/know-more-nikon-cameras-811022.html