iPhone 3GS might be usable for infrared photography

Darren@RI

Darren@RI

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Darren
On a whim I just tried the holding an infrared filter over the camera on a couple of different iOS devices.

BTW an infrared filter is basically a piece of glass that blocks out all light except for infrared - normally you screw it onto a camera lens.

The newer devices did nothing, but the iPhone 3GS I use for testing code actually responded quite well. Its is obviously somewhat sensitive to infrared. The new devices must have a filter that totally blocks IR. This is common with many digicams, some are just more sensitive than others.

When the sun comes back out I will pop the 3GS on a tripod and takes a few test shots.
 
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The sun isn't cooperating so here's the hand held test shot I took in the first place. 1/10 sec shutter and pretty noisy (high ISO) but if you like lo-fi its not too bad.

IMG_0030.jpg


Post-processed in Lightroom (its only a test shot, so I cheated) to make it grayscale and increase contrast.
 
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Thinking about ... maybe one of those slow shutter apps might be good for this. I must try that, so there is less noise and more dynamic range (i.e. it doesn't look so crappy)

In the meantime, until the sun comes back, here's a shot taken with an actual infra-red DSLR setup (hence owning the filter), just to give you an idea of why this is so exciting - to me at least :p

20120725_143533_15979-Edit.jpg


The sky is dark and the foliage is super bright. You can simulate this in some apps but nothing beats the real thing.
 
I like your pics, reminds me of trees with hoar frost on them :)
 
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