Japanese Friendship Garden

 Wk 4 - Infrared Photography

Yes, I was supposed to take self-portraits, but 1) I cannot find my camera remote, so ordered another and 2) I'm avoiding this project (damn you self-esteem). Instead I decided to start exploring infrared photography. I discovered this form of photography 5+ years ago, but the equipment is not cheap and I was not sure it'd be something I'd ever use. So glad I was wrong - this is my new favorite medium.

For my birthday, I gifted myself an infrared camera that I found off of ebay and some filters I purchased through Spencerscameras.com. Today I decided to not futz with a bunch of filters and decided to just stack two - a light pollution filter and a 590nm, also known as an Extreme Color Infrared Filter. When I got the camera/filters this fall, I set my white balance and basic settings on the adapted, full spectrum, Canon 5D. The difficult part of this process was deciding where my first location to shoot would be (outside of my backyard that is).  

I only had a few hours to shoot, so going out-of-town was out of the question. The Botanical Garden was crowded. Tempe Town Lake doesn't have a large variety of scenery. I finally settled on the Japanese Friendship Garden in downtown Phoenix. While the infrared camera does not allow for great shots of koi fish, the affects of light on the water, grass, and stone is incredible. I can't wait to go play with other filters, in a new location, again!