Canon AE-1, 24mm f/2.8, Rollei Infrared film, Hoya R72 filter, f/11, 1/8 second

FujiFilm X-T20, XF 23mm f/2, ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/180 second, Neewer 850nm external filter

Fujifilm X-T20, 23mm f/2, ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/1100 sec

Here are some considerations and recommendations for selecting a camera to convert to infrared (IR) or full-spectrum. When selecting a camera to convert, you have all of the normal factors involved in selecting a camera, the permanent modification of the camera, and the limitations of infrared photography. This can be challenging, especially if you’ve never converted a camera before or if you obsess over such decisions like I do. I’ve converted two cameras to infrared and purchased an already converted camera. Here is what I’ve learned.

This video compares the LUT-based profile and the Local Hue Adjustment in Lightroom. These are fast ways to color swap infrared images in Lightroom, without a round-trip to Photoshop. Both methods work in Lightroom, Lightroom Classic, and Lightroom mobile for the iPad.

While exploring ways to simplify the infrared workflow in Lightroom, I considered writing a Lightroom plug-in. This plug-in would replace the round-trip to Photoshop, by performing a red/blue color swap, and then returning the output to Lightroom.

Kolari Pocket with IR Chrome filter

Lightroom’s white balance temperature slider doesn’t offer enough range to effectively set a white balance on raw color infrared images. The same issue exists in Adobe Camera Raw in Photoshop, which uses the same raw processing engine. In order to set a good white balance for color infrared images, it’s helpful to create a custom color profile. The guide below will step through the process. This video also covers the process.