Setting the Correct White Balance Point

Some photographers prefer to select a white balance point by photographing an 18% grey card, with the IR filter in place, or if you don't have a grey card photograph a patch of grass and set this as your white balance point. My preferred method is to use your RAW conversion software and leave your cameras white balance setting on Auto.

By spending some time with your RAW conversion software and understanding what tones give you the best white balance settings will undoubtedly pay dividends in the long run. With practise selecting your white balance point will become second nature and have a marked improvement on your infrared images.

Fig:1 shows the .NEF file straight off the CCD. As you can see the image is very red, but at the same time showing a full range of tones. To correct the cast we need to select a white balance point from a mid-tone grey. For this image I made my selection from the barrel timbers. Selecting a mid-tone brick from the wall would have given a similar pleasing result.

Fig:2 shows the image after the white balance point has been selected and the exposure re-adjusted to stop the whites from blowing out.
You now have a basic infra-red image from which you can work on. You may wish to convert your image to monochrome, add a touch of grain, maybe a little Gaussian blur to give it that authentic Infra-red Photography look and feel.

Use the Infra-red Archive to discover more about the world of Infra-red Photography