Infrared Film Photography: An Introduction

I remember the first time I saw an infrared photograph, feeling complete and utter awe.

It was unlike anything I had ever seen in photography or art: a landscape image, filled with eerily light-pink foliage and glowing grass.

The sky looked heavier and darker than usual, and the whole scene appeared strangely calm, like a magical place on another planet. 

What I loved about the image was that it didn’t show me anything new; it simply showed a familiar landscape illuminated only by infrared light, something the human eye can’t see, even though it exists all around us.

Beautiful infrared lanscape shot image by Gary Syrba.

Why Do Infrared Photos Look So… Weird?

What makes infrared images look so dreamlike is that they record a kind of light we can’t normally see, namely, wavelengths beyond the visible spectrum.

(Some animals, like snakes and other reptiles, are able to sense infrared radiation as heat – I find it wild to think how differently they experience the world!).

Seeing the World Differently

Infrared photography reveals how plants, skin, water, and skies reflect infrared light in ways that are invisible to the human eye, which completely changes how familiar subjects appear on film.

Leaves and grass reflect a lot of infrared light, causing them to glow or turn pale/white. Skies often absorb infrared light, making them appear deep, dramatic, or ominous. 

Skin tends to look smoother and more luminous, giving portraits an otherworldly look.

What I’ll Cover in This Blog Post

In this post, I’ll explain how to get started with infrared film photography.

I’ll include:

• What you need for shooting infrared film (filters and film)
• How to approach infrared landscapes
• How to shoot infrared portraits, both outdoors and in the studio
• How focusing and exposure work differently with infrared light
• Simple example settings to help you get started

Let’s get into it!

(Just so you know: This post contains affiliate links. I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.)

1. Infrared Photography – The Basics

To get started with infrared film photography, you’ll need just a few key things:

• Infrared film, such as Rollei Infrared 400
• An infrared filter, like the Hoya R72 or Wratten 89B, which blocks visible light and allows infrared wavelengths to reach the film
• A camera with manual controls, so you can set focus, aperture, and shutter speed
• Optional: a tripod; especially helpful for landscapes, since infrared photography often requires slower shutter speeds.

2. Does It Need to Be Shot on Film?

This post focuses on infrared photography using film. However, not all infrared images (especially colour infrared) are created that way.

When shot on film, traditional infrared photography is almost always black-and-white.

Colour infrared images, with their surreal pink foliage and blue or yellow skies, are typically captured with digital cameras that have been converted for infrared photography.

Colour infrared landscape. Image Credit: J.S. McDuff.

Infrared Film vs Digital Infrared

Infrared film, such as Rollei Infrared 400, records infrared light in black and white; it doesn’t capture infrared colour in the way digital images often do.

If you want to capture infrared photos in colour, you’ll need to approach it differently, since most modern digital cameras have an internal filter that blocks infrared light.

To shoot infrared digitally, that filter has to be removed and replaced with one that allows infrared wavelengths to reach the sensor. Cameras manipulated in such a way are known as infrared-converted cameras.

Depending on the conversion, a camera can be set up to capture:

• Full-spectrum infrared (used with different filters)
• Specific infrared wavelengths
• False-colour infrared images

This is how most of the iconic pink-and-blue infrared images you see online are made.

Why Use Film at All?

I love using infrared film because it gives you a very different experience than digital:

It’s slower and more unpredictable, since you can’t see the results until you’ve developed the film.

Digital photography is great, too, but nothing beats the beautiful grain and tactile quality of film, in my opinion…which is why this blog post only focuses on infrared photography using a film camera.

Beautiful Rollei infrared film shot by Andy Salazar.

3. Exposure Rules in Infrared Film Photography

Because infrared light is invisible to your camera ’s light meter, infrared images tend to come out darker than expected.

In practice, this means infrared photography requires lots of light (such as bright sunlight or studio flash), and longer exposures are completely normal.

Tip: Focusing with Infrared Film

One of the quirks of infrared photography is that infrared light focuses at a slightly different point than visible light. 

Because you’re using an infrared filter that blocks most visible light, your lens is technically focusing on light your eyes can’t see, which means focus can shift just enough to cause a slight blur (especially at wider apertures).

Many vintage lenses have a small red dot or line on the barrel, known as an infrared focus mark. 

If your lens has one, the process is simple: focus normally through the viewfinder first, then rotate the focus ring so that the distance you focused on lines up with the infrared mark instead of the main focus index.

Camera lens with infrared focus mark. Image credit: Orange Photos.

If your lens doesn’t have an infrared mark, don’t worry; instead, you can focus slightly in front of your subject. You usually just need a tiny adjustment; simply focus slightly in front (closer) by a few mm.

Also, for portraits, use f/8–f/11 to give enough depth of field to absorb IR focus shift.

4. Landscapes in Infrared

Infrared photography is an incredible choice for capturing landscapes:

This is because nature reflects infrared light in unusual, quite dramatic ways, creating a surreal effect. 

Leaves and grass reflect large amounts of infrared light, which is why foliage often looks pale or glowing. Skies, on the other hand, absorb infrared light and become deep and moody.

Have a look at this gorgeous image by photographer Gary Syrba, which perfectly showcases the white leaves and ominous skies:

Infrared landscape. Image credit: Gary Syrba.

Seeing Landscapes the Infrared Way

When shooting infrared, it can help to emulate the principles of black and white photography:

Instead of focusing on colour, start paying attention to contrast, texture, and the repetition of elements such as trees, ripples in water, or clouds – all of which become more pronounced in infrared.

In terms of light, midday sunlight (which many photographers usually avoid) is actually ideal for infrared landscape photography because bright sunlight produces the strongest infrared effect. 

Earlyoing or late afternoon light creates a softer, more mysterious mood with longer hadows.

Aoiding Underexposure

Infrared film tends to underexpose, especially when paired with a strong infrared filter. 

Hence, you’ll want to shoot on a bright day, as mentioned above. In addition, choose a slower shutter speed to let in enough light (use a tripod to avoid camera shake). 

As a starting point on a bright, sunny day, try something like:

• Rollei Infrared 400
• f/8
• 1/60s with an infrared filter

Tip: I’ve got a great tip from photographer Gary Syrba (see photos earlier in this post) for shooting Rollei film outdoors.

He recommends metering without the Hoya R72 filter attached, then placing the filter back on and overexposing by around six stops. Rather than adjusting a single setting by six stops, you can distribute the exposure compensation across ISO, aperture, and shutter speed.

For example: set the camera to ISO 100 instead of ISO 400, then slow the shutter by two stops (e.g. 1/250 → 1/60) and open the aperture by two stops (e.g. f/8 → f/4).

5. Portraits in Infrared

I LOVE using infrared film for portraits, as the results are so eerie and weird in the most beautiful way.

As an example, look at this absolutely beautiful infrared film portrait by photographer Don Hudson, which perfectly encapsulates the magic of infrared film photography:

Image by Don Hudson.

One reason infrared works so well for portraits is how skin reflects infrared light:

Skin tones often look smoother and brighter, and blemishes and uneven texture appear almost airbrushed. 

At the same time, you get one of the hallmarks of infrared photography: dark, gleaming eyes that create a strong contrast and a very expressive look.

You can see this effect very well in one of my recent self-portraits, which I took with Rollei film and the Hoya R72 filter:

How to Light Infrared Portraits

Because infrared film tends to underexpose, you’ll need to use quite a lot of light for your infrared portraits.

Outdoors

As with landscapes, bright sunlight produces the strongest infrared effect, making it a great choice.

Position your subject in direct sunlight for luminous skin tones, or try backlighting to add some glow to hair and contours. 

(You can take your infrared portraits in open shade, but the results will be softer and less obviously “glowing”).

Have a look at this amazing shot by Carl Posey, which was taken outdoors on black and white infrared film.

You can see that in particular, the bright clothing appears to have a particular glow that you wouldn’t achieve with regular black and white film:

Image by Carl Posey.

Indoors

Since infrared filters block most visible light, you’ll need a powerful light source for taking infrared portraits indoors; I’d recommend a strong continuous light or ideally a studio strobe.

Just like with regular portraits, you can use a diffuser or softbox to control contrast and make skin look more even.

Tip: Clothing and Styling

There are slightly different rules for infrared film photography when it comes to clothing and stying/makeup.

This is because infrared light interacts with materials differently than visible light, which can lead to unexpected results if you’re not careful.

• Natural fibres like cotton, linen, silk and wool tend to behave more predictably and appear even, sometimes slightly glowing.
• Synthetic fabrics, especially polyester, can reflect infrared light strongly and sometimes appear strangely bright or even semi-transparent. This is particularly important to keep in mind with underwear – you don’t want someone’s bra shining through ruining your photo!
• Makeup can also behave differently in infrared; for example, some foundations or sunscreens may appear very bright. Ideally, keep makeup minimal and matte to avoid strange effects.

Example Portrait Settings

As a general starting point, try the following:

• strong studio lighting
• f/5.6–f/8
• 1/30–1/60s

6. Developing and Scanning Infrared Film

Once you’ve finished shooting your roll of infrared film, the next step is getting it developed.

Infrared film is generally black-and-white, so it can be developed using standard B&W chemistry, meaning you can most likely get it done in your regular photo lab.

However, because infrared film is more sensitive and can produce very high contrast, I recommend letting them know that it’s an infrared film just in case.

If You’re Requesting Scans

When I get film developed, I always request digital scans so that I can edit the files easily in Photoshop.

If you want to do the same, ask for high quality scans, such as TIFF 8/16 Bit.

After scanning, try some subtle adjustments in Photoshop (like curves, contrast, and exposure) to bring out the glowing foliage, dark skies, and textures.

And that’s it for today! I really hope you’ll try out infrared film photography; it may seem a bit intimidating at first, but it’s actually pretty straightforward.

Of course you have to invest in infrared film and development plus an infrared filter, which can be pricey, but I think the otherworldly results are more than worth it.