# Is the unmodified Canon 5D3 any good for infrared photography with R72 filter ?



## Nitroman (Jun 26, 2013)

Hi !

I like playing around with B&W infrared photos using a Hoya R72 (or similar) infrared screw on filter and long exposures.

Since some cameras are better than others at shooting infrared without hardware modification, I wonder how does the Canon 5D3 fare ?

My original 5D Classic Mark I was ok (ish) ... Exposure times of approx 4 mins f11 at 100 iso in sunlight with R72.

The Canon 5D Mark II seemed to have a stronger internal IR filter making exposure times even longer and was less practical without hardware modification.

Is the 5D Mark III likely to have an even stronger internal IR filter that makes infrared photography almost impossible without hardware modification and removal of the standard factory fitted internal IR filter ?

Does anyone have experience with using UNMODIFIED Canon 5D3 and filters for infrared photography ?

Thanks in advance ...


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## J.R. (Jun 26, 2013)

I'm sure that there must be someone here doing it successfully, but I tried and didn't quite like the very long exposures - and even then my images were not what I was expecting. 

IMHO, its better to get a el-cheapo used body and get the in-camera IR filter removed. At least that's what I intend to do.


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## niteclicks (Jun 26, 2013)

I have played a little with mine. I only have an old 52mm so I used step down rings on the 50mm 1.4
and 28 mm 1.8. I was surprised to be able to use live view to focus. I can't post any pic's right now and don't remember what settings I was using , but remember thinking it was more sensitive than the 40D and a lot more than I thought it would be. I didn't setup a timer so I know it was 30 sec or less exposures, if you want I'll look them up tonight when I get home.


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## Nitroman (Jun 26, 2013)

Thanks Niteclicks ... would love to see results with 5D3.

I think you may need exposures in minutes rather than seconds for correct exposure.

Also the 50mm f1.4 i think is a lens prone to IR hotspots - the f1.8 less so.

I already have an IR modified 5DC -,Ideally i want a camera that i can shoot everything on - colour stills, HD video, raw, 360 panoramas and IR. Greedy i know ... but makes for a nice light kit !


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## Spooky (Jun 26, 2013)

I shot the attached pic with a Hoya R72 on my 5d3 with a 24-105. Hopefully pic attached ok! I like the long exposures...
The lens choice is important compared to the body...


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## Nitroman (Jun 27, 2013)

Nice pic Spooky ! Can you tell me the exposure details on 5D3 ?! 

The 24-105mm is a great lens for IR.


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## @!ex (Jun 27, 2013)

Bump +1, love to see more examples. I may buy an old 5d mkii and modify, but still interested in what an unmodified mk3 can do.


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## Spooky (Jun 27, 2013)

Thanks guys for the nice comments,

That was taken at 30secs, f8, ISO400 at 105mm. Tweaked in Lightroom. The focus was off slightly and the exposure noise correction has brought in some very slight banding, but I like 'dark', grainy B&Ws... 

Here's another from the same viewpoint at 24mm. This time 30s, f5.6 at ISO100. The exposure time was trialled to get the best effect of the blades and clouds.


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## shutterwideshut (Jun 27, 2013)

Nitroman said:


> Does anyone have experience with using UNMODIFIED Canon 5D3 and filters for infrared photography ?



Here are some shots I did with the 5D3+17-40mm f/4L+Hoya R72 combo.

*The Invisible Spectrum*
Canon EOS 5D Mark III ı Canon EF17-40mm f/4L USM ı Hoya R72 IR Filter ı 25mm ı 120s ı f/8 ı ISO 200



The Invisible Spectrum by shutterwideshut on Flickr

*Marina Bay in Infrared*
Canon EOS 5D Mark III ı Canon EF17-40mm f/4L USM ı Hoya R72 IR Filter ı 17mm ı 120s ı f/8 ı ISO 200



Marina Bay in Infrared by shutterwideshut on Flickr

*Déjà vu*
Canon EOS 5D Mark III ı Canon EF17-40mm f/4L USM ı Hoya R72 IR Filter ı 17mm ı 239s ı f/8 ı ISO 100



Déjà vu by shutterwideshut on Flickr

I would say that the workflow with an unmodified camera is quite tedious due to the long exposure needed for every shot.  But it's fun as it slows you down to think more about composition unlike the IR modified camera wherein you can shoot anything on sight at once without the need of a tripod.  

For the above shots, the WB was set to a predefined custom WB based on the foliage and post-processed via a custom profile on ACR then futher tweaked in CS6. 

This maybe a bit off topic but the Hoya R72 has a 720nm cut-off and it is not as flexible as what a 660nm or a 590nm filter cut-off can do. Here are some of my examples from my old IR Modified 20D with a 590nm cut-off for comparison:

*Final Fantasy*
IR Modified Canon EOS 20D ı Canon EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM ı 10 mm ı 1/250s ı f/8 ı ISO 200



Final Fantasy by shutterwideshut on Flickr

*Ethereal Garden*
IR Modified Canon EOS 20D ı Canon EF17-40mm f/4L USM ı 17mm ı 1/250s ı f/9 ı ISO 200


Ethereal Garden by shutterwideshut on Flickr

*Bedok Reservoir*
IR modified Canon EOS 20D ı Canon EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM ı Lee Big Stopper ı Singh Ray LB Warming Polarizer ı 10mm ı 30s ı f/9 ı ISO 100



Bedok Reservoir by shutterwideshut on Flickr


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## pedro (Jun 27, 2013)

Spooky said:


> Thanks guys for the nice comments,
> 
> That was taken at 30secs, f8, ISO400 at 105mm. Tweaked in Lightroom. The focus was off slightly and the exposure noise correction has brought in some very slight banding, but I like 'dark', grainy B&Ws...
> 
> Here's another from the same viewpoint at 24mm. This time 30s, f5.6 at ISO100. The exposure time was trialled to get the best effect of the blades and clouds.



These posts are all great, but this one is my favourite one so far. Hoya R72. I will check if there's one for my 82mm 16-35 f/2.8 USM II.


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## shutterwideshut (Jun 27, 2013)

pedro said:


> These posts are all great, but this one is my favourite one so far. Hoya R72. I will check if there's one for my 82mm 16-35 f/2.8 USM II.



The 16-35 f/2.8 USM II lens is not recommended for IR work due to hot spots issue.


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## fugu82 (Jun 27, 2013)

The 16-35 f/2.8 USM II lens has truly horrible hot spots. I'm ordering a Sig 15mm diagonal fisheye for uwa [supposed to be OK for IR] just because of that.


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