Coke and a smile... Nik Silver Efex Pro 2 Creativity Tip...

Have a Coke and smile! An actual Coke is hard to find in Cuba, Tu-cola is very popular and is a great alternative! I think this guy found the real thing. Nik Silver Efex Pro 2 is my favorite black and white conversion software because of how beautifully it works with both my color and infrared photos. This image was converted to black and white with Nik Silver, and the opacity of the filter layer was reduced to about 85% revealing some of the overall color for an old photo vintage look.

If you want to learn more about Nik Silver Efex Pro, I highly recommend Dr. Jason Odell's A Photographers Guide to Nik Silver Efex Pro 2. Both the guidebook and companion videos are very well designed and illustrated so that the photographer from the novice to professional will benefit. I've been recommending Odell's guide to my students who want to explore Nik Silver Efex Pro 2 more in depth. This is an excellent guide and resource for the color and infrared photographer who wants to make the most of their black and white imagery. Odell covers all the new features of Nik Silver Efex Pro 2 including the new sliders for Global Tone and Contrast, Structure/Fine Structure, Color Toning, the new History Browser, down to creative touches like selective coloring and edge treatments. Odell's instructions are clear, concise, and to the point, making this an invaluable guide for the black and white photographer. Highly recommended!

You can use the promo code DSANDIDGE for everything Nik. Have fun shooting! ~ Deb

Infrared Photography with Nik Silver Efex Pro 2...

Infrared photography is a wonderful and creative way to tell a photographic story.The timeless look of black and white photography along with infrared creates a surreal look to an image. Light, shadow, texture, tonality, patterns, become more important in a composition without the connotation of color. There is something very enduring about black and white (and infrared) photography, it remains a constant favorite for both the photographer and the viewer.

The photos above are a few of my favorites from Cuba. They were photographed with a camera that is converted with an R72 type standard infrared filter. With infrared, there is a small amount of visible light that reaches the camera sensor. To create a completely black and white image, I use Nik Silver Efex Pro 2. This gives me the most creativity over how I want to interpret the image in black and white. This software is very intuitive. I can start with a preset that best suits my image, and fine tune it from there. The wonderful part about the workflow is being to make selective adjustments using control points within my image. If I want the sky darker, or clouds brighter, I can add control points for each. If I need more structure and definition in architecture or other areas of an image, I can create it by using a control point. Control points = creativity points! Nik Silver Efex Pro allows me to portray an image in an expressive and artistic way.

Summer is perfect for infrared! I'm teaching infrared to a fantastic group of photographers at BetterPhoto.com. They are doing beautiful work, I'm inspired, and impressed, and this is only the first week of class! Make great pictures! ~ Deb

Broaden your photographic horizons, shoot infrared!

Your imagination is your preview of life's coming attractions. ~Albert Einstein

Infrared photography can give you a new outlet for artistic expression by allowing you to shoot traditional subjects in novel and interesting ways. A color photograph converted to black and white is quite different from a black and white infrared image. Nothing can quite compare with the surreal factor of bright white foliage, a dark sky and the uniqueness of how infrared light is reflected and absorbed by different surfaces. Infrared photography is a wonderful way to broaden your photographic horizons and expand your creativity!

Interested in learning more? Please check out my book Digital Infrared Photography published by Wiley, available at bookstores and online at Amazon. I also teach Infrared Photography at BetterPhoto.com. I'll be speaking about infrared in April at Florida's Birding and Photo Fest, and in June in Ontario for the Canadian Camera Conference. I hope to see you at one of these events!

My favorite method of black and white conversion is Nik Silver Efex Pro. It creates beautiful black and white images that are perfect for both infrared and color photography. For museum quality black and white printing, try Digital Silver Imaging. Make great pictures! ~ Deb