Thanks to reader Mick Klass, who submitted his results for the new Nikon 20mm f/1.8 S Nikkor Z lens at 720mm infrared. His results showed excellent performance through f/8, with a mild hotspot appearing at f/11 and above. As such, I give the 20mm f/1.8 S Nikkor a “good” rating on my Nikon Z infrared testing chart.
Water lilies, Denver, CO Nikon Z6 with 24-70mm f/4 S Z-mount Nikkor lens
I recently converted a Nikon Z6 mirrorless camera to capture infrared images. Along with my Image Doctors co-host Rick Walker, I tested most of the new Nikon Z-mount lenses to see how well they performed for infrared photography, including sharpness and the appearance of hot-spots. We also tested a slate of F-mount lenses using the Nikon FTZ adapter to see how well they performed on the Nikon Z6 in infrared.
Great Sand Dunes National Park, Mosca, CO 720nm infrared capture processed in Adobe Lightroom Classic and Silver Efex Pro 2.
I took a much-needed break and spent two days photographing around Great Sand Dunes National Park here in Colorado. The dunes themselves are massive, and can be a challenge to shoot depending on the light. During the day, I utilized my Nikon Z6 camera that I recently had converted to capture infrared images (720nm/Standard IR). The infrared capture really made the clouds stand out on an otherwise hazy day at the dunes. Foliage is rendered bright/white when using an infrared camera, so it adds to the unique look. I finished off the processing using Silver Efex Pro 2, part of the Nik Collection by DXO.
I’m back in Colorado after leading an incredible photo tour of London & Paris. My clients and I had so much fun photographing and exploring these cities as part of my creative travel photo workshop series. I always like to pack my infrared camera when I’m traveling, because it’s a great way to capture a popular subject in a totally unique way. To that effect, we had great skies during our morning at Montmartre, where we visited Sacré-Coeur. It was the perfect conditions for infrared photography.
Tech Specs
Fujifilm X-T1 (converted to infrared by Kolari Vision)
Nikon 16-35mm f/4 AFS G VR lens (using Metabones adapter)