Tech: Sony F828 / Hoya R72 (720nm IR filter)
Shot at: ISO 64 - f/6.3 - 1/50 second - at 28mm.
Location: The Old Plympton Cotton Factory (conservation area) in Plympton, Massachusetts. This little dam bridge crosses the Winnetuxet River.
Been looking forward to taking this out. I picked up the F828 last year. My all-time favorite camera in terms of design. Also has the only four-color CCD sensor, the RGBE sensor, ever produced for a digital camera. The RGBE (E = emerald) CCD, while a commercial failure, does render a different image when compared to a standard RGB sensor, allowing for more natural colors. It didn't matter though, consumers viewed it as a gimmick. Also, modern versions of Photoshop are not able to entirely read the RAWs from the F828 in their pure native format so they correct some aspects in regards to color. I will eventually find the original software CD on eBay for this so I can get the old program to develop these and see the colors as they would have looked in 2003 when this camera was released.
I didn't purchase this camera for the unique sensor, though. While I sure do love me some CCD sensors, I wanted this for the native infrared capability this camera has. Utilizing the ancient Sony NightShot feature, where the IR-cut filter is removed, it allows the camera to see at night, in army green, with the help of IR beams. To avoid all the nonsense with that and lack of proper manual settings when using NightShot, you can use rare earth magnets in spot of the lens barrel to remove the IR-cut filter and shoot in full spectrum or infrared with the use of a R72 or similar filter. I used my ancient Hoya R72 I had back from my earlier model, the F717, which I had from 2007-2009 before buying one same day as the F828 last year.
When using the "magnet trick", you can shoot in any manual settings you choose and you don't get the army green.
I have a much nicer, far superior IR camera, a converted Canon 60D, but I LOVE shooting with these old cameras from 20+ years ago. They still produce great images, of course, because realistically any camera with more than 6 megapixels is more than 99% of people will ever need.
