IR for people shots

["joe b." <joe.b@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

In message <31ecfec1.7314236@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Robert Long
<boblong@xxxxxxxxxxx> writes
>|>> Infrared Nude Photography - Joseph Paduano - ISBN 0-936-262-109 - $19.95
>
>This book has been mentioned here a couple of times.  Has anybody seen
>it?  After seeing some IR pictures of people I decided that that was
>not an appropriate use of the material.  So, nudes?!?!  I find it hard
>to believe.  I'd appreciate comments from anyone who has seen the book
>or has used IR for peoplepictures.

I felt Paduano's IR nudes book was ok but nothing to rave about. It's
mostly naked young women in the landscape; they're mostly glowing white
and with lots of halation. To me, this book was a disappointment,
especially after his other IR book, which for me had some memorable
images in it. 

IR films tend to have a very strange effect in photographs of people;
monochrome IR has the most profound effect on the look of the eyes, IR
Ektachrome changes colours and can make some things relatively
transparent, revealing veins, etc. If you can use IR film to create an
effect you want, then it's appropriate. Once you know what it does to
people, you can decide if you want to use the effect. For example; I
have a portrait of a young woman friend sitting on a park bench next to
me as I took it, and its on IR Ektachrome. The trees and grass are
typical pinkish-purple in colour, and the path and distant buildings are
blue. She is wearing shorts and a T-shirt and you can see blue veins
under her skin, which is otherwise pale greyish blue. Her lipstick has
come out pale green. She is wearing black sunglasses which came out
glowing red and transparent, so you can see her eyes. She just happens,
at the moment of exposure, to be leaning forward and reaching towards me
to poke me in the ribs or something like that, and the effect of having
that innocent movement caught in false colours makes the whole thing
look like a different scenario altogether. She is smiling mischeviously,
and the overwhelming effect is that she looks like she *knows*
everything has changed into the wrong colour and may even, in some
strange supernatural way, be responsible for it! Very creepy. 

I find a useful trick is to concentrate mentally on the particular IR
effect of whatever film is being used, whether its monochrome or colour,
and pre-visualise how the results will look as part of the process of
weighing up, composing and taking the picture.
-- 
joe b.