INFRA-REDS
I learned of this word when I studied to become certified as a Registered Biological Photographer. Infrared means electromagnetic or heat radiation with wavelengths longer than visible light. It is invisible to the human eye. It has applications in industry, science, medicine, military, law enforcement, and even home surveillance. My son’s baby monitor camera was equipped with infrared capability. That is why I was able to see on video whenever my son cried or tossed and turned in his crib while in total darkness. Although it was a certification requirement to learn how to take photographs with infrared film to detect certain medical anomalies, it was rarely used in my daily work as a biomedical photographer. Instead, I ended up using it artistically when I wasn’t working. Black-and-white infrared photography typically renders subjects with a haunting, surreal, and ethereal quality. These photographs are part of my serendipitous quest to capture those qualities.
