2024-01-28: Infrared Landscapes

Now that I have moved my editing back to Lightroom, I’ve rediscovered quite a few images that I had flagged in my quick collection as ones I wanted to edit, from my trip to South Africa in 2019. The first four images are from that trip, and the last three from my recent trip to Zimbabwe in 2022.

While a lot of time has passed since 2019, I didn’t spend much of it on photography during the Covid years, as I was otherwise occupied in graduate school (during my free time from work) and when I did have time for photos, I was exploring using Capture One during that time period.

Coming back to Lightroom feels both familiar and very different at the same time, and I definitely need to spend some time relearning the familiar tools, and learning about all that has been added in the intervening time. I felt a sense of accomplishment working through these images and only completing the edits within Lightroom, not moving on to familiar plugins available in Photoshop.

All of these images were shot as long exposures around midday or early afternoon, using an infrared filter and then converted to black and white. It is something I want to work on more as I really enjoy the look of the shockingly bright foliage and inky skies.

The Sand River. South Africa, May 2019.
Lion Sands Tinga Lodge. South Africa, May 2019.
I recall exactly where I took this image, on an elevated walkway path between my room and the next over, while staying at Tinga Lodge. While its just some random trees and bushes, it showcases what I really love about the long exposure infrared images, with the bright fluffy grasses and leaves, and the deep black of the tree trunks and inky sky. Tinga Lodge, South Africa. May, 2019.
The Sand River from the deck of Tinga Lodge. South Africa, May, 2019.
These bright clear skies around lunchtime were long gone by dinner. Hwange, Zimbabwe. November 2022.
Clouds building. Hwange. Zimbabwe, November 2022.
Those clouds were part of a huge storm the ripped through Hwange. We had to abandon our afternoon game drive and barely got back to the lodge before the skies opened up. Zimbabwe, November, 2022.

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