My Photoshop action for simulated color IR

[Nisei]

Maybe it's a no-go to talk about this here so if it is, please feel free to delete the topic.
I've been working on a Photoshop action to get a fake color IR look for some time now.
Below are some pictures I used this on, showing the original and the one treated with the action.
This is really the result of just 1 click so nothing else has been done afterwards.
If anyone has some input on what could be done better I'm open to suggestions and try things out.
Or, if you have a picture and want to know what it looks like after applying the action, just post it here.
It most definitely doesn't work well on just any random picture so results may be disappointing at times.
I want to make this available for free but not until I'm 100% satisfied with the results.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[dabateman]

That looks quit good. I even like the second photo of the Martian you were able to capture in her native habitat. 

[GaryR]

You have very convincing aerochrome-like color shifts. The red to yellow shift is perfect and the models' yellow-green skin hue seems a bit flat but very nice nonetheless. I like the black sky in fifth one. Was that edited afterwards?

 

I'd certainly be interested in trying it out !

[Nisei]

Thanks guys!
No, all is in the action so just 1 click and no editing afterwards.
I've added one more example with a pretty dark sky.

[Andy Perrin]

It looks good to me. Obviously it is not the same as true IR (if something is transparent in IR and not transparent in visible, this Action would not produce the same results). If you are one of the people who pursue IR just because you like the color changes, I guess a PS Action might be good enough?
 

(That is not my motivation. I like IR precisely because of the differences from visible light.) 

[Nisei]

It surely ain't the same and of course I'll continue with true IR. But I started this ages ago when I didn't have a converted camera yet and film became unobtainable. I saw what I'd started years ago and have loads of free time at the moment (6 weeks summer holiday) so I figured I could do better and continued working on it. It's just for fun and aesthetical use.

[Andy Perrin]

Yes, it is a neat use of Photoshop in any case!

[Kai]

From a purely visual point of view, this is a very convincing result!
Congratulations and thanks for sharing:)

[colinbm]

Interesting Nisei
These look better then what I have seen of peoples results more then 10 years ago.
I do like the one with the lake in the middle.
 

[Nisei]

Thanks Colin

Just a reminder; they're just some sample pics I've downloaded for testing.

Not my pictures.

[GaryR]

These are great, but it might be useful for us to see an example of an image that doesn't work well.

[Nisei]

2 hours ago, GaryR said:

These are great, but it might be useful for us to see an example of an image that doesn't work well.

 

 

 

 

 

[Andy Perrin]

Could you try doing a visible photo, a real IR photo of the same scene, and your Action applied to the visible photo? It would be neat to see how close they get for a few examples.

[GaryR]

That's not bad at all, based on the weak greens in the original shot. Still quite convincing, but the only way to know would for sure, would be to try Andy's suggested comparison (Visible to aerochrome processed FS digital/yellow filter shot).

[Nisei]

Good idea! Never thought about doing a comparison like that.

[Andrea B.]

Maybe it's a no-go to talk about this here so if it is, please feel free to delete the topic.
 

Ed. Note:  It is quite OK to discuss any kind of emulation here on UVP. 

[lonesome_dave]

Wow Nisei these are nice. Have you come up with a PS transform to give the classic Ektachrome Infrared look to actual digital IR photos? It might be possible with some wider bandwidth images that include some visible. EI used green, red & IR to create BGR colors. I can see how it could be done with multiple exposures but if you could devise an EI transform that could use a single IR+VIS image that would be sweet.

 

(Didn't read this forum 'til now. Somehow the title "Non-Technical Experiences" didn't sound interesting to me. Fortunately there are some nice technical posts in here).

[OlDoinyo]

If you are inclined to reveal it, I would be very curious what you use as a substitute for the I->R channel of a true IRG image (I would assume you just shift the green and red channels as-is.) I have tinkered around with something vaguely analogous (see this as an example) but the results were so-so at best  and it only worked in certain lighting conditions. I discovered that the problem boils down to imitating b&w infrared without actual infrared.

[Andy Perrin]

12 hours ago, lonesome_dave said:

Wow Nisei these are nice. Have you come up with a PS transform to give the classic Ektachrome Infrared look to actual digital IR photos? It might be possible with some wider bandwidth images that include some visible. EI used green, red & IR to create BGR colors. I can see how it could be done with multiple exposures but if you could devise an EI transform that could use a single IR+VIS image that would be sweet.

 

(Didn't read this forum 'til now. Somehow the title "Non-Technical Experiences" didn't sound interesting to me. Fortunately there are some nice technical posts in here).

Aerochrome emulation with real IR has been a quest on the forum nearly since the beginning I think. There are many (probably dozens) of posts on it. I encourage you to search the forum and read what Nisei and others have already done. Just search for “aerochrome” or “EIR” or “IRG.”

 

It is true the forum title “non-technical experiences” is a bit of a misnomer. It’s really more like “stuff we want to discuss that doesn’t fit in any of the other fora.”

[lonesome_dave]

Oldoinyo I was actually referring to using a genuine IRG image.

 

Andy, yes I realize now that I am asking for the impossible, or at least the improbable. I have viewed some posts on EI/Aero emulation using infrared and have not seen anything as nice as what Nisei presented here, even though he wasn't using infrared, so I couldn't help but ask. I'll continue to read the back catalog of this site to understand the problem better.

[Andy Perrin]

I think maybe it’s just that your standards are too high? I think there have been many credible attempts that were reasonably good (as esteemed by other members). Christof’s I think were nice, among others. I mean, part of the limitation is that we are all seeing different colors slightly because we don’t (most of us) calibrate our displays. Also it was noted in previous threads that the film itself was rather variable. 

 

In my case I am partly red/green colorblind, so for me personally it is a moot point. My colors are different from everyone’s. 

[lonesome_dave]

Well, maybe my standards are just too old. I never liked the Aerochrome Infrared look that most seem to want to emulate. I think I'm longing for the Ektachrome Infrared rendition from the 70s & 80s that I used quite a bit. It had a more subdued look with a bit more magenta and less eye-popping red. But like you say, that's what my eyes see.