25 December 2012

Infrared Tree at the Grand Canyon, December 25, 2012

A tree stands near the rim of the Grand Canyon, December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
I had my infrared camera on my Grand Canyon trip, but I didn't use it much. This is one of the few infrared shots that I liked enough to keep in the public collection. One of the easy compositions at the canyon is to use the trees on the rim as framing and foreground elements in a composition, showing some of the tiny details against a far more massive background. The infrared rendering shows the green needles as bright white. This is plenty of contrast against the red rocks of the canyon, but it has a different tonality than the snow that's also present at this time of year. The dark sky that results from the infrared rendering also helps showcase those bright leaves. It, too, has a different tonality than the canyon rocks, allowing for more good tonal separation.