Please explain how infrared LED flash camera works

I was looking at Cabelas catalog when I came across an infra red LED flash camera. Do you have to put infra red film or can you use regular film in this camera. Too bad someone doesn't make a regular inexpensive infrared camera.

Thanks
Ten

I believe that digital cameras tend to see farther into the IR than the human eye. It wasn't planned that way, it's just how silicon works. Thus a digital camera may be able to see a near-IR flash even if it's unimpressive to the eye. Of course what color it portrays this as is arbitrary, since it is viewing a color that we can't see.

If this is a chemical film camera then I would expect that you'd need IR sensitive film to use an IR flash.

Re: Please explain how infrared LED flash camera w

You'll need IR film to use an IR flash... or some sort of camera that's adequately sensitive to IR for whatever you're trying to photograph.

My digital camera can see the light put off by IR LEDs, but it sure as heck can't see in the dark.

Re: Please explain how infrared LED flash camera w

I have an old SLR film camera 35mm. IR film used to be available for these - would need to search a little.

Re: Please explain how infrared LED flash camera w

most digicams have extended range into the red spectrum, some dSLRs have an IR filter ahead of the sensor. depends. not sure what product you are talkign about, but a quick search showed IR flashes on cameras to take remote b/w low resolution photos in the field. since IR is theoretically not visible to game, they won't be scared away, meaning more photos (or video) for you. and since the result is in b/w not color, it doesn't matter what color the flash it, just how much light is reflected off the subject--the camera will convert that to a visible image.

IR film (such as Kodak HIE, about the only stuff left) captured reflected IR, not emitted IR. so you can't go take photos of houses and see heat leakage and such. you CAN take pics of a forest, or landscape, and get a nice image (different reflectivity of biotic material).

also, most of the accessory (large) external camera mounted flashes uses IR to focus in low light, by putting out a grid pattern in the near red (sometimes visible). others have a visible reddish/orange assist light, others use white light (strobed flash or seperate LED/hotwire emitter) for assist.

Thanks for all the input. If I knew how to read then I would have read the answer. The following link is to the camera.
http://cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jhtml?id=0030734416741a&navAction=push&navCount=1&indexId=cat20098&podId=0030734&catalogCode=IF&parentId=cat20098&parentType=index&rid=&_DARGS=%2Fcabelas%2Fen%2Fcommon%2Fcatalog%2Fitem-link.jhtml.1_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20712&hasJS=true

It stores the images on an SD card. Duh!!! Sorry

Thanks Again
Bruce

Re: Please explain how infrared LED flash camera w

I looked into them and I found something interesting. They use an infrared switch. If something moves within a designated distance, the switch will activate and a picture is taken. A infrared light is shone (flash) and the image is taken with a digital camera, which is recorded to the SD card. In this was battery isnt wasted by taking pictures every so often. Something interesting: Digital cameras, under some conditions, can record part of the Light sprectrum out of our visual spectrum.

-tom