Infrared Lens Filter That Mimics the Look of Kodak Aerochrome Film

Infrared Lens Filter Successfully Mimics the Look of Kodak Aerochrome Film

By Jessica Stewart on February 8, 2019

Photographers who love the look of infrared photos shot on Kodak Aerochrome are in for a treat. This long-discontinued film, which was developed for surveillance use in the 1940s, regularly fetches steep prices when it shows up on eBay. But now, a photographer has come up with a new filter that achieves the same effect. That means you can get all the lush red, magenta, and purple hues on your digital camera without having to go through massive retouching in Photoshop.

Since 2008, photographer Yann Philippe has been experimenting with ways to achieve the “Aerochrome look” in-camera. After numerous test runs, he honed in on the exact transmission curve necessary to achieve the look and turned this information over to Kolari Vision, a leader in the field of infrared photography. Kolari transformed this into a glass filter and now the IR Chrome Lens Filter is on the market.

Starting at $49.99 for a 37mm filter and going up to $189.99 for a 95mm filter, photographers will be able to achieve the stunningly artistic effect of Aerochrome without having to source and shoot on expired film. The filter works with full-spectrum digital cameras—Kolari offers a conversion service—and has an anti-reflective coating that cuts down on flare and ghosting.

In order to ensure that the filter is as close to the real thing as possible, Philippe purchased some old Kodak Aerochrome film on eBay for $60 and did a side by side comparison. The results are incredible. It's clear that Philippe and Kolari did their due diligence before bringing the filter to market, as the images match up quite well.

The IR Chrome Lens Filter is currently available for pre-sale with an estimated delivery date of late-March 2019. See more photographs and learn about the development of the lens on Kolari Vision's blog.