A new line of experimentation

I've got something new to dabble in (like I don't have enough interests/hobbies).

Digital infrared photography. I've been thinking on it for a while, and finally ran across a cheap-enough digital camera of the model I was after (Olympus C-2020) on eBay. Older digital cameras of certain models are known for being better than others at infrared; newer ones, not so much, because of the newer designs.

Along with the camera ($22.99, it has issues with the battery door and came with no accessories, not even the lens cap), I bought an infrared filter from Hoya ($29.50 on Ebay) and then yet another camera case ($15ish, because decent cases for any camera larger than a deck of cards are hard to find). As luck has it, the filter will fit both adapter rings that I own, so if I want, I can take IR pics with 3 of my 4 cameras.




This is a pic from the 2020, taken in auto mode with no adjustments. I need to read the manual and figure out if it can do a custom white balance. I kind of like the purple/red tinge in the sky, though.



This is a picture from the SP-510, no adjustments. Lots of red there.


SP-510 picture with a custom white balance. Much better, although the 510 really needs a tripod to take a decent picture. The 2020 loses less light with the IR filter, so it can take a decent picture without a tripod.



Another picture with the 510, of my old horse barn.




El Burrito (from the 510). Blurry, but I like the shadow in the background mimicking his pose. Wish I'd had a tripod, or that he would have stood still a bit longer.

The tricky part is getting the photo files from the 2020 to the computer. The 2020 I have came with nothing - no lens cap, no cables, no manual, etc. Originally, it did come with a cable, but it's old enough that it was a serial port cable, not a USB. And the 2020 uses SmartMedia cards, which are pretty defunct these days - I'm not sure there are any card readers out there that read them. I know our HP printer, which does have card slots built in, doesn't have a slot for SMs. The work-around currently is to take pictures with the 2020, then swap the SM card into my semi-retired C-3020, which does have a USB cable, and transfer them that way. I have an old Lexar card reader with an SM slot, but I'm not sure it plays well with XP. That's something to look into, just in case the 3020 bites the dust.