Inon Strobe infra-red strip question

[Gilligan]

One of the components of the The Inon D-180 fiber optic kit is a dark strip that Inon refers to as "clear film strips". They are clear but dark in appearance and when held up to a light they are reddish in color. This is the strip that is placed over the cameras flash, converts the flash to infra-red and transmits it to the strobe head via the fiber optic cable thereby firing the strobe.

I have been told that you can make your own strips from cuttting up 35mm slides. I believe I was told the slide film was exposed in the dark before processing.

Any experts out there on the validity of this or another process for making these strips?

 

[Dee]

I also heard something along those same lines. One thing I would wonder about though....I was told the dark 'clear film strip' was red, because the strobe is design to 'see' the infra-red light. I don't know if an exposed piece of slide film would have that same red color.

 

[ReyeR]

Take a piece of unexposed but developed slide film (i.e. black or opaque after development) and tape it over the camera's flash with the emulsion side out. To find the emulsion take a razor blade and scrape both sides. The side with the emulsion will scrape off easily. You want the emulsion side out because your cameras flash generates heat and the emulsion will eventually stain your flash window.

This works because slide film contains dyes that block certain colours of visible light but lets infrared pass through. This property allows the slide film to resist the intense heat coming from a slide projector lamp. The passing infrared (which is invisible to the human eye) is sufficient to trigger the strobe slave sensor.

 

[justleesa]

Just wondering here, can't you reuse the ones that are delivered with the camera?since I have two 5050's I don't have to worry about replacing the filter...

 

[Gilligan]

Thank you ReyeR.
The fiber optic kit also comes with clear plastic strips which are placed between the cameras flash and the film strip. I'm sure the reason Inon supplied them is to prevent the film strip from staining the cameras flash as you stated.