Infrared Photography

Authors: Prof. Robin Williams and Gigi Williams

Biomedical applications: Dermatology

Application	Notes	Reference
Lupus Angioma Pigmented naevi	Found the technique was useful for showing changes in the deep layers of the skin in such conditions as lupus, angioma, pigmented naevi; whereas ordinary photography was superior to infrared in superficial lesions of the skin such as psoriasis, macular and papular syphilis and lichen planus.	Haxthausen 1933
Sub-surface hair	Showed that infrared could reveal the beard of a clean shaven man.	Rawling 1933
Sub-surface hair: Negro and caucasian skin	White and Negro skin both appeared chalky. In caucasians, blue eyes appeared dark and dark eyes in Negroes appeared light. Also noted that the beard of clean shaven men could be traced in the infrared record. Concluded that there would be more interest in this technique photographically rather than anatomically.	Seligman 1934
Lupus Negro and caucasian skin	Cited examples of lupus being recorded using this technique in Copenhagen and that the photographs distinguished between dead skin and living skin with lupus nodules in it. Noted that caucasian skin appeared chalky, red lips recorded light and that all lines of the face were exaggerated. Also noted that Negro skin tended to photograph light. He repeated these findings in his later articles in 1937 and 1939.	Clark 1934 Clark 1937 Clark 1939b
Cavernous hemangioma and tattoos	Presented a number of photographs some of which demonstrated the value of infrared photography for showing tattoos not visible to the naked eye and others which clearly demonstrated a cavernous hemangioma on a trunk.	Jorg 1938
Negro and caucasian skin	Stated that the amount of light reflected from caucasian and negroid skin was very similar and that the nipples of a caucasian appeared pale while those of a Negro appeared very dark. Concluded that the melanin pigment in negroid nipples was so abundant and near to the surface that it absorbed infrared.	Salthouse 1958
Penetration of infrared through skin	Challenged the accepted view that infrared penetrated the skin to 3mm. Stated that there was no account of experiments which described the photographic penetration of infrared radiation. Gibson then described experiments in which carbon rods were inserted underneath the prepuce to demonstrate the photographic penetration.	Gibson 1967
Pseudoxanthoma	Graphic demonstration of plaques of fat in pseudoxanthoma elasticum.	Phillips 1976
Pigmentation and skin disorders	Doctoral thesis with some applications - showed that infrared photography for studying rosacea and reviewed other people's work on cutaneous conditions. Showed that skin appeared light, wrinkle lines were accentuated, lips appeared light, and vascular patterns were not visible in patients with rosacea. They therefore concluded that the abnormalities lay in the proximal vessels.	Marshall 1977
Rosacea	Showed the value of infrared photography for studying rosacea and reviewed other people's work on cutaneous conditions. Showed that skin appeared light, wrinkle lines were accentuated, lips appeared light, and vascular patterns were not visible in patients with rosacea. They therefore concluded that the abnormalities lay in the proximal vessels.	Wilkins and Josephs 1980
Mongolian spot, naevus of ota, blue naevus Dermal melanin Facial melanosis	Noted that the pigmentation of Mongolian spot, naevus of ota and blue naevus were most clearly revealed by the infrared record. Also stated that infrared photography could demonstrate the presence of melanophages as well as dermal maelanocytes and melanin depositions in the middle and lower layers of the dermis, but that ephilides transmitted infrared. Noted absorption of infrared by deep-seated melanin in a case of facial melanosis.	Morikawa et al. 1981
Faces	Infrared, visible , and ultraviolet records taken using a ingenious design where all three cameras on a motor mechanism could record the images within two seconds.	Callender 1991

References

Callender, R., 1991. "Tri-zonal photography of the human face," Brit. J. Photogr. 138:14-16.
Clark, W., 1934. "Infrared photography," J. Biol. Photogr. Ass. 2 (3):119-129.
Clark, W., 1937. "Photography of the Infrared," Am. Ann. Photogr. 51:13-22.
Clark, W., 1939b. Photography by infrared. Chapman and Hall. London.
Gibson, H., 1967. "Medical infrared color photography," Vis. Med. 2(2)43-50.
Gibson, H., 1967. "Medical infrared color photography," Vis. Med. 2(3)43-51.
Haxthausen, H., 1933. "Om infrared fotograpfering i dermatologien," Ugeskrift for Laeger. 8:221-222.
Jörg, M., 1938. "Uber weitere anwendungen der ultrarotphotographie in kriminalistik und medizin," Photogr. Kores. 74(9):148-150.
Marshall, R., 1977. "A study of the selective absorption of ultra-violet and infra-red radiation by some pigmented lesions of the skin," PhD Thesis, CNAA. London.
Morikawa, F., Nakayama, Y., Ikura, T., Nakajima, K., Ohta, S. & Ishihara, M., 1981. "The application of photographic techniques for the differentiation of the location of melanin pigment in the skin," Chapter 2. In Biology and diseases of dermal pigmentation,. 231-243. Fitzpatrick, T. et al. (Ed). University of Tokyo Press.
Phillips, R., 1976. "Photography as an aid to dermatology," Med. Biol. Illustr. 26:161-166.
Rawling, S., 1933. Infrared photography Blackie & Son Ltd. London. 56pp.
Salthouse, T., 1958. "Photography of the Negro skin," Med. Biol. Illustr. 8:150-159.
Seligman, C., 1934. "Infrared photographs of racial types," Nature 133:279-280.
Wilkins, J. & Josephs, J., 1980. "Infrared photographic studies of rosacea," Arch. Derm. 116:676-678.

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