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Forest Treasure IR by John Hewitt 7 A final infra red shot to farewell the forest at Pyengana. There is no doubt these large tree ferns, which regularly grow over 5 metres tall, but have been known to reach 15 metres (49 feet), are impressive in infra red light. They are also ancient trees. The Dicksonia antarctica species (revealing a common link to Gondwana) grows at a rate of up to 5 cms a year. It takes 20 years to mature to the age when it can produce spores and reproduce. The largest of these trees would be hundreds of years old. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dicksonia_antarctica https://flic.kr/p/2n4dsFS

The Magical Forest IR by John Hewitt 7 Though the forest is dark and deep making most shots without a tripod unrealistic, infra red makes it come alive. Like magic. We are looking here at a scene illuminated by the non-visible light spectrum above 750 nms. The normal range of vision is between 380 and 700 nms, and in this case the forest is very dark later in the afternoon. But the air is alive with infra red and illuminating the tree ferns with a transcendental glow. This is where infra red photography thrives. https://flic.kr/p/2n32fGc

Path to Shangri-La IR by John Hewitt 7 The forests around Pyengana have numerous waterfalls. The most popular of these is St Columba Falls which we'll get to see in coming days. As we got to the falls the clouds began to block much of the sunlight and then under the forest canopy it was quite dark as well. It is here that Infra Red really comes into its own, since it photographs the non-visible light spectrum above 750 nms. This alternate world of infra red leads to some very exciting results. Shangri-La is of course the mythic world described in the 1933 novel "Lost Horizon" by James Hilton. Shangri-La has become synonymous with any earthly paradise, and in the novel is a mystical, harmonious valley in the mountains of China. https://flic.kr/p/2n355R1