In recent years, some competitors have begun insulating their reflectors. These more expensive configurations can help reduce the overall convective loss from the reflector material by reducing the temperature of the surface subject to convective heat exchange, but they do nothing to improve the “bounce back” deficiencies as discussed and illustrated above. This is because infrared energy responds to all the same optical mechanisms as other forms of electromagnetic energy, making the physical shape and the inherent material properties (reflectivity) of the reflector most important in determining how efficiently radiated energy leaves the appliance and is directed into the space.

At Superior Radiant Products, we are committed to creating innovative infrared heating solutions for our global partners. We believe that through the power of efficient solutions, we have the ability to save energy and move the needle towards a more sustainable world.

3M IR reflective tape

Additionally, some competitors argue for “polished” surfaces as an improvement over “mill finished” surfaces. Polished surfaces may have an effect on visible light, but they do not improve the reflectivity of a reflector versus “mill finished” surfaces for infrared wavelength energy. Overall reflectivity of the material is what matters and SRP utilizes aluminum, which has very high reflective properties.

Infraredreflective film

Depth of field is a spectrum and it provides a number of different tyes of camera focus. For a complete breakdown of the available options, watch our episode of The Shot List that is dedicated to depth of field and camera focus.

2. Trap air near the heat exchanger, to prevent a flow of air from “cooling” the tube temperatures, and hence de-creasing the radiant output from the tube. As an example, if a 1000°F tube is cooled just 10% to 900°F, the loss in radiant output is approximately 25%! Higher tube temperatures produce a larger percentage of radiant energy (versus convected energy).

You can do a ton of really cool things when you know how to use aperture, camera distance, and focal length to manipulate your DoF. With a mastery of depth of field in your toolbox, you're well on your way to becoming a stronger and more creative photographer.

Insulating the reflector also does very little to improve the amount of “dead air” space that surrounds the tubing; this is a function of the “deep dish” nature of the reflector design, and the use of end caps etc. to prevent the air warmed by the tube from spilling into the space.

A shallow depth of field refers to a small area in focus. Often the subject is in focus, while the background is blurred. This is best for portraits, and one way to adjust this is with aperture.

IR reflective paint

SRP’s reflector directs nearly 100% of all energy from the tube into the space, and is the most efficient reflector in the industry. We have incorporated materials that have high emissivity and utilize 10 reflective surfaces at critically controlled angles to accomplish this. Additionally, our reflector extends completely below the bottom of the tube.

Knowing that there are many options to manipulate depth of field, you can approach your next shot list with these in mind. Before we get into how each factor can help you adjust your depth of field, watch this quick video covering the basics on how to actually achieve these options.

The larger the hole, the more light gets in, and the smaller the hole, the less light. Also, the larger the aperture, the blurrier the image, the smaller the aperture, the sharper the photo or video.

IR reflective tape

Alyssa Maio is a screenwriter from New Jersey, now living in Los Angeles. She works as a copywriter here at StudioBinder.

Depth of field is the area of acceptable sharpness in front of and behind the subject which the lens is focused. Put simply, it refers to how blurry or sharp the area is around your subject.

For comparison purposes, the diagrams in Figure 1 on the previous page clearly show the advantage of SRP’s reflector design as compared to popular competition models.

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The closer the camera is to your subject, the more shallow the focus will be. The background will be blurry and out of focus.

If you want to deliberately create creative looking blur in your shots, check out our next article on the Bokeh Effect. Now that you have a better grasp on depth of field and aperture, bokeh won’t be too complicated to learn.  Time to level-up your skill set!

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Clear IR reflective tape

A short focal length (or wide-angle lens) will usually have a deeper depth of field. And a longer focal length, like a telephoto lens, will often have a more shallow depth of field. You can see below as the lens gets longer, the image around the subject gets blurrier.

In summary, the SRP reflector system incorporates highly reflective materials in a superior “deep dish” design configuration to release ~100% of the radiant energy produced by the tube to the space, while minimizing convective losses. This combination of technological innovations results in SRP heaters with radiant outputs (percentage of input energy converted to radiant energy and released to the space) comparable, and in many cases, superior to any tube heater in the market.

Aperture is the opening of the lens through which light passes. When you hit the shutter release button to take the picture, a hole opens to capture the image. The aperture is the size of that hole. Aperture affects the light of the image and the sharpness.

If you’re hoping to become a great photographer or videographer, utilizing every tool at your disposal is the safest and smartest way to get there. One tool that can level-up your skill set is depth of field. Understanding depth of field is tantamount to not only craft, but to your creativity as an artist. Knowing how to produce sharp images, and when to place objects out of focus, can help you get the shots you want consistently and with intention. But what is depth of field? And what else do you need to know about your camera to use it?

There are multiple ways to adjust depth of field, including aperture, the distance between the camera and the subject, the focal length of the lens, and even the size of the camera’s sensor.

On a properly designed “deep dish” infrared reflector system, such as used by SRP, the amount of convection loss directly from the reflector is very small (estimated to be between 1 and 3% of the total input of the appliance, depending on firing rate). Reducing this small amount by even 25% is virtually insignificant. These small changes DO NOT affect the radiant output of the tube – as the tube temperatures are determined by design to be as high as practical, and as allowed by the appliance approval standard. It is the marriage of the burner, tube and reflector system (“fixture efficiency”) that ultimately determines how much useable radiant energy leaves the appliance. As an illustration of this, radiant factor testing according to EN-419-2 has shown SRP’s standard reflector system to be >5% more effective than competitive insulated reflectors and >44% more effective than the same competitor’s uninsulated reflector.

At Superior Radiant Products, we are committed to creating innovative infrared heating solutions for our global partners. We believe that through the power of efficient solutions, we have the ability to save energy and move the needle towards a more sustainable world.

Understanding what depth of field is and how you can use it will expand your skill set, and enhance the quality of your photos and videos. Let’s first define it and then we’ll get to some real-life examples.

Together with a full profile end cap on the reflector, our reflector system minimizes the convective loss from the heat exchanger by trapping as much heated air around the tubing as possible. This “deep dish” design is critical for proper performance of the heater.

If you have a small aperture, where the opening is tiny, (a high f/stop), the greater the depth of field, and the sharper the background. This is often referred to as a “deep” or “large” depth of field.

Aperture works in connection with two other key players — shutter speed and ISO. Knowing how these elements work together will give you full grasp on how aperture works.

Though this isn’t always true. How far away the camera is from the subject will also affect this. But if we increase the length of the lens and keep the same camera-distance, then this remains the case.

It's really that simple: aperture, focal length, and distance to the subject. When you understand how the combination of these settings work in tandem, you can start capturing professional and dynamic looking images with even the most basic equipment.

Infrared reflectormaterial

A deep depth of field captures a larger area in focus, often keeping everything in the image sharp and clear. This is best for landscapes by using a large aperture.

Now that we have a firm grasp on what depth of field is, we can explore how to adjust it. The ability to control it will allow you to photograph various subjects in various situations, making you a more professional and well-rounded image maker.

1. To redirect as much radiant energy as possible into the space after it leaves the heat exchanger tube – to do this in the most efficient manner possible, the energy should not “rattle around” under the reflector, repeatedly bouncing between the tube and reflector, but rather should bounce off the reflector and then leave the appliance; and

Gas fired infrared heating appliances are available from a variety of manufacturers, each with their own design nuances and performance claims. Although many factors of the design influence radiant performance of the heater, one of the most critical considerations is the reflector design. This article outlines the reflector as a component for maximum performance as found in Superior Radiant Products (SRP) heating equipment.