Daylight HDR - the new hype ?

[Iwan Bogels]

Hi everybody,

As I was preparing some photos for a digital slide show, I remembered NFLineast's daylight HDR shots from Wales. This technique fascinates me, so I looked for a photo to try it on. It all seemed so simple, but it is rather challenging......!

Having used Photomatix HDR-software in the past, and having read a few bits and pieces about it, I started playing with a photo which has high contrast, bright colors and plenty of problem areas. I fiddled for about an hour, pushingh and pulling all the sliders in Photomatix Pro 3.0, and then making some more adjustments in Adobe Photoshop CS4. After an hour I was quite pleased with the result, but I was still missing something. Usually I can come up with what it is (colorbalance, contrast, vibrance or sharpness etc), but with HDR it is all a bit different because the overall image has a different presentation.

And that's where I need your help...... Can anyone give me a clue on what I should do different, or which better correction I could make to make the overall photo look better ?

In order to make it possible for everybody, I have added some screenshots, which will take you through my processing process. Next to that I have uploaded the original CR2-file, so that you can try to recreate your own best version of this particular shot and compare it to what others did.

But let me start with my own result first:



Now here is what I did, step by step......

1. I used Adobe Lightroom 2.5 to open the CR2 and make a few regular adjustments, as for any ordinary photo
2. From Adobe Lightroom 2.5 I extracted five images from the same CR2-file, but all with a different exposure (-2, -1, 0, +1, +2)
3. In Adobe Photoshop CS4 I saved all five images as high resolution JPG's, under a different name
4. All five JPG's were loaded into Photomatix Pro 3.0 by using the "Generate HDR" button, and after some seconds an extreme contrast image of my photo became visible
5. After pressing the "Tone Mapping" button, I got a better photo, and the option to adjust the image with the "Details Enhancer" and "Tone Compressor"
6. After playing with about all sliders and options, I used the "Process" button and saved the result as a TIFF-file
7. The TIFF-file was opened in Adobe Photoshop CS4, and several corrections were made in curves and levels
8. As the final step, some blowing grass was removed with the Spot Healing Brush, and the image was resized, sharpened and fit into a borderframe.

Now if you want to try this yourself and compare your own version of this image with others, please download http://www.dappa.nl/KLPD-EC-135-HDR.CR2 to start with. I take it that you all have Lightroom 2.x and Photoshop CSx, but you might not have Photomatix Pro 3.0. Therefor I will put it on my website for a few days for you to download, install and try it out. You can download it from http://www.dappa.nl/photomatixpro30.exe.

Below you will find a screenshot of the settings which I used myself. I'm very curious what others will create with the same file. Hopefully we can share experiences and give this HDR-technique a bigger go in the aviation photography world. Oh, and in order to let our international collegues join in I prefer if we can try and keep this a topic in English (if possible).

Curious regards,
Iwan

[FrankCrebas]

Great result Iwan! Could you please post the original picture as well to compare?

Looking forward to the rest of the slideshow

F

[Iwan Bogels]

Hi Frank,

The original photo can be downloaded as CR2-file. Check the link in the first message....

See you next Saturday,
Iwan

[Triple Nickel]

That are about the same steps I have taken on my HDR's. Only I do not make jpgs first.

All my -2 -1 0 +1 +2 images are saved as TIFF's

Nice picture by the way! The only thing that I see is the unatural bleuish color below the tail of the chopper.
It looks if there is a very bright spot.

I have dowloaded you CR2 and played with it, (did not bother about the flying grass and borders though ).

The result:



Greetz, Ron

[Spacedust]

Hello Iwan,

In most cases I'm not a big fan of HDR, because it looks often too unreal, like a painting or a cartoon. I do like your picture, but I think it just a bit too dark. So enlighten it!

Robert

Edit: like Ron's picture

[Iwan Bogels]

Hi Ron,

Welke settings heb jij gebruikt in Photomatix ? Als je geen andere foto meer heb bewerkt in Photomatix, dan kun je de oude settings nog aflezen als je een nieuwe foto opent.

Benieuwde groetjes,
Iwan

PS: Ik zit nu op m'n werk en kan het resultaat van jouw bewerking nog niet goed beoordelen op dit k***e-schermpje.

[Triple Nickel]

Dat waren de volgende settings:



Daarna nog ietsie bijgewerkt met CS4 (color saturation).

Ik heb al redelij wat HDR gedaan, maar elke foto komt er weer anders/verassend uit.

Wel een mooie techniek overigens.

waaaah mot gaan.. tijdgebrek..

Gr. ron

[NFLineast]

I went for the Disney look. Didn't really bother to clone out the grass...

[Iwan Bogels]

Hi Joe,

Which settings did you use in Photomatix ? If you have not edited any other photo in Photomatix since my EC135 shot, you can read back the old settings when you open an new photo.

Curious regards,
Iwan

[NFLineast]

Hi Joe,

Which settings did you use in Photomatix ? If you have not edited any other photo in Photomatix since my EC135 shot, you can read back the old settings when you open an new photo.

Curious regards,
Iwan

Actually, just had a second look at my attempt and decided that it could do with an extra dose of contrast and sharpening, so I have substituted a new one for the old one.

* I used four images: -2.0 EV, -1.0 EV, 0.0 EV, +1.0 EV.
* I almost always use the default settings in Photomatix.
* I do most of the processing in CS4.

The first thing I do is to do a wee bit of noise reduction. Then a shadows/higlights layer to get rid of as much glare as possible. I add this layers to the cockpit canopy only. Then any combination of layers, usually involving several curves layers, both for adding selective contrast but also for correcting black, white, and grey points as I go. Then finally resize and sharpening. I use selective sharpening to avoid unwanted artifacts. I never add sharpening to the backdrop.

[Joost van Doorn]

Nice picture Iwan!

Sometimes I also make HDR pictures, here three examples:







Hope you like them.

[nilsko]

Interesting thread! And for those who miss the context: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_dynamic_range_imaging" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Took me this Wikipedia article to figure out what HDR means

[Flyboeing]

I have made this one, but I am not happy with it. The plane has to be white, but i don't know how I can get it that way...



Advise?

[Redskin]

maybe adjust the white balance

[Key]

The plane has to be white, but i don't know how I can get it that way...

White balance should work if a colour cast is the problem. But if it's the shadowy look you mean: that is what you introduce by this kind of HDR techniques, I think.

Erik