HDR Photography – Like, or Dislike?

Another side of Paris...and in HDR

HDR photos seem to be all the hype recently, or at least in the past couple of years.  But, some say they are too “photoshopped” and aren’t realistic.  However, the point of HDR is to capture all of the vibrant colors the eye sees instead of what the camera is able to process.

There is an art HDR imaging because this style of editing can be overdone and then we look at an image and think “what the hell happened?”  Unless you like psychedelic images, then over process to your heart’s desire.

One mastermind that has perfected the art of High Dynamic Range photography created a complete website dedicated to his travels and beautiful work.  “Stuck in Customs” can take you around the world in just a few clicks.

When creating HDR images, you must take three identical images, but with different exposures.  The first will be overexposed, the second a “regular” image, and the third underexposed.  This basically means a regular image and one that is too dark and one that is too light.

HDR is able to capture all of the intense colors the eye can see.

These photos are then layered over one another to create one image with all of the important effects that make up an HDR image.  All of the lightness and darkness and in betweens.  Also, because they are layered, make sure to use a tripod to ensure you have captured the exact same thing.  Or else, you might end up with blurry mountains or more trees in that landscape than you expected.

Obviously a full tutorial would create a more pristine image and Stuck in Customs has been voted to have the best tutorial that is out there.  So get out there and start shooting and make sure to share your images in my comments section, I’d love to see them!

 

Photos by Trey Ratcliff/Stuck in Customs/Creative Commons