Shooting HDR

Hello everyone

A belated Wednesday hello to everyone. It is almost Thursday so I do apologize for the late post here. I have been extremely busy with some night photography so I missed an early morning deadline because I was away from technology for a day or two.

Today I am going to discuss some HDR effects and what you can do when you are working with mixed light situations. Now I know many of you do not like shooting HDR because of the grungy look. You may not have even considered it before. Why should you even consider doing something like this?

Do you know what I am referring too?

Yes, it looks something like this...

In this image I used a plug-in to make some adjustments. The adjustments that I made were done using Nik Software from Google. I used HDR Efex Pro 2. The image is bordering on cartoony (if that is really a word), so it is not what I was looking for. The lights are close to been solarized and the tone compression has been crunched down to much.

Now, why should you continue reading? Well sooner or later you will be required to shoot some HDR photographs for some of your classes. Yes, you will not be getting away from it so easily. So you need to practice.

Now you don't need to buy any new plugins for this effect because it already comes built into Lightroom CC. If you do not have a subscription you will have to export the images to Photoshop and do the HDR there. It is found under Edit in... at the bottom of the list.

Well, if you don't like the HDR effect that you get when you use this method then that option may not be the best one to work for you. Well there is another way that you can get a realistic looking photograph without using the HDR effect process. 

As you can see in the image above you can export the bracketed files to Photoshop, but this time use the "Open as layers in Photoshop" option.

What you do this it opens  your bracketed images as layers into Photoshop and you now have the option to apply a mask to the photographs to help pull out the highlights or add shadows to your baseline photograph, i.e.: 0EV and build your "HDR" photograph.

In this photograph I have added my three bracketed photographs -2EV, 0EV and +2Ev photographs as layers to Photoshop. It is interesting to note that I have moved my 0EV photograph to the bottom of the stack. This becomes my baseline image.

Now add a black layer mask to your other two exposures. You have your under-exposed image and your over-exposed image. Using a medium to small soft brush you can now paint in your highlights and shadows and adjust your photograph to get a more realistic photograph for your final submission. Remember to adjust your opacity if you find the brush strokes are to bright for your highlights or to dark for your shadows. Once you have made your adjustments merge your layers, "CMD + E" on a MAC and "ALT + E" on a PC.

It is a great technique for future classes so I suggest you practice now. When working with mixed light in photograph it can help to even out your exposures for both outside and inside without getting the grungy look and feel to your photographs.

Here is the final result of to my merged photographs while using the Photoshop layers method.

There are so many ways that you can do HDR to manipulate your photographs so make sure to try as many of them while you can. 

One last point before I leave you and say goodbye. You all have access to Lynda.com training from the library module on your dashboard under the Online Library link . Get in there and learn something new each day. That is the best way to learn Photoshop and so many other applications.

It is located under the Photography icon

under the Industry information section.

Here's to having another great week and as always, please let me know if you would like to learn something new. Send me an email at denzilern@stu.aii.edu or just leave a comment for me under this post.

I would love to hear from you.

Have a great week and I will speak to you again next week.

Bye for now. 

Denzil

It's All About Light

Saturday Ambassador

Photography, literally, light writing, is all about light...or lack thereof. Logically, we know this; but what does it mean to you, as a photographer? Obviously, you require at least a modicum of light to capture an image, and you should, of course, ensure that your photographs are properly exposed. However, there is more involved in the process than just the technical aspects; there is also the creative approach to using light.

Sierra Nevada Mountains, Deva Mayorga-Malone, 2013, HDR Composite

 

There are times when hauling around a lot of heavy, bulky equipment seems a chore...and the wind is blowing...and there are no outlets...and so forth. Consider this, however: A bland scene or portrait without the light which defines its character or conveys the proper mood is not likely to impress anyone.

So, what can you do if fabulous natural lighting fails to fall precisely where you need it? Why, you create it, of course! Do not fear to experiment with light, for it is the heart of every great image you will ever produce. It matters not what style you employ or the genre you prefer; light – and how you use it – is paramount to your success as a photographer.

Here are some options for achieving great light:

 

      When the dynamic range (between the deepest shadows and brightest highlights) is vast, try an HDR composite. This involves creating three or more exposures of the same scene, exposing for the highlights, the mid-tones and the shadows. In Photoshop, you can compile them by selecting file > automate > merge to HDR Pro. HDR processing requires some practice, a delicate hand and the discernment to know when it is appropriate. The results can be exceptional, as everything throughout the image is represented with proper exposure and a tremendous amount of detail.

 

      Another option is to create fill with a hand-held flash unit or reflector. When shadows obscure some important detail within a scene, that is both close enough and small enough to be lit in this fashion, fill light can reveal the detail while maintaining the dimensionality imparted by shadows.

 

Lake Powell, Deva Mayorga-Malone, 2013, Digital photograph with fill flash

 

      Light with intent. Employ your strobes, tungsten lights, ambient light, et cetera to create an image with drama or motion, mood or balance.
 

 DVD Spectrum-38, Deva Mayorga-Malone, 2011, Digital photograph with continuous lighting

Photography is a perpetual quest for exquisite light. Pursue it with vigor!

~Saturday Ambassador