How to create an HDR effect in Photoshop. How to Make HDR Hdr Photos in Photoshop from Multiple Photos

As you know, on our site we publish only the best and available written articles, without techno-fetishism and going into the jungle of theory. We publish some articles with the permission of the authors.

HDR shooting and processing is a very complex topic and really interesting articles about HDR are extremely rare.

Alexander Voitekhovich's article "HDR and what it is eaten with" is one of the best articles about HDR photography. This article covers almost every aspect of HDR image creation - from capturing photos to the nuances of HDR processing. It is impossible to fit such a volume of material into one article, therefore the article is divided into four parts. We publish the first part of the article today, and the rest of the parts will be published within the next week.

The first part of the article by Alexander Voitekhovich "HDR and what it is eaten with".

Several years ago, I started collecting information and the results of my experiments related to HDR technology. Over time, this information was formed into an article and it only remained to bring it into a decent form, so that it would not be ashamed to show it to the world.

I deliberately chose the mixture of languages ​​in the names Photoshop and Photomatix to make it easier to read. All photos in the article were taken by the author, that is, by me.

I'll start with a few terms that will appear in the article. And those readers who are not interested in the technical side of the issue can go straight to Chapter 3.1 for creating HDR in Photoshop or to Chapter 3.2 for describing Photomatix.

Dynamic range- the ratio of the minimum to the maximum value of any physical quantities. In photography, it is used as a synonym for the concept of "photographic latitude", that is, the range of brightness that can be fixed on a film or on a matrix. In the context of HDR, the dynamic range of a motif is the ratio of the brightness of the lightest part of the motif to the darkest.

LDR (Low Dynamic Range)- low dynamic range image, ordinary photographs. It can be an 8-bit JPG or a 16-bit TIF image.

HDR (High Dynamic Range)- high dynamic range. Usually refers to the HDRI generation technology. Sometimes used synonymously with HDRI.

HDRI (High Dynamic Range Image)- the image with the dynamic range is larger than in conventional 8/16-bit images. In some sources, the border from which the HDRI begins is called 13.3 stops of exposure (the range of brightness values ​​is 1: 10000). HDRI uses a 32-bit floating point format, such as the Radiance format (.hdr), which was developed in the mid-1980s. The description of the format in .pdf can be viewed.

Tone Mapping- tone mapping. A technique for converting an HDR image into a format that a normal monitor can display, that is, into an eight- or 16-bit image. In the English-speaking sector of the Internet, the concepts of Tone Mapping and Tonal Compression are most often not distinguished in the context of an HDRI. At the same time, there is a tendency in Runet to understand the first definition as tonal mapping, in which each pixel of a 32-bit HDRI is nonlinearly converted into a pixel of an eight- or 16-bit image, taking into account the brightness of the surrounding pixels, and tone mapping is understood as linear compression of the entire range brightness of the HDRI image.

DRI (Dynamic Range Increase) Is a technique used to increase the dynamic range of a photograph.

1. A little about the dynamic range and the struggle for it

Anyone who has ever held a camera in their hands is familiar with pictures in which vague silhouettes in a dark spot cluster against the background of a beautifully illuminated blue sky, or the foreground - buildings, people and cats are captured against a uniformly white background. Despite the fact that there, in place, both the foreground and the clouds in the blue sky were equally distinguishable. This happens due to the fact that the matrix of a digital camera is unable to simultaneously record information both in dark areas of the image, for which a larger exposure is needed, and in light areas, where a smaller exposure is sufficient. The difference between these exposure values ​​is called the dynamic range of the motif.

Analog and digital cameras also have dynamic range, that is, the difference in exposure steps between the darkest and lightest parts of the image that can be reproduced without loss of information. This loss is expressed either in completely black areas of the image, or in overexposed. Information in over- and underexposed areas cannot be retrieved. Dark areas of the image can be lightened to some extent, but this is most often due to the appearance of noise.

Human vision is able to record information in areas with a difference of 10-14 steps without adaptation and up to 24 steps with the possibility of adapting the pupil to different areas of illumination, which corresponds to the difference between illumination in bright sunlight and in dim starlight. Usually this is more than enough, since the dynamic range of real motives is rarely more than 14 stops. But capturing even part of this range can be difficult. The dynamic range of conventional negative film is about 9-11 stops of exposure, slide film - 5-6 stops, digital camera matrices - theoretically from 8 to 11 stops, although in practice most digital cameras are able to capture much less information.

It is difficult not only to capture, but also to reproduce the real dynamic range of the motive. Photo paper is capable of reproducing only 7-8 stops of exposure, while modern monitors are capable of displaying images with a contrast of up to 1: 600 (9 stops), plasma TVs - up to 13 stops (1: 10000).

Ever since photography was invented, attempts have been made to combat these limitations. When shooting, gradient filters were used and are now often used, which are available with different densities and different smoothness of the transition from the darkened to the transparent part. When projecting an image onto photographic paper, masks cut out of cardboard were used to cover parts of the image. At one time, the idea of ​​dividing each of the three light-sensitive layers of the film into two became revolutionary - fine-grained, receptive to bright light and coarse-grained, already receptive to a small amount of light. It seems this idea was first implemented on Fuji film, but I'm not sure about it.

Some craftsmen made filters for themselves for the conditions of a certain motive. About twenty years ago, while resting in the country, I saw a man who was standing in front of the camera on a tripod and selflessly drew something on the lens. When I asked why he was staining a good thing, he replied that he was putting on the glass filter some kind of gray substance, like dust, the name of which I, of course, had already forgotten, in order to darken too bright areas of the motif. This is how I first became familiar with HDR technology.

With the advent of digital photography, various image manipulations require less time, knowledge and effort, but the limitations in reproducing dynamic range continue to exist. When shooting motives with a not very high dynamic range, shooting in RAW format can play a good role, allowing you to darken overly bright areas to a certain extent and lighten dark ones in a RAW converter. Especially well the highlighting of shadows succeeds, in my opinion, by Adobe's Lightroom. But here a lot depends on how the camera itself handles the brightness and chromatic noise in the shadows. For example, when brightening RAW photos from the 350D, already at 2 stops of exposure, there is too much noise in the dark areas, while in photos taken with the Canon 5D, it is possible to stretch out the shadows by three stops.

To solve the problem of dynamic range, camera manufacturers Fuji released a new type of sensor in 2003 - SuperCCD SR. When developing this matrix, the same principle was used, which at one time made it possible to increase the dynamic range of color film. Each photosensitive element actually consists of two elements. The main element, which has a fairly low dynamic range, reproduces dark and mid tones. The secondary element is much less light sensitive, but its dynamic range is about four times greater. According to the manufacturers, this increases the dynamic range of the sensor by two stops compared to cameras using conventional Bayer matrices. There is no reason not to believe this information.

In 2005, the Loglux i5 camera was released in Dresden, which allows you to take 60 pictures per second with a contrast of 1: 100,000 (17 stops). True, the camera is intended for use in the industry and is not designed for the purposes that most photographers are used to. I didn't really want to, considering that it shoots with a resolution of 1.3 megapixels.

Those willing to pay around $ 65,000 for the HDR craze can shoot directly in HDR format with 26 stops of dynamic range with the SpheroCam HDR camera.

For those photographers who do not use SpheroCam HDR and who lack the capabilities of RAW format, only the HDR technique will help. With this method, information from several images taken with different exposures is combined into one 32-bit file. Unfortunately, such an image cannot be seen on a monitor, since even plasma TVs with high contrast ratios cannot display the full dynamic range of HDR. For these purposes, there are Sunnybrook HDR monitors, with a contrast of 40,000: 1 (> 15 stops) and BrightSide DR37-P with a contrast, according to the manufacturer, 200,000 (> 17 stops), costing 49,000 dead presidents. If one of these monitors is not in front of you, then tone mapping should be performed in order for HDR images to be seen and printed.

I have heard the opinion that, since the camera's matrix is ​​capable of fixing up to 11 steps of illumination, then when shooting in RAW format, there is no point in HDR, since the information can be restored in a RAW converter. The best way to test this statement is with an example. The photos below were shot in RAW with a Canon 5D camera, which has a relatively large dynamic range compared to many DSLRs. Photos were taken with shutter speeds of 1/800, 1/50, 1/3 second.

The exposure of the middle photo is reduced by four stops in Lightroom.

The exposure of the middle photo is increased by four stops, the shadows are a little highlighted with the Fill Light parameter.

As you can see from this example, overexposed areas cannot be restored, and information in the shadows in a highlighted photograph is only partially restored, and even then with a lot of noise. Minced meat cannot be turned back, and meat cannot be restored from cutlets.

2. Shooting for HDR

To create an HDR image, you need to take several shots at different exposures, capturing details in both dark and light parts of the motif. As you know, you can change the exposure in different ways, but in the case of HDR, this should be done by changing the shutter speed. Let me remind you, just in case, that doubling the shutter speed increases the exposure by one stop. To change the exposure by two stops, the exposure time needs to be changed four times, and so on.

Photos for HDR can be taken in two ways: time consuming and fast. With the first method, you can always be sure of optimal results, but with the second method, you can achieve good results with minimal effort in most situations.

The laborious method looks like this:

• 1. Set the camera to aperture priority (AV) mode and select the required aperture value;
• 2. Set the exposure metering mode to the minimum area that the camera allows. Spot or partial metering will be optimal, but in extreme cases, center-weighted metering is suitable for most motives;
• 3. We measure the exposure in the darkest and lightest areas. We remember these values;
• 4. Install the camera on a tripod, switch to manual mode (M), set the same aperture value at which the measurements were made, and raise the shutter speed from the lowest value to the highest (or vice versa) with a difference of one or two stops when shooting in JPG- format or two or three steps about shooting in RAW.

Example: in AV mode, select f9 and make sure that the darkest area is in the center of the viewfinder. The camera shows that it takes 1/16 of a second for a normal exposure. Do the same with the light area - we get 1/1000 of a second. Mount the camera on a tripod, select mode M, set the aperture to f9 and shutter speed to 1/16. For the next frame, we decrease the shutter speed by two stops, that is, four times: set it to 1/64, the next frames - 1/250 and 1/1000. When shooting in RAW, in principle, it would be enough to take shots with shutter speeds of 1/16, 1/128 and 1/1000 of a second.

With the fast method, over- and underexposed shots are taken with exposure bracketing (AEB). Setting the exposure bracket to +/- two stops is usually sufficient to produce high-quality HDR for most motifs. This method is also good because it allows you to often shoot without a tripod. To do this, with the exposure setting set, the camera is put into continuous mode and three frames are taken with different exposures. With this method, it must be borne in mind that the rule for preventing shake 1 / (focal length) refers to the maximum shutter speed, that is, to the last frame. Thus, when shooting with a 50 mm lens and two-stop exposure, the camera should show a shutter speed of 1/200 second on a full-frame camera or 1/320 on cameras with a 1.6 crop, since the last frame will be exactly 1/50 or 1 / 80 seconds respectively.

Another problem that can arise with this method is that the exposure can be determined for the too light part of the motif, then as a result the three resulting frames will be too dark and it will be impossible to restore information in the shadows. If you determine the exposure for a too dark area of ​​the frame, the bright areas will be overexposed. To prevent this from happening, it is better to first set the shutter speed for the area of ​​medium illumination using exposure lock (AE lock), then choose a composition and take three frames. An alternative would be matrix metering.

Shooting using this method looks like this:
• 1. The camera is equipped with an exposure bracket and a continuous shooting mode;
• 2. The composition is chosen so that there is an area of ​​medium illumination in the center and the exposure is fixed;
• 3. The frame is composed and three frames are made. At the same time, it is advisable not to jump too much, otherwise it will be difficult to align the frames later.

3. HDR in action

HDR technology has long turned into an independent direction in photography, with its own laws and concepts of beauty. I can't say anything bad about such predilections, but I myself am one of those people who see in HDR only a convenient tool for creating realistic photos. For my taste, the left photograph, which has not lost its realism, is preferable. The second processing option, although not devoid of originality, has little to do with what a person can see.

I am writing this so that it is clear what I mean by bad and good HDR processing, not wanting to offend anyone's photographic preferences.

Among the many programs for creating HDR, I have considered only two of the most famous and most often used. However, there are other programs for creating HDR that are in no way inferior to Photoshop and Photomatix. Some of them are listed and briefly described at the end of the fourth part. I advise you to pay special attention to easyHDR and Artizen HDR.

3.1. HDR creation and tone mapping in Photoshop

To create an HDRI, you either need to select files from the menu "File-> Automate-> Merge to HDR ...", or use the option "Add open files" if the photos are already open in Photoshop. You can create HDR from JPG, TIF, or RAW files. The color profile of the original photos does not matter, as Photoshop converts HDR to 8/16-bit only with the sRGB profile.

You can check the option "Attempt to Automatically Align Source Images"... When shooting handheld, there is always a high probability of image displacement, but even when using a tripod, careless adjustment of the settings on the camera can slightly change its position. Image alignment takes a very long time in Photoshop, up to 45 minutes for HDR from three RAW files. Moreover, during operation, the program crushes all the computer resources that it can find, so you cannot do anything else. Although at this time it will be possible to read the book. Or sleep. In short, if you are sure that the camera position has not changed, then it is better not to check this option.

If Photoshop cannot find EXIF ​​data, it will ask you to enter it manually. It is advisable to enter the correct numbers, because if you set some nonsense in these parameters, the resulting HDR will be appropriate.

Unlike the CS2 version, Photoshop CS3 allows you to make HDR from images created in a RAW converter with exposure corrections. In this case, it is necessary to convert from RAW to JPG or TIF without saving EXIF ​​data, otherwise Photoshop, finding the same exposure values, will create some kind of nonsense instead of HDR and will not allow any interference in the process. You can remove EXIF ​​data from JPG photos using programs like Exifer, either by copying the images in Photoshop to new files, or by converting them to photos that do not support EXIF ​​and back to their original format. EXIF only supports JPG and TIF formats, so translating to, for example, PNG and back to JPG erases this data.

After the calculations, the HDRI preview window will appear. Since conventional monitors are not designed to display 32-bit images, only a fraction of the entire light range of this HDRI will be visible. On the left side, you can see all photos included in the process with exposure values ​​relative to one of them. At this stage, you can exclude any of the HDRI creation, if for some reason it is required. On the right is the histogram of the resulting HDRI. By moving the carriage, you can change the gamma of the image and view parts of the photo with different illumination. For the end result, it doesn't matter at what value you set the caret. Leave the value "Bit Depth" by 32 and press OK.

We now have an HDR file. But for the reasons described above, it cannot be considered. Just in case, you can save it in the format Radiance(.hdr), which is accepted by both Photoshop and Photomatix, or you can immediately begin to bring it into a human form. In theory, Photoshop allows you to do some processing on 32-bit images, but these possibilities are too limited, so it is better to switch it to 16 or 8-bit mode. I usually only convert to 16 bits to reduce potential losses in further processing. For this we choose Image-> Mode-> 16 Bits / Channel.

A window will now appear with four options at the top. For most cases, only the last option is of interest. "Local Adaptation", but for the sake of completeness, the others should be briefly mentioned.

Exposure and Gamma: allows you to change the exposure and gamma value of the image. For some images with a relatively low dynamic range, this may be useful. For those who decide to use this option, tone mapping is best done as follows:

• 1. Change the exposure value so that the image has a medium brightness;
• 2. Increase the gamma value so that all parts of the image are visible. The contrast will be very low;
• 3. Correct the exposure value as necessary.
• 4. After tone mapping, increase the contrast with levels or curves.

Highlight Compression: Compresses the light range of the image to fit in 16-bit space. If you use it correctly, then this method is quite time consuming, and the final result can be predicted only if you have sufficient experience with it. First, you need to prepare the image:

• 1. Open the 32-bit preview dialog: View-> 32-bit Preview Options ...... The exposure carriage in the opened window must be in the middle. Set preview method Highlight Compression.
• 2. Open dialogue Image-> Adjustment-> Exposure and set the parameters at which the image will look optimal. It is better not to change the Offset value. In this form, the image will be converted to 8 or 16 bits.
• 3. In the window Image-> Mode-> 16 bit select Highlight Compression.

Equalize Histogram: Compresses the dynamic range of the image based on local contrast. The contrast changes depending on the number of pixels in a specific area of ​​the histogram. The areas of the histogram with a large number of pixels with this method are expanded at the expense of areas with a small number of pixels, which are compressed. As a result, the histogram of the image is smoothed and the local contrast of the image is increased. The option, in my opinion, is interesting, but rather useless.

Local Adaptation: an option that should be used in most cases. It allows you to convert 32-bit HDRI to 8/16-bit image using curves familiar to most Photoshop users.

Two additional parameters not found in regular curves are - Radius and Threshold... While the curve is responsible for changing the global contrast, these two parameters determine the local contrast, the contrast of detail.

Radius: Determines how many pixels are considered “local” areas when contrast is changed. Too low values ​​make the image flat, too high can lead to ghosting, especially at high values ​​of the second parameter, Threshold... I usually set the Radius values ​​to 1-7, depending on the size of the image. But it is possible that someone will like the results that give higher values ​​of this parameter more.

Threshold: Determines how pronounced this local contrast will be. I usually leave this value small or minimal. A similar effect can be achieved later, if necessary, using Highpass or high parameter Radius filter Unsharp Mask, although, of course, the mechanism of the parameter Threshold somewhat different.

Now it remains to work with the curve. As a last resort, you can make several images with different tone mapping parameters, then combine them with different overlap modes or hide some of the layers with masks.

In order to find out where the light value of an image area lies on the curve, you should, as in ordinary curves, move the cursor over this area of ​​the image. There is one trick in these curves - the usual S-curve, which increases the contrast of the image, at the same time again brightens the light parts and darkens the dark ones, that is, it does the opposite of what all the HDR mess was started for. At the same time, the inverted S-curve, which evenly distributes the light values ​​in the image, reduces the contrast. I advise you to start by moving the bottom black point on the curve towards the beginning of the histogram. How to distribute the rest of the points depends on the image. You should not neglect the ability to define any point on the curve as "angular", making the tonal transition sharp, not smooth. To do this, select a point and check the "Corner" option in the lower right corner. This option works well on images of architectural structures, where sharp lighting transitions can add dimension.

3.2. HDR and Tone Mapping in Photomatix

All examples are shown with Photomatix version 2.4.1. I don't really like the tone mapping dialog box in the latest version 2.3, because now you can't see the micro contrast parameters and the White / Black Clip settings at the same time.

Let's create an HDR file from several photos. To do this, you can either:

a) Select HDR-Generate-> Browse and mark the required files;

b) Open the required photos through File-> Open, then select the menu HDR-> Generate ((Ctrl + G) and Use opened images... This feature is convenient in that it allows you to check if the correct files have been selected. It is extremely unpleasant if, after long calculations, it turns out that the list included a photograph that does not belong to this series. This option does not work for RAW files, as Photomatix automatically creates a pseudo-HDRI from them.

If Photomatix cannot find EXIF ​​data, it will try to approximate it. Most often, he does it quite well, but you can correct the exposure data at this stage. As in Photoshop, you don't need to write nonsense, I tried it - it turns out nonsense instead of HDR.

After the files are selected, the following window will appear. Here you can select various settings for creating HDR.

If there is a possibility that the position of the camera was slightly changed during shooting, then you can check Align source images. It is possible, but not necessary. Adjusting photos lengthens the HDR creation process by about 30%. More often than not, this option works very well, aligning offset photos, but, oddly enough, sometimes in those series of photos where I knew for sure that the camera position was slightly changed, the results were better when I did not select this option, and vice versa. in a series of pictures taken with a tripod, the Photomatix quite shamelessly shifted the photographs relative to each other. But this happens quite rarely.

When choosing an option "Attempt to reduce ghosting artifacts" Photomatix will try to minimize the differences in images associated with moving objects. If these objects are in the foreground, such as people or swinging branches, then it is better to choose Moving objects / people, on the menu Detection select High... Option Normal is, in my experience, generally lousy. If the differences in the images include background such as waves at sea or swaying grasses, then it is better to choose the option Ripples, and in the menu Detection also only High... Although, most often, the best results are obtained if the wave correction option is not activated at all, as will be discussed in the second part of the article.

If you create HDR from JPG or TIF files, you will be able to select tonal curve settings. This term refers to the tonal response curve. The documentation for the program advises you to choose Take tone curve of color profile... The resulting HDR image in this case is almost identical to an HDRI created directly from RAW files. The latter option is disabled when creating HDR from JPG files.

When creating HDR from TIF files created by converting from RAW, all three tone curve options are available. Photomatix documentation advises to select No tone curve applied only when you are sure that no tone curves were used when converting from RAW.

When using RAW files to create HDR, there are two additional options to change. One of them is white balance. The convenience of the latest versions of Photomatix is ​​that it allows you to select one of the photos involved in HDR creation and see how it will look at different white balance values.

The last option is to select the color profile of the HDR image. If you understand this, then you yourself know which one will be better to choose. If you are new to the theme of color profiles, then sRGB is the best choice. It should also be remembered that when creating HDR in Photomatix, the color profile of the original photos is used, that is, from the images with the AdobeRGB profile after the subsequent tone mapping, a photo in AdobeRGB will be obtained.

After the calculations are finished, the image can be rotated using the menu Utilities-> Rotate-> Clockwise / Counterclockwise.

Conventional monitors cannot display the full dynamic range of the generated HDR image, but portions of it can be viewed using the HDR Viewer window. This window quite well simulates the principle of human vision, adapting the brightness of image areas to 60% percent. Across View-> Default Options-> HDR it is possible to configure whether this window will appear or not. HDR Viewer can also be invoked with the Ctrl + V key combination.

Now, for the sake of curiosity, you can find out the dynamic range of the created HDRI via File-> Image Properties (Ctrl + I).

These high-contrast backlit shots are great candidates forHDR processing, but it's always easy to overdo it. Our final result shows just the right restraint, producing a rich shot with good dynamic range.

We've all probably heard this ad gimmick: HDR solved photography's last greatest problem by producing beautiful, lifelike high-contrast shots. In most situations, it is impossible to capture the full range of tones that we see with our own eyes with one photograph. You can bring the result as close to reality as possible using exposure bracketing and combining images in special software.

Do you believe this? Many of my students are not. They are interested in the potential of HDR shooting, but are unhappy unnatural results and quit because of the boringness and complexity (not to mention the cost) of learning new programs.

Imagine an approach to HDR that is cheap, uses software you already know, works non-destructively, and produces the most realistic results. Do you think this is some kind of trick? Not at all.

The solution is simple - you need to use Lightroom. All of his familiar tools work for HDR in the same way as for regular RAW shots. All of your corrections are non-destructive, which means you can change your mind and re-edit the same file as many times as you like. Adjusting a photo in Lightroom does not affect pixels. Instead, it modifies the set of instructions that the program uses when exporting a snapshot to JPEG for web publishing or TIFF for printing. These instructions can be changed at any time.

Lightroom is relatively cheap and has many features besides HDR. Best of all, the results are better than using Photomatix Pro 5, HDR Efex Pro 2, or HDR Expose 3. In our case, the simplest way is the best.

However, there are a couple of small tricks. First, you need to use Lightroom 4.1 or higher. Earlier versions cannot handle tone mapping (a technical term for the editing process) of 32-bit files. To understand the second trick, you need to know a little more about how HDR works.

The process starts with a car fork. It is advisable to put the camera on a tripod so that the pictures are the same in everything except the exposure. I usually take five photos at one stop intervals, so my exposure ranges from two stops below the optimal value (EV -2) to two above (EV +2). The next step is to combine all these photos into 32-bit high dynamic range TIFF, which brings us to the second trick. Lightroom versions 5.3 and earlier cannot create 32-bit files from a snapshot set. To do this, you need to use additional software.

However, there is a simple solution. You can create this file using Photoshop CS5 or higher, Photomatix Pro, or HDRsoft's Merge to 32-bit HDR Lightroom plug-in.

• Translator's note- in the sixth versionLightroom has a gluing functionHDR. To use it, you need to open the moduleDevelop, select the necessary images, then open the context menu and in the sectionPhotoMerge find the function you want.

1. Get good local contrast in highlights and shadows to maintain a realistic look.
2. Definition (Clarity is a great way to breathe life into areas that look flat, but don't need to be overly zealous. Quantities (Amount) within 10-30 is usually enough. Remember that with this tool you can use Regulatory brush(Adjustment Brush) to limit the effect to the desired areas.

The simplest solution is the Merge to 32-bit HDR plugin available at www.hdrsoft.com. After installing it, simply select all your photos in Lightroom, right-click, then select Export> Merge to 32-bitHDR(Export> Merge to 32-bit HDR). In the dialog box that appears, I always check the box Reducing noise(Reduce Noise).

Also if any objects (for example, tree branches) moved during shooting, select Reduction of halos(Remove Ghosts). Check the box Alignment(Align Images) when shooting handheld or on a shaking tripod. After you click on the Merge button, the 32-bit TIFF will automatically open in the Lightroom window.

If you already have Photomatix Pro, then you don't even need a plugin. Just open the program separately (not through Lightroom). Click on the button Upload photos(Load Bracketed Photos). In the window that appears, check the box next to Show 32-bit raw image(Show 32-bit Unprocessed Image). Set the above settings by analogy with the plugin, then click To combine(Merge). If you choose Show options ( Show Options) for the Remove Ghosts tool, you will be able to specify the areas in which you want to remove moving objects.

This is a more advanced technique than what is available in the plugin. You can also choose automatic cleaning. If there were no moving objects in the pictures, it is better not to tick the box. When the merge is complete, go to File> Save As. Select the Floating Point TIFF format and click OK. You can close Photomatix as we will be using Lightroom to match the tones. Import the saved TIFF file into Lightroom.

If you save it in the source folder, as I usually do, it will be enough just to right-click on the folder name in the panel Library(Library) and select Sync folder(Synchronize Folder). Make sure to check the box Show import dialog (Show Import Dialog Before Importing) active. When a new window appears, deactivate all Develop presets and click Synchronize(Synchronize).

WITHHDR can be overdone very easily, especially when trying to bring out details in shaded areas. Let the shadows be shadows and stop in time. We want a realistic final result.

If necessary, you can create a 32-bit TIFF using Photoshop, but I do not recommend doing this if the sun is in the frame. In my opinion experience file that the result is weird, almost unrecoverable banding, while the Merge to 32-bit HDR plug-in or Photomatix do not have such artifacts. But just in case, I will give an algorithm for working in Photoshop.

First go to Lightroom Options using the menu Editing> Options(Edit> Preferences) and select External editing(External Editing). Select TIFF from the format drop-down menu as PSD files will not work for this procedure. Select all the photos you want in Lightroom and go to the menu Photo> Edit In> CombineHDRPro inPhotoshop(Photo> Edit In> Merge to HDR Pro in Photoshop).

When the dialog box opens, opposite the line Mode(Mode) select 32 Bit. All editing options will disappear and the photo will look terrible. Don't worry, just click OK and Photoshop will create a 32-bit file. Save it. No need to change name or location, it will appear in the directory next to the original RAW files.

• Translator's note- it may seem to you that it makes no sense to describe so many methods of combining images to work withHDR. However, each of them has its own characteristics and advantages, so the question of choosing an instrument, as always, remains a matter of personal taste.

Matching tones in Lightroom

Regardless of the method in which you got the 32-bit file, the next step is one - open it in the Develop module. First of all, the Exposure slider now shows +/- 10 stops of exposure instead of the usual five. While you don't need to go to extremes, it makes it clear how wide the range of light intensities is in a 32-bit file.

I usually start with a slider Exposition(Exposure) to adjust the overall "feel" of the picture, the balance of light and dark, without worrying too much about losing data at one end of the tonal scale. Most often 32-bit TIFFs have a "heavy" feeling with very strong shadows, so I start by lightening them up a bit.

1. Let the light areas stay light. Allowing bright places to turn almost white will increase realism.
2. Keep the contrast enhancement of textures under control. The creation of an unwanted “grungy” look immediately suggests that it is HDR.
3. Let the shadows remain shadows. Leave small areas completely black, increasing the dynamic range of the image and making highlights appear brighter with contrast.

Moving on to sliders Shadows(Shadows) and Glare(Highlights) I start with careful movement. Values ​​greater than 50 for the former will make the shadows flat and unrealistic. Taking too bold steps in Highlights is less likely to lead to problems. Remember that having small, completely white and black areas makes the photo more realistic. Lighter shades appear brighter next to completely blacks, increasing the dynamic range present. Most high contrast shots have an element that has the highest possible light tone, but is not blown out to white. The sun is an exception in itself; it is always completely white. The need to keep some areas black and some almost white is the main reason for using sliders. Black(Blacks) and White(Whites). I prefer to set my Lightroom background color to white to compare the highlights. To follow my example, go to the menu Editing> Options> Interface(Edit> Preferences> Interface) Also watch the histogram when making changes. This is your best assistant who will tell you about what is happening in the picture.

Most 32-bit images benefit greatly after adding contrast to the panel Tonal curve(Tone Curve). This accentuated the midtones and made the photo livelier, while also increasing highlights and shadows. Instead of go back, try to fix the situation with Gradient filter(Graduated Filter) and Adjustment Brush(Adjustment Brush), which will help preserve the local contrast of the desired areas better than global adjustments with Shadows and Highlights.

The Merge to 32-bit plugin tends to increase saturation. If your photo has become too colorful, reduce the Saturation by 5 or 10 points.

Using Lightroom for HDR will allow you to get cleaner, more visible details, even with the darkest and brightest areas preserved in the RAW file. This approach creates a memorable, vivid and high-contrast shot better than any other, and works great for landscape photography.

I am glad to welcome you to my blog. We are in touch with you, Timur Mustaev. All of us, photographers, love to photograph infinitely. And who doesn't want to get a perfect picture in the end!

As soon as the words “ideal”, “as realistic as possible”, “in high resolution” sound about a photo, I immediately want to talk about a wonderful invention called hdr. The term "bracketing" is closely related to this. Let's analyze all the new concepts in order. So, what is hdr photography?

What is hdr shooting?

HDR photography- This is a high resolution and large image. This means that you can become the proud owner of a photo in which all colors and lights are clearly represented, including very bright and dark areas.

At the same time, your equipment will not tell you that in some places of the frame, information disappears due to exposure or a catastrophic lack of light rays.

The fact is that most often, using a conventional camera, such a picture is almost impossible to make. And it's not about the capabilities of the camera or the skills of the photographer, although these are significant factors that affect the result.

Unlike the human eye, the camera has a very difficult time in high-contrast scenes. We can perceive all shades of blue skies and gray or brown earths, for example, but technique cannot.

She will certainly either make the firmament somewhere overexposed, or take the earth's surface into blackness, or choose some kind of middle option. None of them would suit me. I see only a few outputs here:

1. know exactly how to set up the camera, which will most likely be completely manual;
2. draw out highlights or work out shadows in lightroom / photoshop;
3. take a photo using HDR technology.

How is an hdr picture created?

To create the photo I'm talking about in the third paragraph above, you need to superimpose several images taken with a small difference: overexposed, normal, underexposed. Basically, they combine photographs taken with exposure compensation. But there are other options as well.

Most often these are three photos, but sometimes there are more - a whole series. Naturally, in the latter case, it will take more patience and skills to turn, in fact, the raw material from many photographs into just one, so to speak, ideal.

It will be more convenient for professionals to work in a camera. If you are more comfortable and more accustomed to acting in semi-automatic styles (,), then choose them.

The main thing here is to change only one of the main parameters from frame to frame, and usually only by one or a couple of steps, depending on the general lighting.

Example c: f = 7,1 f = 8 and f = 9; s: t = 1/100, 1/160 and 1/250. Take a photo and look at the result. Basically, you can try shifting a little and playing with focus. But these are other types of bracketing that also exist.

Below is an example where different shutter speeds were used, and aperture and, without change. After combining these three photos, we get a wonderful shot.

Note. Taking a photo like this with an extremely high dynamic range is not always appropriate and will not always look the way you originally thought. Neither a computer nor printing presses are capable of fully reflecting the richness of light and shadow.

It is also possible to strengthen the so-called unwanted halos around objects, and they will have to be actively corrected in graphic editors.

Of course, the image in any case will be more colorful and incredibly clear, if everything is done correctly, than a regular photo, for example, in jpeg.

Also keep in mind that if in the situation of shooting a landscape, architecture, interior hdr will look adequate, then when photographing motion it may not be so. Image overlay can have an unpredictable effect, especially when the camera is unstable.

What is HDR in camera?

Amateur photographers, I have good news for you! If you have a solid DSLR, it has a great AEB function (for Canon cameras), which stands for Auto Exposure Bracketing.

BKT button or Nikon bracketing function.

Are you too lazy to bother with preparing hdr? So she will do all the shots for you!

Everything is very simple: read the instructions for the camera, turn on the desired option, and when you press the shutter release, the device will take three pictures. It will be, therefore, light, normal and dark - which is what we need.

Of course, the work doesn't end there. To our delight, the camera can shoot in beauty, which does not compress the photograph, but saves all the information about it. You can also use JPEG format to create HDR photos.

But unfortunately, it will not make the hdr image right away. We'll have to copy everything to a computer and combine and process there in a special program. Photoshop will come in handy for this, in which you can select the desired parts from all the pictures and combine them beautifully, for this in the menu File – Automation choose Merge to HDR Pro.

Also, a simpler utility Photomatix, where in just a couple of mouse clicks you can get a high-quality professional photo.

If you are interested in such a concept as HDR, and you also liked the article that I wrote for you, then you will definitely be interested in the following video courses:

1. DSLR for Beginner 2.0(if you have NIKON) or My first MIRROR(if you have CANON) - Gorgeous course. It is necessary for those who are very bad at using their SLR camera, and who only take pictures in automatic mode. A DSLR can do more! All about this is written in this course.
2. Lightroom is an indispensable tool for the modern photographer- The course will teach you how to use one of the favorite programs of photographers Lightroom. It is very convenient to work with RAW photo formats.
3. Photoshop from scratch in VIP 3.0 video format- A course specially for beginners. As you understand, any photographer should be able to process photos after shooting, but without the basics, it is simply impossible to achieve the desired results. If you are completely new to Photoshop, then you should start with this video course.
4. Photoshop for the photographer 3.0. VIP- The last video course in my arsenal, which is designed specifically for photographers. All the tricks and subtleties are described to get a masterpiece from a simple photo.

Bye, readers! That's all for me. Don't miss my articles - and you will know everything about photography! For your information: you can subscribe to blog news - very convenient. Share the article, I will be very pleased.

All the best to you, Timur Mustaev.

A quick guide to creating high dynamic range photography. The article discusses the main points of HDR shooting - choosing a scene, setting up the camera for shooting with bracketing, making a small overview of programs for HDR stitching, giving alternative methods of expanding the dynamic range, working with light filters, as well as shooting HDR panoramas and working in the style of multiple exposure. The material is designed for beginner amateur photographers who know how to use a digital camera and have the skills to process pictures on a computer.

What is HDR?

Every amateur photographer who is fond of landscape photography is faced with the same problem - pictures of a picturesque place or city landmark are often far from reality and are either overexposed or, conversely, too dark.

In the first case, in the picture, the sky with clouds is strongly overexposed or absent altogether, in the second - the sky is well worked out, but all other details of the landscape are so dark that they are practically invisible. Attempts to change the exposure settings do not change the situation in any way. The fact is that, unlike photographic equipment, the human eye is able to perceive a wider range of brightness gradations.

The answer lies in the limited dynamic range of modern digital cameras. The camera's light meter measures the exposure either in light areas (sky), or, conversely, in dark areas (buildings, trees, ground). Therefore, the only way out of this situation is shooting in the exposure bracketing mode with the subsequent connection of the images in a graphics editor.

Technology HDR(High Dynamic Range) combines the highlights, mid-tones and dark tones of a series of images into a single high dynamic range image. Most often the photographer does this using a special computer program; some cameras have this functionality built in, they allow you to take HDR pictures without using a computer.

For the program to correctly combine the images, it is very important that they are as identical as possible and differ only in the exposure parameters. When shooting handheld, even on a bright sunny day with fast shutter speeds, it is not always possible to hold the camera still, which leads to a slight shift, as a result of which the resulting HDR image will turn out to be blurry. Shooting from a tripod will help - the photographer will receive a series of shots, which, in theory, should perfectly match. However, in practice, the same pictures will be obtained only in a deserted place with complete calm - the wind sways the branches of the trees, passers-by, passing cars, as well as birds and other objects get into the frame. In this case, software algorithms are taken up to help fight grease, in the language of the developers this technology is called Ghost Reduction, or "ghost fighting."

If you don't have a tripod with you, or the shooting conditions do not allow you to fiddle with it (during an excursion, or if it is forbidden to shoot from a tripod), it is quite possible to shoot in bracketing mode handheld if you find good support and hold the camera firmly.

Another option for creating HDR is processing one image taken in RAW format in 2 stages: first, a virtual copy of the file is made, then in one image they work with highlights, in the other - with shadows, after which the two files are glued together into the final image. And finally, one more technique - creating a "pseudo-HDR" from one file using processing in a specialized program, for example Topaz Adjust.

In any case, competently glued HDR images look very impressive and undoubtedly attract the attention of viewers.

Take a regular photo, or shoot HDR?

Determining whether a scene is suitable for HDR is very simple - you just need to take a control shot of the landscape you like in creative mode, for example A, and immediately evaluate the result on the screen. Is the sky overexposed and shadows in the picture littered, while in fact everything around looks stunningly beautiful? You can safely shoot HDR, this scene is just our case.

Oddly enough, storm waves with a stormy sky come out very beautifully - despite the fact that the three exposures will be radically different from each other, when stitching in Lightroom 6, you can get an unexpectedly dramatic and interesting shot.

It is quite difficult to shoot HDR at sunset, especially if there are beautifully illuminated clouds in the sky, often the sky is even drawn by the rays of the sun through the clouds - in this case, the dynamic range of the scene is not so wide, the HDR technique is useless here, a single RAW frame is quite enough. Better to focus on shooting and catch the moment before the sun is hidden behind the horizon!

However, even at sunset, if you have a tripod with you, it always makes sense to make a couple of series, because you can get very interesting pictures by deliberately darkening the sky and highlighting the objects in the foreground. In addition, a tripod will allow you to think more carefully about the angle, as well as cover the aperture to f / 11-16 and more interesting to work with the depth of field.

Subjects that are not suitable for shooting in HDR style:

1. Portrait... There are exceptions, but in most cases the portrait should be shot in portrait technique.
2. Night or evening city.
3. Fog... In theory, you can try HDR-style fog shooting, but only with a narrow fork and as an addition to regular shots.
4. Long exposure with tracers or mirror water.
5. Studio photography and all kinds of items.
6. Reportage Street while street is a very broad and experimental direction, there may be options.
7. Dynamics, sports, children's games, animals, macro.
8. Cloudy gloomy rainy weather with a "milky" sky, in this case it is better to look for interesting angles, most often the HDR technique will not make the landscape more interesting.
9. Winter landscape... The plot is controversial, the author did not succeed in any interesting winter HDR, but it would be wrong to give up so easily and give up trying.

Expanding dynamic range, no doubt, requires creativity, experience, and a willingness to experiment.

Setting up the camera for HDR shooting

Almost all digital cameras allow you to shoot with exposure bracketing, this function is available not only in SLR or mirrorless cameras, but also in many compacts, it has appeared even in smartphones. We will look at the setup using the example of Canon and Nikon DSLRs. Bracketing shooting settings are quite different depending on the camera make and model.

In any case, the camera must be configured as follows:

1. Set to RAW format and aperture priority A mode, or fully manual M mode.
2. Adjust the exposure as if we were shooting one frame. For example, for a landscape during the day it will be ISO 100 and aperture F / 11, the shutter speed in A mode will be set by the camera itself.
3. In the camera menu, select the order of shooting exposures (minus) - (zero) - (plus), so it's easier to sort the series later on a computer.
4. Adjust bracketing - choose the number of exposures and the bracket. For beginners, it makes sense to try 3 exposures with a ± 2 or ± 3EV bracket for a start.
5. Set up a timer, it is better to set 2 seconds - this time is quite enough; if the camera does not have a choice of several intervals, set which one is. If you have a cable release with you, it's time to use it.
6. Frame the frame, perform autofocus (or focus manually), and then it is better to turn off autofocus.
7. Press the shutter button, let's go!

Canon cameras

Canon DSLR cameras allow you to shoot simultaneously and quickly, with bracketing, and with a timer.

There is no separate button for turning on bracketing, you need to enter the menu and select the exposure. Next, use the wheel to adjust the bracketing fork and press SET. Attention! Bracketing is turned on in this way, that is, there is no menu item like ON / OFF. The camera can remember this setting and will take bracketed shots until the photographer sets the bracket to zero.

The timer starts as usual: pressing the DRIVE button and turning the wheel allows you to select a clock with the number 2 or 10. You can use a cable to release the shutter. The three images above illustrate the setup for the Canon 5D Mark III.

Nikon cameras

Nikon DSLRs have a BKT button, you need to hold it down, then use the control wheels to set the number of exposures and the fork (Step). To turn bracketing off, you need to set the number of shots to zero.

If you use the self-timer, then between exposures the camera will count down a certain delta in time, as a result, dynamic objects may shift from exposure to exposure. To turn on the self-timer, you need to turn the left control wheel to the clock icon (see photo below).

To shoot the whole series like a machine gun, without a delta in time, you need to turn on high-speed shooting (Ch on the lower control wheel for selecting the drive mode, see photo below). Then keep the shutter button pressed - the series is ready, but you can easily move the camera, even mounted on a tripod. In this case, the timer cannot be used, since high-speed shooting is turned on with the same wheel as the self-timer.

Thus, shooting with bracketing simultaneously and quickly and with a timer on Nikon SLR cameras will not work. Most likely, this will be fixed in the next models. The examples above show the Nikon D610 setup.

Shoot with a tripod or handheld?

This example shows an HDR urban landscape. Shooting was carried out in exposure bracketing mode in ± 2 EV steps in aperture priority mode (A). To achieve a good depth of field in the foreground and background, an aperture of f / 10 was chosen. A tripod was used to perfectly align the shots, as the minus exposure was too slow for confident handheld shooting.

-2 EV	0 EV	+2 EV

The arch in the courtyard of a house on Nevsky Prospekt in St. Petersburg was not chosen by chance - by the example of filming this plot, you can clearly demonstrate the capabilities of HDR technology. Since the shooting was carried out during the daytime, the street was very well lit, while the space inside the arch was in the shade.

If you shoot while measuring the exposure around the house in the background, only the areas in the area of ​​daylight will be worked out in the picture; the dynamic range of the camera is clearly not enough to work out the highlights and mid tones inside the arch.

To expand the dynamic range, bracketing mode was used. There is a lot of traffic on Nevsky Prospekt, one of the frames caught a passing car, moreover, pedestrians did not stand still and moved. Therefore, in order to achieve the perfect stitching of three shots, it is better to choose the morning hours for shooting, when the traffic on the avenue is not so active, or rely on the automation for HDR stitching, as was done in this example.

Many tripods, for example from Manfrotto, are equipped with one or more level indicators - one on the tripod body, the other on the tripod head, which will allow you to set the horizon very evenly.

Of course, HDR technology means shooting from a tripod, but if it is impossible to use a tripod, it is permissible to shoot handheld, especially during the day. An image stabilizer will be useful here, as well as a good emphasis, such as a column, railings, own knee, or other techniques. However, you need to carefully monitor the ISO sensitivity and do not set high values, since when you merge three "noisy" frames, nothing good will come of it.

How many exposures to shoot?

Beginners can be advised early on to go for the classic HDR variant with three exposures and a ± 2 EV or ± 3 EV bracket depending on the scene or lighting situation.

Professional photographers who specialize in interior photography talk about 9 exposures, which allows them to work out as much detail as possible in highlights, shadows and midtones. Professional cameras can easily shoot 9 exposures, in addition, the photographer can take a series of shots in M ​​mode, simply changing the shutter speed to get the number of exposures he needs. This technique is suitable for leisurely shooting indoors, when no one is interfering and there is enough time. In addition, for responsible shooting, the photographer takes a computer with him, on which you can immediately check the gluing result and make adjustments if necessary.

A classic example, with three exposures, and therefore a classic one, which is suitable for most shooting situations:

-2 EV	0 EV	+2 EV

Five exposures will create an even wider dynamic range, which will allow for more interesting processing of the photo when stitching, very finely working out the details in the highlights and shadows. In theory, you can always make 5 exposures, however, firstly, three exposures are often quite enough, and, secondly, working with three is faster and more convenient.

-1,4	-0,7	0	+0,7	+1,4

The scene above was shot in Pavlovsk with a Sony a7 camera, which can automatically shoot in a series of 5 exposures. Bonding in HDR Efex Pro program.

Also 5 exposures can be useful if there is a lot of detail in deep shadows, midtones and highlights, as in the example of the stone bridge in the forest. The sky with clouds is not visible here at all, but the summer day was very bright, and the shadows in the forest thicket were deep, and the HDR gluing of five frames allowed us to work out all the halftones and get an image very similar to how we would have seen this scene with our own eyes.

This scene was filmed in Sergievka Park (Peterhof, a suburb of St. Petersburg) with a Canon 5D Mark II camera, which cannot automatically shoot 5 exposures in a series, so different exposures were obtained in M ​​mode by changing the shutter speed. In this case, the focal length is 17mm, ISO 100, F / 10 and the shutter speed from left to right: 1/25, 1/13, 1/6, 0.3 and 0.5 seconds. Stitching in Lightroom 6.

Now pay attention to the winter photo of the same bridge. The shooting was carried out in the same place with the same equipment, however, the winter mood could not be conveyed, the picture is not interesting. Obviously, the HDR technique is completely useless here, it was possible to take just one frame in RAW format.

-2 EV	0 EV	+2 EV

How to choose an exposure fork?

First of all, it makes sense to evaluate the contrast of the scene, perhaps to take a couple of test frames to visually assess the dips in the highlights and shadows. In practice, the most common choice is between ± 2 and ± 3 EV. The abbreviation EV, by the way, stands for Exposure Values, in the jargon of “stop”.

If we set up a tripod and set up the camera, it is best to make two series - with a fork of ± 2 and ± 3 EV, and already at home when processing images, choose the best option, because it is always good when there is a choice. It may well turn out that some subject sticks together better from photographs taken with a wider fork, some from a series with a narrower one.

HDRsoft professionals recommend that you always use the minimum ISO and the ± 2 EV bracket. From the experience of shooting HDR, we can say that the first statement is not in doubt, while in the case of the fork, various options are possible and there is a huge scope for creativity.

Fork ± 3 EV

-3 EV	0 EV	+3 EV

The maximum fork of ± 3 EV should be chosen for high-contrast scenes in order to work out fine details in the shadows and in highlights. In this example, such a wide fork is completely unnecessary, ± 2 EV could have been completely dispensed with. These settings are deliberately chosen to demonstrate the elaboration of halftones.

Fork ± 2 EV

-2 EV	0 EV	+2 EV

The ± 2 EV fork can be easily selected for shooting any landscape at any time of the year. In many cameras, you can set not only integer values, but also intermediate values ​​between 2 and 3, thus choosing the ideal settings for each specific scene, based on personal experience and intuition.

Fork ± 1 EV

-1 EV	0 EV	+1 EV

Forking ± 1 EV in the case of HDR practically does not make sense - the same effect can be easily achieved in a graphics editor when processing RAW, since within ± 1 EV you can easily process any photo with almost no loss. This option will come in handy if you are not sure of the exact choice of the exposure pair, but you want to work out the details.

HDR stitching software

Adobe Ligthroom 6

HDR stitching tool appeared only in the 6th version of this wonderful RAW converter, users have been patiently waiting for it. In fact, with the introduction of panorama stitching and HDR in Lightroom, the need for Photoshop for processing photos has been largely reduced.

The dialog box is simple and straightforward, nothing superfluous, no settings. At the output, the program will create a glued file in DNG format (this is a raw data format developed by Adobe). The file will be in the thumbnail strip next to the original exposures.

When should a photo be processed - before gluing, or after? Adobe engineers advise processing after gluing, since all information from all exposures will be contained in the glued DNG, and we will have the broadest possibilities for tonal processing of any part of the photo - both in shadows and in highlights or midtones. The optical distortion correction profile can also be connected after gluing, the same applies to the editing of the horizon and crop. Of course, any processing will be non-destructive, you can return to the pasted original at any time.

Advantages

1. Arguably the best HDR stitching tool available today.
2. Simple and intuitive interface, nothing more.
3. In the dialog box, you can see in the form of a mask objects that will be processed by the tool to combat samaz.
4. It will be simple and straightforward for beginners.

disadvantages

1. It is quite difficult to somehow influence the operation of the anti-lubrication algorithm.
2. In some places of the photo, artifacts appear in the form of stripes or noise, most likely due to the work of this very anti-blur algorithm.

Adobe Photoshop CC

MacOS, Windows, subscription 300 rubles per month

The Merge to HDR tool of Photoshop CC, which is shown on the screen below, appeared a long time ago, in previous versions of the program, and has served faithfully for a long time, it still works today, however, with the release of Lightroom version 6, its functionality is greatly inferior.

The peculiarity of the tool is that all processing has to be done in two places - first in the merging dialog box, and then finalizing the photo before converting from 16 to 8 bits per channel.

Advantages

1. The ability to select the exposure, on the basis of which the program will deal with blur, changes are displayed in the picture in real time.
2. Excellent HDR stitching algorithm for professional results.

disadvantages

1. Few tools for tone processing in the program dialog box.
2. The need for additional processing before converting from 16 to 8 bits per channel, for example using curves.
3. Skills in Photoshop curves are required.

HDR Efex Pro 2

MacOS and Windows, the price is 5490 rubles for a set of programs.

HDR Efex Pro is a plugin, it is one of several plugins in a bundle called NIK Collection. Developed by NIK Software, this company has recently been acquired by Google.

Advantages

1. A large collection of ready-made presets. Importing presets, creating custom ones.
2. A large number of tonal settings for HDR stitching.
3. Nice simple interface.
4. Plugin for many programs: Photoshop / Bridge, Lightroom, Apple Aperture.
5. Working with "smart filters" - it is possible to use Smart Filters in Photoshop.
6. Local adjustments.
7. Perfect for beginners to get started with HDR stitching.

disadvantages

1. Uncertain work with a monochromatic area of ​​the sky with no clouds - this area will almost certainly turn out to be a dark spot.
2. Ready-made presets often make a picture too rough, too pronounced HDR effect.
3. The algorithm for dealing with blurring of objects during gluing is not always successful.

Oloneo PhotoEngine

Windows only, price $ 150.

Advantages

1. Fast work, all adjustments are made almost in real time, no brakes.
2. Advanced work with color.
3. The program works both as a plugin for Lightroom and as a standalone application.
4. Along with traditional HDR stitching, the program has a unique HDR Re-light technology, which allows you to combine several photos taken not with different exposures, but with different backlighting.

disadvantages

1. The depressing work of the algorithm for combating blurring of objects during gluing, in fact, it is simply not in the program.
2. The app is released for Windows only.
3. The program is quite difficult for beginner amateur photographers.

Photomatix Pro 5.05

MacOS and Windows, the price is about $ 100

This program can be safely called a pioneer in working with HDR, because HDRSoft sari released the first commercial application back in 2003. By the way, the interface of the program has hardly changed since then, it is made in the style of earlier versions of Windows and evokes a smile and nostalgia, but at the same time it is very convenient and simple. Another thing is the principle of work in the program. Probably, Photomatix Pro is one of the deepest programs in terms of fine user settings, and, despite the simplicity of the interface, it is not easy to figure it out. Beginners should definitely watch several training videos that are presented on the company's website or on YouTube.

Advantages

1. A huge number of gluing settings, including various algorithms and methods.
2. The settings work subtly, you can very, very accurately work out the desired parameter, for example, micro contrast, details in the shadows, and so on.
3. Two work algorithms (Exposure Fusion or HDR Tone Mapping) to choose from.
4. The program works as a standalone application, and can be used as a plug-in for Lightroom / Photoshop Elements.
5. The presence of interesting ready-made presets.
6. Possibility of batch processing of several series.

disadvantages

1. The algorithm for combating blurring of objects during gluing does not always work well.
2. The program is very difficult for beginner amateur photographers.

HDR Expose 3

MacOS and Windows, the price is about $ 120.

Developed by Unified Color, it is released both as a standalone application and as a plug-in for Lightroom, Photoshop and Apple Aperture.

Advantages

• The ability to batch process files.
• The ability to batch merge HDR panoramas.
• Fast work.
• It is possible to select a frame on the basis of which the program will fight against blur.
• An excellent algorithm for combating blur, it worked perfectly on all test frames.
• A large number of adjustments of the gluing setting, the engines work neatly, allowing you to fine-tune the desired parameters.
• Availability of a version for both Windows and MacOS.
• Availability of both an advanced version (HDR Expose) and a version with reduced functionality (HDR Express), the difference is $ 40.
• The program can be recommended for beginners, it is not difficult to understand it.

disadvantages

• The interface is not always convenient, at least in the version for MacOS - some labels overlap each other.
• A small number of ready-made processing presets.

Luminance HDR

Linux, macOS, Windows, free.

This program is worth mentioning for the reason that it is probably one of the few developed for all three platforms and is the most popular HDR splicer in the Linux operating system. The question of choosing an operating system is beyond the scope of this study, but the example of the Luminance HDR program can clearly demonstrate why photographers, and indeed creative people in general, prefer MacOS or Windows.

The interface, functionality and, in general, the principles of work in the Luminance HDR program are very different from competitors, here you will not be able to work with the "scientific poke" method, just sorting through various settings to your liking. The program has algorithms for dealing with grease, which, however, did not work out in practice - the program crashed.

Advantages

• The most popular HDR splicer for Linux operating system.
• A large number of tone correction settings.
• Several different gluing algorithms.

disadvantages

• Quite leisurely work (the test is carried out on a mid-priced office laptop, Ubuntu 15.04 system). Simply put, the program slows down.
• The result of changing the parameters is not displayed on the photo in real time, you need to press the Tonemap button and wait.
• Step-by-step algorithm of work. In other words, you will not be able to control the anti-blur method in the HDR merge dialog box, this function can be enabled only before merging, in the previous step, at the stage of selecting photos.
• Complex principles of work, which even experienced users cannot figure out without a description or instructions.
• Inconvenient confusing interface.
• This program can be recommended for beginners if there is a task to work exclusively under Linux, and also as a good puzzle.
• When I tried to enable object alignment and anti-blur function, the program thought for about 15 minutes and crashed.

When working with the Luminance HDR program, there was always a desire to stop the torment and launch Lightroom 6, in which the same operations can be done an order of magnitude faster, several times more convenient and with a more predictable result.

DSLR Remote Pro

Speaking of HDR stitching software, we cannot fail to mention DSLR Remote Pro, which allows you to control the camera from your computer. With other undoubted advantages, the program allows you to automatically shoot with bracketing up to 15 frames per burst. Moreover, it is compatible with the above-mentioned program Photomatix Pro, in conjunction with which it can automatically create HDR images. Of course, Photomatix Pro must be purchased independently of DSLR Remote Pro and installed on your computer.

As part of this research, there is no point in looking at DSLR Remote Pro in depth; a few years ago I wrote a big review of this program, it is a very interesting and unique product in its kind. I recommend everyone who is interested to visit the website of the Breeze Systems company, find out the compatibility of the program with their camera and try the demo version in action.

Processing one photo, or creating "pseudo-HDR"

Almost without exception, programs for creating HDR images, along with their direct function, also offer the function of creating a so-called "pseudo-HDR" image. The essence of this method is that the program allows a user who does not have a series of HDR images to create the effect of a photo with a high dynamic range from a single photo.

The most common example is shooting in gray cloudy weather, shooting from under an arch, and so on. The sky in this case will almost certainly be the color of milk, and the foreground will be dark. Of course, competent shooting with a tripod of a series of pictures with subsequent gluing would save the situation, but often we simply do not have enough time, patience and perseverance to do such things. A group of tourists leaves, friends call to keep up, the barbecue gets cold, and the walking companions are often very annoyed by the companion who constantly fiddles with his tripod, isn't it? Surely many have felt this way on themselves, and more than once ...

Here it is appropriate to note once again that shooting in RAW format is needed precisely for the subsequent processing of images. The size and resolution of the camera sensor is also important, full-frame modern matrices produce a very wide dynamic range, often allowing you to "pull" light and shadow very widely.

HDR Efex Pro 2

The price is 5490 rubles for a set of programs.

The main purpose of the plug-in is, of course, to merge HDR from multiple exposures, but you can process a single photo as well.

The screenshot above shows an example of displaying two states of a photo on the screen at the same time - it was / has become, which in the case of traditional HDR gluing does not make sense, since the “was” state does not exist. You can choose one of the ready-made presets and refine it.

Topaz Adjust 5

MacOS and Windows, price $ 50.

Perhaps the most spectacular plug-in from a well-known software company. It is released for Windows and MacOS and can be purchased separately or as part of a whole plug-in package.

The main advantage of the plugin is a huge number of ready-made presets sorted by processing topic, one might say, for all occasions. Having selected a preset, you can immediately modify its action with the sliders-regulators. You shouldn't expect any special miracles from the plug-in, but the processing capabilities are amazing. The disadvantage is the fact that the HDR effect in most of the ready-made presets is too strong, exaggerated, the processing immediately catches the eye.

HDR panorama

We often shoot both wide panoramas and breathtaking HDR, but what happens when you combine the two? That's right, you will get a beautiful panoramic photo with a wide dynamic range, that is, well-developed details in shadows, midtones and highlights. Shooting such scenes is difficult, as you need to simultaneously use your shooting experience in two different techniques.

Here the classic approach will come to the rescue - to shoot a panorama from three series of three exposures of each frame with a bracket of ± 2 or ± 3 EV, according to the lighting situation of the scene. You can take even more series, but then it is very difficult to work with such a huge number of pictures, in addition, the space on the hard disk is instantly eaten up, the computer slows down, the nerves are at the limit, and the result is unpredictable.

The second difficult point is the presence of dynamic objects in the frame. And if you shoot a panorama of 5 HDR frames, each of which is glued from three, then you end up with 15 frames, in each of which tree branches move, cars drive, people walk. And a situation can easily arise in which the same object can appear in all five frames in different places. In this case, you can either rely on the stitching program, or carefully work with the stamp in each image. In the example below, you can see that the person moved and changed position, but Lightroom 6 coped with this task.

The example shows a panorama stitched together from 5 HDR photos, which in turn are stitched together from 3 exposures each. Lightroom 6.

Automatic HDR shooting methods

Many modern cameras allow you to shoot and glue HDR automatically. The camera in this mode will usually take a series of frames, after which it will glue the final HDR itself. In the overwhelming majority of cases, shooting should be done in JPEG format, and at the output we will also get a ready-made JPEG, which will not be “re-glued”.

Some cameras allow, along with the glued JPEG, to write to the memory card the original exposures, which you can try to glue on the computer in your own way at home. Whether this or that camera supports this function, you need to look in the instructions or carefully read the reviews, as a rule, such subtleties are not reflected in the specifications.

For example, the Pentax k3 camera does something different - it glues three exposures into one file in RAW (DNG) format, the volume of which is close to 100 megabytes. The raw format and a large amount of data will allow, if desired, to edit the image within a very wide range. Moreover, the proprietary Digital Camera Utility is able to extract individual exposures from this file, after which the photographer will be able to re-glue them using other algorithms than the camera used. Of course, it's impossible to test this functionality in practice without having the camera itself in your hands, you just have to take their word for it.

Active D-Lightning

This is a feature of all modern Nikon DSLRs. There is no particular drama in the photo, and when processing RAW in a graphics editor, you can easily achieve more interesting results. The six images below are captured with the Nikon D610.

ADL AUTO	ADL moderate	ADL normal
ADL reinforced	ADL super amplified	ADL Off

And another strange moment: this function has no effect on the raw file, only on JPEG. Rather, not quite so: when opening NEF in Nikon's program, Capture NX-D, information about Active D-Lightning will be read, and the file will be displayed according to the specified settings for this parameter. If you work with this NEF in any other editor, there is no point in using this function, it is better to turn it off so as not to waste energy.

HDR

Many cameras have an automatic HDR stitching mode, it is turned on in the menu and only works when shooting in JPEG - the camera itself will take a series of several frames and stitch the finished file. In Nikon cameras, in order for the camera to remember the fact that this mode is turned on, you need to set “burst”, otherwise, before each next HDR-style shot, this function will have to be re-activated in the menu.

Extra High	High	Normal	Low	OFF

You can adjust the fork (in the menu it is called "Exposure diff.") And the rigidity of processing (for some reason, this is called "Softening"). As practice shows, one should not expect any special miracles from shooting in this mode.

Special effects

A special scene mode or special effect will allow you to take pictures in HDR style, but they are hardly interesting except for fun. Such a special effect can be called something like "HDR painting".

Nikon D5300	Sony a5000

Shooting in automatic mode will help a novice photographer when choosing a shooting angle, and will also allow you to quickly decide whether to shoot the selected scene with exposure bracketing at all. Having seen an interesting angle, you can quickly shoot an example, look at the screen, and if the result turns out to be interesting, set up a tripod and make a series slowly and thoughtfully.

Multiple exposure

This technique is rooted in the days of film, most likely, someone once forgot to transfer the frame and got an interesting artistic result when one image was superimposed on another.

When shooting on film, the photographer could take the first frame in one place, after which he did not transfer the film and take a second frame at the same place on the film, being in another city even after a week or a month, and so many times he needed. Of course, the result can only be seen when developing this film.

Most modern Nikon DSLRs, such as the D7200, Df or D610, can shoot multiple-exposure shots. Overlay is available 2 or 3 frames (Nikon DF - up to 10 frames), while you can shoot in RAW. By default, the maximum time between exposures is 30 seconds, this time can be increased using Custom Setting. As well as for HDR, the menu can be set to On. (series) or On. (one shot) - in the first case, the camera will shoot one multiple exposure, and you can start shooting the next one, while in the second case, after shooting one multiple exposure, the camera will automatically switch this setting to Off.

There is also such a parameter as "Auto gain". This parameter needs to be adjusted to your taste, the instruction does not give any specific recommendations on this matter, except that it offers to turn off auto gain if the background is dark.

Multiple exposure photography is a creative challenge. If, in the case of HDR, you can at least roughly imagine how the future frame will look (for example, mentally darken the sky and lighten the shadows on the ground), when shooting Time Lapse, you can mentally accelerate the movement of clouds in the sky or the course of any events, then in case multiple exposure is incredibly difficult to imagine a future shot.

Anyone interested in multiple exposure can be encouraged to study the works

This tutorial will introduce you to the hot new trend in photography. HDR! You will learn how to shoot, mix, and tone mappings to expand the dynamic range and create a drawn-looking result.

Lesson for working in Photoshop CS3 and higher.

The photo
Converting to HDR
Tone mapping / Tone mapping
Merge images
Curves

Click on the screenshot to view the image in real size.

Step 0 (Introduction)
In this tutorial, we'll take a look at HDR photography. HDRI (High Dynamic Range Imaging) was originally used in 3D, and now it is fully in photography. Simply put, it is the process of shooting with different exposures and combining images into a single 32-bit image. So I I'll explain: the camera is capable of capturing a limited number of tones in one photo. Usually we sacrifice some elements of the photo during its shooting. For example, we have a landscape with clouds and rocks. If we expose clouds, the rocks will become dark. If we adjust the exposure on rock details, the bright sky will dim and details will be lost, because the human eye can perceive a wider range of tones than a camera can capture in a single photograph.
The solution to this is to take more than one photo and combine the photos.

Take a photo with a normal exposure, then take a photo with a lower exposure to make it bright, and then a higher exposure to capture shadow details.

Ultimately, you need to blend these shots together to create a single image with a wide range of tones, which can now show all the details in the highlights and shadows. This tutorial will show you how to accomplish this process without fuss.

First, we need to get the original images (you can use a 32-bit 3D image and go straight to step 6). We will shoot such an image with a camera. You need to take at least two shots with different exposure settings.
Adobe recommends limiting bracketing in one-stop increments to help narrow the range.

Bracketing - Also called "fork". The camera shoots a series of frames (three or more) with different parameters at a specified interval of values ​​(exposure, white balance, etc.).

You can also take 5 or more shots with a shorter bracketing interval. Personally, I get a good result from three shots. I like to increase and decrease the shutter speed by two steps. I know these are larger frames than many people are used to using, but for the type of HDR images that I like to create (cityscapes), this is very suitable. If you are a photography enthusiast, you can even reduce the bracketing to 3 steps.

(Note: For true HDR, you can't use a single raw photo and change its exposure multiple times, as some people suggest. This effect is known as pseudo-HDR. Photoshop won't let you merge these images as they don't capture the correct tones).

Step 1. Let's start with three images. One with a normal exposure, one with a lower exposure, and one with a higher exposure. In this case, I use bracketing at 2-stop intervals, since I mostly shoot flat surfaces. If you are shooting rounded and uneven surfaces, then you may want to lower the bracketing for a smoother transition.
I set bracketing on my camera in 2 steps. Then I set the shooting mode to timer. After that, I get three photos. I shoot in RAW mode to get a wider dynamic range. You can also create HDR even if your camera doesn't support RAW.

Make sure you shoot in Aperture Priority or manual mode. You need to set the exposure time, but not the aperture. If you change the aperture, the depth of field will not be consistent with the settings and you will end up with a blurry image. Also, avoid moving objects in the photo, otherwise you will get a "ghost" effect.

Step 2. It's time to merge the photos together into a single 32-bit image.
Please select File- Automate - MergetoHDR(File - Automation - Merge intoHDR). It works in Photoshop CS2 and CS3 (CS2 doesn't have auto-align).
Select all images or a folder. I put each set of photos in a separate folder, so I select the option Folder(Folder). Highlight your photos for information. Check the box on AutoAlign(Auto-align) in Photoshop CS3. Click OK (Photoshop CS3 uses a new auto-leveling technology that even lets you create HDR without using a tripod!).

Step 3. Your images are now merged into a single photo. You can move individual photos by unchecking the checkboxes opposite them in the left column. If you get a slightly blurry effect on something as a result of camera movement with a long delay, you can turn off this photo.

Step 4. The flattened result is a flexibly configurable bitmap. You can completely change the tones by moving the white slider to the right. Just make it easier with it - the slightest movement of the slider gives absolutely perfect results.

Step 5. Click OK to convert the photo into a 32-bit image. Now is a very good time to save the image.

Step 6. To work properly with photos, you need to convert them to 16-bit or 8-bit images. When you convert them, we will start creating what I call a photo interpretation. The reason I say this is because there are an unlimited number of ways that we can use to transform a photo. As long as we have a huge 32-bit high dynamic range image, we cannot use it for further processing. Always start with a 32-bit image and then convert it and keep other variations (your own interpretations). Avoid overwriting 32-bit images, they are our lifesaver, we can come back to them many times.

Please select Image - Mode - 16 bit (Image- Mode-16 bit) (or 8 bit (8 bit)). Now let's play with some interesting parameters. You have now moved on to the so-called tone mapping (tone mapping) process. This is the place for creativity.

(If you want to make corrections without conversion, please select View - Preview options 32 bit (View- 32 Bit Preview Options)... You can also use several Photoshop tools from the menu Image - Adjustment(Image - Correction). The most important of these parameters is the control parameter exposure (exposure)).
You will see a dialog box HDRConversion(Conversion / CorrectionHDR). The default options are Exposure (Exposure) and Gamma (Gamma) (approx. contrast ratio). What is the best way to understand how they work? Set the gamma first and then the exposure as shown in the example. If you want the image to be more contrasting, lower the gamma value. Raise the gamma value to decrease the contrast. Finally, adjust the exposure to obtain the desired brightness. If you want more transformations, read on, if not, click OK.

Step 7. Replace method (method) on local adaptation (localadaptation). (Here are 4 available methods, but only two of them can be influenced by the user).

With this method, you can adjust curves (curves). Work with them as you used to work with, but don't be afraid to trim them a little. This is acceptable since you are working with a greater dynamic range than you are used to. Bring out the details of the image, but do not forget to overlay the shadows, where they will be somewhat blurry or ugly. Once you are familiar with the curves, adjust the position of the sliders. radius (radius) and threshold(threshold), to avoid the appearance of ghosting in the photo. (A badly converted HDR image has a kind of glow around in places of contrast). The radius is responsible for masking the blur, while the threshold decides what will be blurred and what will not.
Click OK to convert.

Step 8. This is a merged image from HDR. The second image is a variation. In the second variation, I applied the exposure (exposure), curves (curves) and sharpness settings (sharpening) in 32 bit mode ( Highlight Compression Method). Photoshop is great for creating very realistic HDR images.

Step 9. If you want to achieve more surreal results, use different plugins. My favorite plugin is Photomatix Pro from the HDRsoft site. You can use this tone mapping plugin for Photoshop, it works great.

Using the Photomatix tone mapping plugin will allow you to detail texture in your photos. Combine them in Photoshop as shown in this tutorial. Then select Filter -Photomatix, to apply tonemapping. Convert and save normally.

Step 10. This image shows how the photo looks after tone mapping in Photomatix pro.

Step 11. Here you can see a comparison between a single image, a Photoshop HDR transformed image, and a radical effect in Photomatix. Regardless of the result you get, hopefully this tutorial has helped dispel the myths about HDR creation.

Step 12.

Here's another HDR shot of mine. This is a grayscale night shot.
Hope you enjoyed this tutorial!

I would like to express my gratitude to Evgeny Kartashov for advice on terminology.