tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4554007940979088731.post7255627375738680016..comments2023-05-13T10:51:11.506-04:00Comments on Donna Rosser: High Dynamic Range ImagingDonna Rosserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397276919878496360noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4554007940979088731.post-90248532751648745472009-03-19T10:43:00.000-04:002009-03-19T10:43:00.000-04:00Or maybe, mediocre minds just follow your lead, Do...Or maybe, mediocre minds just follow your lead, Donna? Ha Ha.<BR/><BR/>I think, like many "new" things out there, there are some serious misconceptions about High Dynamic Range Imaging (HDRI). I have been reading about it an watching is for a number of years, now. But until maybe the last 3 years, it has not been available as a software tool to us mere mortals at a cost which is affordable and an interface which doesn't require a PHD in computer programming (kidding--probably unfair to the programmers out there-but tongue in cheek). FDR Tools and Photomatix have changed that. I, too, eventually settled on Photomatix, as my article indicates, but I tried to give FDR tools a hard run.<BR/><BR/>"Image blending" is not really new at all. Making "contrast masks" in the darkroom was a pretty common practice. We have been working with layers and blending modes in Photoshop since its early inception. The problem, for most of us, is that it was "messy." Took lots of time, skill and computing power, and most of us want to spend our time behind the lens, not behind the monitor. What these new tools do is "automate" the blending process. For most of us "bread and butter" thinking photographers, what we are really looking for, in my opinion, is a "photorealistic" depiction of something our eyes can see, but a camera sensor -- or film, cannot.<BR/><BR/>I couldn't agree more about the "cartooning" side of it. Photomatix does basic blending (better than Photoshop does, in my view) better than I can do. It also give the knowledgeable user great latitude to do sophisticated "tone mapping" which is where I think users get into some of the more "surrealistic" (my eyes tell me its not realistic and so neither is the photo). I don't condemn that by any means. Its what art is all about. But I agree that I don't care for it myself.<BR/><BR/>One comment. Most commentators will tell you that taking a single RAW capture and trying to use it in Photomatix or FDR Tools to make a HDR file is not really useful. For the most part, you can "tease" the same things out of the RAW image in a good RAW editing software (Like Adobe Lightroom or even Adobe Camera RAW). Photomatix does have the capability of working with a single RAW image, too, but I doubt it is as robust as the RAW converters. Most commentators will tell you you should take at least 3 separate images, at least 2 full stops apart, to take full advantage of the power of Photomatix.Andy Richardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10706162093911160794noreply@blogger.com