HDR of the Day 21
Posted on May 28, 2009, under General Topics.
We’ve all seen those cool rusty old cars done in HDR style, well I’ve found one on the side of Highway 9 on the way to Zion National Park in Utah. I couldn’t help but snap more than a few auto bracketed sets from various angles.
Another Look at HDR vs. non-HDR Single RAW Processing
Posted on April 4, 2009, under Technique Comparisons.
To HDR, or not to HDR? The question may arise for your next car photo. Is it worth the extra 5-10 minutes in merging, aligning the multiple exposures to create the HDR look, or is it just as good or better if you just edit the single RAW as is? Some would say they like the look of non-HDR images better. So here’s a side-by-side look at how an image that is processed as a single RAW (top) compared to an HDR processed image (bottom). Both are processed similarly in Lightroom. Can you spot the differences (click to view large)
Let us ignore the color saturation, as that can be corrected in Lightroom. Instead we can focus on the darker areas of the top image — especially towards the lower left of the image where the left edge of the bumper is. See how much brighter and clearer the HDR version is? The contrast between the bright reflections and the dark on the glossy car surface is more apparent in the HDR version – as you can see the rear A pillar seems much more dark than the non-HDR version. There just seems to be an extra coat of super glossy clearcoat on the car in the HDR version.
Another very apparent difference is in how much detail can be seen on the surface of the roadway in the HDR version as it’s able to bring out more details in the shadows.
However, there are some “bad” HDR artifcats that can be found in the lower image, such as the movement of the people apparent in the right part of the rear bumper (ghosting) and also in the person sitting on the chair who turned his head during the 3-exposure bracketing (I say he’s been HDR-ized). It’s up to you which look fits what you need or like better – but since you are reading this site, it seems like you’ve already gone to the dark side of photography — the HDR side, that is.
HDR of the Day 7
Posted on April 3, 2009, under HDR Showcases.
We’ve seen lots of nice HDR car imagery but only a very select few are memorable. It is in the processing and the tones of the image that makes it stand out, just like this classic muscle car – a 1970’s Mustang done right in HDR. Notice the vibrant reds and the dramatic sky – the whole image really comes together nicely.
