HDR Today

[Camera King]

Was supposed to trying out my new P4A+ today with a friends new P4Pro but mine arrived DOA. His worked so out we went. I took this shot with my old P3S and bracketed 5 shots just to try and squeeze some dynamic range from the scene. Nice fall day in Gold Hill, Oregon.

 

[With The Birds]

It’s a very nice image but it is doesn’t look very natural. Have you tried blending exposures rather than tone mapping?

 

[Camera King]

Well, I certainly could blend exposures...and may try it tomorrow...but for today, this was just something I did for fun.

 

[With The Birds]

Well it’s a ripper- the detail in the bridge especially is fantastic. Better than most HDR I can remember seeing for a long while. If you could blend in some of the non HDR’d vegetation I can see this hanging on just about any wall. Something I’m planning to start experimenting with.

 

[BingErr]

WOW! Really great looking photo. Composition and exposure look fantastic. It almost looks like a painting. Nice work

 

[Camera King]

Well, I have to be honest. I do struggle with this particular camera for stills. I am spoiled with my Canon 5DMK3 & 5DMK4 and it would be foolish to expect this drone to preform anywhere near as good. Living in Oregon, we are totally surrounded with trees and vegetation and I never get "greenery" to look like I want. Focus is ok at close range but detail in the background always looks mushy to my eye. But what can you expect from a fixed 2.8mm lens??

 

[Dragonfly Joe]

Great shot Camera King and appreciate you sharing with us. I shoot video and need to learn about bracketing multiple shots. It really does look like a painting.

 

[JeffreyS]

This has a slight HDR effect, not too bad. But, in this soft light, any camera would properly expose this scene in one frame with a decent histogram.

 

[TomK-VA]

Very nice shot C.K.

 

[uke]

Yeah, HDR, but it's still nice. Especially for a just-goofing-around picture. Nicely done.

 

[3putts]

View attachment 105703 Was supposed to trying out my new P4A+ today with a friends new P4Pro but mine arrived DOA. His worked so out we went. I took this shot with my old P3S and bracketed 5 shots just to try and squeeze some dynamic range from the scene. Nice fall day in Gold Hill, Oregon.

Probably affected by the "Oregon Vortex?" (I'm from Oregon too.)

 

[drvrbobob]

How do you blend photos? I have seen it mentions many times but just have not pursued this, what is the purpose of blending? Thank you

 

[Camera King]

How do you blend photos? I have seen it mentions many times but just have not pursued this, what is the purpose of blending? Thank you

Blending photos is a process of taking multiple exposures, usually 3-5 of them at various exposures. Using exposures from under exposed, normal exposure and over exposed and blending all 3-5 exposures together will give you more dynamic range in an image. Over exposed images will have more information in the shadow areas, while under exposed images will tame the highlights. When all 3-5 are blended, you will see more details from dark areas, and highlights are better controlled. I personally use Photomatix software to blend them, but Lightroom, Photoshop and other programs have blending options as well. You can go into your camera settings and look for the AEB option (automatic exposure bracketing). This will then ask you how many exposures you want to take (3-5) on a single press of the shutter. I should note....this process is not as useful in bright sunny areas.

 

[JeffreyS]

How do you blend photos? I have seen it mentions many times but just have not pursued this, what is the purpose of blending? Thank you

There are a few types of blending needs, but the two main ones are focus blending (stacking) and exposure blending. Most of the time we are talking about exposure blending. This is what automated HDR (high dynamic range) routines perform but not always to our liking. Typically they bring up the shadows (darks) too much and bring the highlights down to the point of the image looking unrealistic. You may have controls to limit these auto corrections. Experienced photographers will manually blend two or more exposures. It requires familiarity with Photoshop or lightroom and the use of layers and the tools to erase chosen areas of an image with a brush tool or a mask. Of course, you must have already thought about this when you captured the frames so you have the desired exposed areas in one frame or another. This takes planning and practice.

 

[Camera King]

Probably affected by the "Oregon Vortex?" (I'm from Oregon too.)

Thankfully the "Vortex" is not affecting the replacement unit. Funny though, the Vortex made a friends son ill when we took them there. I guess some people are more susceptible to it than others. Not sure about drones....interesting point you made!!!

There are a few types of blending needs, but the two main ones are focus blending (stacking) and exposure blending. Most of the time we are talking about exposure blending. This is what automated HDR (high dynamic range) routines perform but not always to our liking. Typically they bring up the shadows (darks) too much and bring the highlights down to the point of the image looking unrealistic. You may have controls to limit these auto corrections. Experienced photographers will manually blend two or more exposures. It requires familiarity with Photoshop or lightroom and the use of layers and the tools to erase chosen areas of an image with a brush tool or a mask. Of course, you must have already thought about this when you captured the frames so you have the desired exposed areas in one frame or another. This takes planning and practice.

You are indeed correct JeffreyS, I too use focus stacking for macro shooting of insects. I use a Canon MP-E65 and typically need 40-60 exposures to get the bug sharp from foreground to background. This is not a technique I am recommending for the casual photographer as I am sure you would agree. Certainly not a technique suited for drone photography.....

 

[drvrbobob]

Blending photos is a process of taking multiple exposures, usually 3-5 of them at various exposures. Using exposures from under exposed, normal exposure and over exposed and blending all 3-5 exposures together will give you more dynamic range in an image. Over exposed images will have more information in the shadow areas, while under exposed images will tame the highlights. When all 3-5 are blended, you will see more details from dark areas, and highlights are better controlled. I personally use Photomatix software to blend them, but Lightroom, Photoshop and other programs have blending options as well. You can go into your camera settings and look for the AEB option (automatic exposure bracketing). This will then ask you how many exposures you want to take (3-5) on a single press of the shutter. I should note....this process is not as useful in bright sunny areas.

Thank you for the reply that explains it fairly well I don't have it Lightroom or photoshop at the moment I'm using another program it does not have anything I have seen so far about blending I will look into it further but I am useIng the AEB bracketing exposures, so something new to learn. thank you very much.