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Single frame image taken today. My Pine Mountain preset applied in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 then sharpened in Aperture 3.
Nearly Wordless Wednesday
Tag: HDR Efex Pro
More HDR Exploration
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Today I am going to share several versions of one image to further illustrate the HDR process. In the image above I combined 5 exposures using NIK HDR Efex PRO 2. I then started with one of the realistic presets in NIK HDR Efex PRO 2 which I adjusted to my vision for the image. After getting it where I wanted it I created a custom preset that recorded all the adjustments I made to the image. I named the custom preset Pine Mountain #2 and saved it in the custom preset panel in NIK HDR Efex PRO 2 so that I could use it with any image I chose. I then started applying it to some of the single frames from this scene.
I’ll start with this frame which is the -1 EV underexposed frame. As you can see it is very dark and lacks detail in the shadows.
Below is the same image with the Pine Mountain #2 preset applied. It opened up the shadows and brought out a greater color range as well as some shadow detail.
I followed the same process for the 0 EV exposure below. This exposure has better shadow detail than the underexposed frame but it is beginning to show some blown highlights in the upper area, notably the small amount of sky and the mountain laurel leaves.
Once again I applied the Pine Mountain #2 preset I had created earlier to this single frame which produced the image below. There is now more detail in the shadows, the colors are richer but the sky is starting to gray slightly.
Lastly I used the overexposed image with the +1 EV and followed the same procedure with it. Once again the highlights are blown in the sky and on the leaves as well as on the rocks themselves.
This is the overexposed image after applying the Pine Mountain #2 preset.
Once again there is marked improvement both in the highlights and in the shadows but it still isn’t as rich as the first image in this post that was created by merging multiple exposures in NIK HDR Efex PRO 2.
My conclusion from this experiment is that; while there is increased detail in the shadows, better highlights and increased tonal range available when using NIK HDR Efex PRO 2 on a single image; the use of multiple exposures produces a richer more detailed image. I stand corrected regarding my earlier post about the differences in single vs multiple image HDR processing and the results that are attainable.
I hope this helps my readers and that they benefit from my exploration and experimentation with the NIK HDR Efex PRO 2 software. I feel certain that these results are repeatable regardless of which software is used be it Photoshop, NIK, Photomatix or any of the myriad of other HDR programs out there.
Pinnacle Point Sunset
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After my post last week about HDR processing I decided to follow up by processing an image from multiple exposures. In this case I shot four frames at +1.3, +.3, 0, and -3 ev then merged them in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2. I was watching the histogram while shooting which is how I came to use these settings. The histogram was fine on the dark end but was still blown out at the upper end until I underexposed it by 3 stops. That frame was the one that made the image work.
After merging and tone mapping the merged image I returned it to Aperture 3 where I cropped it slightly, added some sharpening and enhanced the definition and vibrancy. I also tried creating an image as vibrant as this using only the 0 ev frame but it was way too dark and noisy. From this experiment I have to admit that it is definitely better to use multiple images when the exposure range is as wide as this sunset was. Without the multiple exposures the lake and mountains in the center of the image would still be too dark and lacking in detail.
I am also including the four frames I used to create the HDR image below so you can see what I was working with to create the final image.
Rivets and Rust
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Last month I read an interesting book, The Photographer’s Eye by Michael Freeman , which is a fantastic book on the subject of composition. In one chapter Freeman discusses the many possibilities that often lie within a single frame. He points out how by selectively cropping the image the photograph can be used to tell several different stories.
I decided to take the image I posted this morning, Perry and Thomas, and see what other ways I could use it. By cropping the figures from the left side of the frame I was able to create an entirely different image that speaks to texture, color and composition without any visible human involvement.
Perry and Thomas
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While installing the handrails on the Big Four Bridge, Perry and Thomas had to cut some of the large rivets away to make room for the handrail base. The pneumatic chisel they are using is a handful and the job goes better when they work as a team.
I wanted to capture the movement as they cut the rivets so I used a slow shutter to allow their figures and the tool to blur while retaining the texture on the steel. I wasn’t sure how the images would turn out but once I loaded them into Aperture 3 I saw that I had captured the essence of the workers and the impact that the chisel makes as it hammers away at the stell.
I started by processing the image with Aperture 3 where I did some initial RAW adjusting and sharpening. I then took it into NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 where I applied a realistic preset and some tone mapping. After that it was back into Aperture 3 for final sharpening and some saturation and vibrancy adjustments.
