HDRSoft Photomatic Pro 3.0

Stuart Gripman — Thu, 29 May 2008 11:10:39 -0500

HDR and tone mapping bring out all the detail in this shot of Venice’s Grand Canal.

High dynamic range (HDR) photography is a technique designed to capture much more detail in color and contrast than traditional photography can. When taking a photograph, a camera can only capture a single exposure. A shaded subject with a bright sky behind it presents a classic conundrum. Capturing the details of the shaded subject requires an exposure that will wash out the sky. Yet an exposure optimized for the sky will underexpose the shaded area, swamping its details in inky darkness. HDR photography captures all those details by snapping three or more images at differing exposures and blending them together.

Photomatix Pro is software that blends the exposures for you. The application works by combining multiple source images into an HDR image, then bringing out the details through a process called tone mapping. The Workflow Shortcuts palette, new to version 3, simplifies the process. Simply click Generate HDR Image and select the source photos. The program supports JPEG, TIFF, and RAW files from most major camera manufacturers, and a smattering of less-common formats. We had no problem using RAW files from our Canon Digital Rebel XT. While we appreciate the simplicity of creating HDR files, the omission of a Save step is suspicious. To create multiple tone maps from one HDR photo, you must remember to save the HDR photo immediately after it’s created. Forget to save before tone mapping, and you’ll have to load your source images over again if you want to get back to the unprocessed HDR.

Tone mapping is where the drama emerges. Photomatix offers two methods to really make an HDR image bloom. The default method, called Details Enhancer, offers a wide array of options for varying contrast, light smoothing, saturation, white and black points, and so on. But this creative freedom is a mixed blessing—we regularly found it difficult to keep our picture looking very realistic using the Details Enhancer. Tone Compressor mode streamlines things by taking away some of the Details Enhancer’s tools. While its options are greatly reduced, the images we created with the Tone Compressor were dramatic without straining credibility.

Photomatix has a few other riffs on the HDR theme. The Exposure Blending tool creates an HDR-like image, although it doesn’t offer tone mapping. Batch Processing in Photomatix is appropriately robust and refreshingly simple. Building an intuitive user interface for batch processing is challenging, and we found HDRSoft’s approach to be a very good compromise of usability and features.

The bottom line. Photomatix Pro 3.0 is an excellent tool for creating high dynamic range photographs. It’s a shame the $100 tag prices out dabblers, but professionals and enthusiasts will find it a good value. A Tone Mapping Plug-In ($69) is also available for Photoshop CS2 or CS3. For a detailed walk-through of Photomatix Pro, see p85.

COMPANY: HDRSoft

CONTACT: www.hdrsoft.com

PRICE: $99

REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS 10.3.9 or later

Easy to create striking HDR images. Well-executed batch processing. Universal binary.

Unprocessed HDR photos aren’t automatically saved.

Expose More Detail with HDR Photography

Stuart Gripman — Thu, 22 May 2008 10:47:44 -0500

Get the highest possible dynamic range out of your image.

Ever wonder why even the best photographs can’t compare to the real thing? The human eye has the remarkable ability to adjust light sensitivity on the fly. Cameras, however, can only record a scene using a single exposure. In a scene with high contrast (that is, lots of dark and bright areas), both highlight and shadow details are going to get lost. So suppose you could take several pictures at varying exposures and blend the exposures together? That could make for a very impressive image.

WHAT YOU NEED

A digital camera with aperture priority mode or manual control
A tripod or other device to keep the camera still Photomatix Pro ($99, www.hdrsoft.com)
A high-contrast scene

1. Get to Know Your Camera

To capture the full dynamic range of a scene, you need to take several shots at varying exposures. The simplest way is to use a technique called bracketing. Classic bracketing is simply taking three exposures of the same scene, one normally exposed, one underexposed, and one overexposed. Most DSLRs and high-end point-and-shoots have an automatic bracketing feature. You can bracket manually by using aperture priority mode and adjusting the shutter speed to achieve the various exposures. A rich HDR photo typically requires three images separated by two stops each.

2. Don’t Block the Shot

To start with, you’ll need at least three shots at varying exposures.

When selecting your subject, choose a relatively static scene. You’ll need to capture three or more exposures, so a bustling sidewalk is going to leave you with a mess of ghosts when the images are combined. Landscapes, architecture, and still-lifes give better results. You’ll also need a tripod or some other means to steady the camera. To really keep camera movement to a minimum, use the timer or a remote shutter release.

Perhaps the most important factor in choosing your subject is a high dynamic range or a wide range of colors and contrast. Seek out scenes that don’t traditionally photograph well. High-contrast and patchy, uneven light make for the most dramatic HDR images.

3. Merge

It’s fine to leave the default options in place. If you’re importing RAW images, you may want to adjust the white balance.

Now that you’ve got your pictures, transfer them to your Mac using Apple’s Image Capture. Why not iPhoto? iPhoto places your picture files in its library where it’s tough to find them later, but Image Capture will save them to your Pictures folder. Now fire up Photomatix and choose Process > Generate HDR. Drag your image files into the Generate HDR window and click Process. An Options dialog box will appear, but just leave everything set to the defaults and click OK.

4. Save the HDR

No, really, it’s going to get better. You’re almost there.

After Photomatix works its photo-blending magic, it’ll display a rather disappointing HDR image. Blame your monitor. Without further processing of the image, the computer screen can’t display the picture’s full tonal range. But don’t fret. This is about to get really fun. Be sure to save your file right now (File > Save HDR As). Once you start tone mapping, you won’t have an opportunity to save the original HDR. Now head back to the Process menu and choose Tone Mapping. Photomatix will have a go at processing the image. This is what you’ve been waiting for.

5. Execute Tone Mapping (Or Just Play)

For all the science behind tone mapping, it’s really an art. And for as much as we feel an obligation to discuss color temperature, luminance, and saturation, the best instruction we can offer is this: Play. Just play with the array of buttons and sliders under the Details Enhancer tab and watch what happens. As you modify the settings, the preview will update. Depending on your Mac, that might take up to a few seconds. When you have an image you like, click Process to apply your settings, then save your masterpiece.

6. Admire Your Work

Three unremarkable photos become one amazing scene.

When processing is finished, save your image. Photomatix can save it as a TIFF or JPEG. At this stage you must choose: sit back and admire your handiwork, or go back to the HDR file you saved in Step 4 and make another one!

Then Again . . .

The simplicity of HDR photography makes it broadly accessible, but the dilettante in you may find $99 too dear. FDRTools Basic (www.fdrtools.com) is a free HDR processor that offers most of Photomatix’s feature set. It merges and aligns original images and offers strong tone-mapping tools. However, it’s written in Java and feels like a PC program, replete with menus inside windows and a gawky user interface. We also found the finished images inferior to Photomatix’s. But, hey, it’s free.

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HDRSoft Photomatic Pro 3.0

Expose More Detail with HDR Photography