Sandmania
HDR Tutorial - Beginner
Step 1 - Taking the Image
When I first started off using my DSLR, I knew diddly squat about camera settings, auto-bracketing, manual mode etc...
Experimenting with different settings, looking at various tips and tutorials have improved my knowledge vastly on this.
So here we go then…Firstly there are two main ways to create the source images needed for HDR.
- Autobracketing
- One raw image
Autobracketing:
Most DSLR camera’s have the ability to bracket multiple exposures. This is simply a way to tell the camera to take several shots in quick succession, each at different exposures. For example, in this image a -2, 0, +2 setting was used to take three shots.
When deciding on how many auto-bracketing exposures to use, you will need to consider the contrast range of the scene. If there is a higher contrast range, consider using a wider bracket setting.
Now this may not be possible on some cameras. My own Canon 400D only has the ability to bracket 3 shots, but some cameras are able to go as high as nine. Normally 3 exposures are suffice for me when shooting in interior locations, such as churches and other buildings.
When I do need more than 3 exposures, I normally take auto-bracketing off in Aperture Priority mode and fire out 5 or more shots by manually changing the shutter speed each time.
One RAW image:
The other way to produce the 3 shots needed is to take 1 photo and adjust it in a RAW editor such as Lightroom, Aperture or any other one you may use.
The main advantage with this is that you can produce a HDR shot with moving subjects such as cars and people. The downside from experience is that if an image contains dark shadows, the exposure adjusting followed by the HDR process has a tendency to create a lot of noise. The other thing that is debated quite often is that by taking 1 raw image, it doesn’t truly capture the full dynamic data range of a scene.
Camera Settings
-Shoot in RAW – it allows you to capture more dynamic range data than using JPEGs.
-Use a tripod. In some places this can be difficult, especially in churches. Alternatively, try and find some kind of ledge, bench, stack of books or take up an awkward stance and take the image handheld.
-Use Aperture Priority mode on your camera. As you will be combining several images into one, you don’t want your Depth of Field (DOF) to change between shots, as the final image will appear all out of focus.
-Keep the ISO setting to the minimum. The higher the ISO setting, the more noise it will generate. I try to keep mine at 100 whenever I can.
* You can enlarge any of the screenshots below, by clicking on the image and following the high resolution link from there.
** Update: I have loaded the 3 original hi-res exposures for you guys/gals to experiment with. Click on them below and then save. Have fun and it will be great to see what you can come up with.
*** Update 2 - Be sure to check out my latest tutorial which focuses more on the post processing techniques in Photoshop. You can find that tutorial here.
HDR Tutorial - Beginner
Step 1 - Taking the Image
When I first started off using my DSLR, I knew diddly squat about camera settings, auto-bracketing, manual mode etc...
Experimenting with different settings, looking at various tips and tutorials have improved my knowledge vastly on this.
So here we go then…Firstly there are two main ways to create the source images needed for HDR.
- Autobracketing
- One raw image
Autobracketing:
Most DSLR camera’s have the ability to bracket multiple exposures. This is simply a way to tell the camera to take several shots in quick succession, each at different exposures. For example, in this image a -2, 0, +2 setting was used to take three shots.
When deciding on how many auto-bracketing exposures to use, you will need to consider the contrast range of the scene. If there is a higher contrast range, consider using a wider bracket setting.
Now this may not be possible on some cameras. My own Canon 400D only has the ability to bracket 3 shots, but some cameras are able to go as high as nine. Normally 3 exposures are suffice for me when shooting in interior locations, such as churches and other buildings.
When I do need more than 3 exposures, I normally take auto-bracketing off in Aperture Priority mode and fire out 5 or more shots by manually changing the shutter speed each time.
One RAW image:
The other way to produce the 3 shots needed is to take 1 photo and adjust it in a RAW editor such as Lightroom, Aperture or any other one you may use.
The main advantage with this is that you can produce a HDR shot with moving subjects such as cars and people. The downside from experience is that if an image contains dark shadows, the exposure adjusting followed by the HDR process has a tendency to create a lot of noise. The other thing that is debated quite often is that by taking 1 raw image, it doesn’t truly capture the full dynamic data range of a scene.
Camera Settings
-Shoot in RAW – it allows you to capture more dynamic range data than using JPEGs.
-Use a tripod. In some places this can be difficult, especially in churches. Alternatively, try and find some kind of ledge, bench, stack of books or take up an awkward stance and take the image handheld.
-Use Aperture Priority mode on your camera. As you will be combining several images into one, you don’t want your Depth of Field (DOF) to change between shots, as the final image will appear all out of focus.
-Keep the ISO setting to the minimum. The higher the ISO setting, the more noise it will generate. I try to keep mine at 100 whenever I can.
* You can enlarge any of the screenshots below, by clicking on the image and following the high resolution link from there.
** Update: I have loaded the 3 original hi-res exposures for you guys/gals to experiment with. Click on them below and then save. Have fun and it will be great to see what you can come up with.
*** Update 2 - Be sure to check out my latest tutorial which focuses more on the post processing techniques in Photoshop. You can find that tutorial here.