HDR Pics...

Hi guys ,

Played around with some HDR today.....got some shots here are my two best , what you think

The first one doesn't really seem like HDR to me but the second one is awesome!

I very much like the second one

The first one has me scratching my head...if its HDR, why was it necessary? You still have blocked shadows and blown highlights. My guess is a single exposure would have given you the same result.

The second displays what is inherent in most HDR images...for lack of a better word, some colors seem to get "muddied" in the process, and others display colors that just don't look right. In this image, something just seems "off" about the rock, and ditto for the greens. There are also some strange looking pairs of lines in the water in the upper half of the frame...can't figure out what they could be. Maybe revisit the processing and give it another go.

Hmmm...im really sorry guys...the first one is not HDR...uploaded it by mistake!?! hmm need sleep.

here is the second one I worked on a bit more , please let me know what I should change or is it ok now?

I still like the first one more ... this one doesn't really look that much like HDR anymore and the colours are very saturated.

I think version two of the second image went the wrong way than what Argyle was talking about. There is a fine line when doing HDR, on that lies between a nice image and one that looks like it's colored in with markers. It's hard to perfect.

Keep up the good work.

Hmm..i just don't see a need for hdr in these images. It's purpose is to solve a problem and i don't see any potential exposure problems in the two photos. I do however see a photo that was tone mapped the sh!t out of.

Maybe it would help if you shared what you were going for in the second photo's reedit? This would affect my criticism and hopefully help you out in the future!

The second looks more like a cartoon render than viable hdr. Sometimes less really is more! I agree with Jay. Maybe if you shared originals and intended effect of tonemapped image, you would get more helpful advice than can be given at current time.

ok guys here are the originals.

I wasent really going for anything in mind , but I absolutely love the look of my last one I posted above (the look of the rock) (the water is too much but I love the rock and im in love with all the cracks and detail of it) if anything it looks like a crysis 2 game using raytracing

obviosly its not realistic , but as you can see the real photos of the rock are rather boring.....my last edit I think is pretty awsome.....


here are originals :

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porky101 wrote in post #12156421
if anything it looks like a crysis 2 game using raytracing

Had you said you were going for something like this i would have altered my opinion of your tone mapped photo

Seeing that you really wanted to capture the detail of the rocks, i would have suggested zooming/cropping in a lot more on the rocks, getting rid of the boring 'ol water! I absolutely love textured shots (not talking layers here) and a nice close up of the rock would have been a great shot i imagine!

porky101 wrote in post #12156421
ok guys here are the originals.

I wasent really going for anything in mind , but I absolutely love the look of my last one I posted above (the look of the rock) (the water is too much but I love the rock and im in love with all the cracks and detail of it) if anything it looks like a crysis 2 game using raytracing

obviosly its not realistic , but as you can see the real photos of the rock are rather boring.....my last edit I think is pretty awsome.....

Its over the top,it looks like a bad HDR, which is what you want to avoid at all costs.Take a good photograph, and edits and processing like this won't be needed? The framing of the rock is very cramped at the bottom as well.and its quite phallic...but if thats what you are trying to capture...
with a simple tonal contrast level, you can achieve details that might be lost without distorting the entire photo.

@ flo , ye it is over the top...but this was my first HDR was just was playing with the settings and stuff...I am amazed at what the final result is.....well now I know the programs a bit better I will have another go at HDR later this week

What about the first HDR of the rock I posted?

I tried making one using a single exposure , this is the best I can do for the rock , non HDR :

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I think its the subject that may be "boring"?Sometimes its best to move on and see what else one can do
Editing should not be the be all end all.it should just enhance the photo , not overwhelm it. Never mind HDR for now.get some fabulous photos!

I agree with the above...its just not that compelling of an image to warrant so much time 'fixing'. You must see something in it that some of us do not...