boerewors wrote in post #14342828
hi there, i just want to ask: how do you guys achieve these natural looking results? i tried using photomatix before and my images all looked terrible! so how do you do it? is there any better software out there? also my 60D only allows 3 bracketed exposures. is this going to be enough for sunsets?
and one last question: has anyone out there ever done a bracketed exposure portrait with flash. where the zero exposure uses flash on the subject and then is masked back in on the final hdr image
Have you tried using photoshops HDR Pro? They have a few presets and you should be able to adjust it to look natural. Select your three images in Bridge then go to tools, photoshop, open in HDR Pro. I would have thought photo matrix would be better though.
The most natural looking HDR's I've ever done were all done manually with layers. Most sunrise/sunset landscapes are very easy to do manually. Put the -2,0,+2 frames into three separate layers, or even just two layers (two exposures) for a clean horizon. Then use a vector mask on each layer above the background. Use a black brush to erase (non destructively) the parts that are not exposed correctly. A white brush does the opposite and will clear the vector mask as you brush over it. Use lower opacity soft brushes wherever two layers meet. You can also lower the opacity of the whole vector mask if necessary. Make sure you always leave your first layer as the background unmasked.
That is the best way that I know of to achieve a natural HDR look. Reason being you are not altering and merging the data from two or three images into one, rather just masking out different areas of different photos.
A portrait would be much tricker to get a natural look I would imagine, never tried it before.
Edit: If you do a lot of sunrise/sunset shots, consider getting a filter holder and a graduated neutral density. The only and great way to increase your dynamic range greatly in camera.
