What is High Dynamic Range and How Do You Use It?
By: Kaitlyn Miller in Photoshop Tutorials on 2008-04-25
High Dynamic Range (HDR) is a technique used in photography to capture a wider range of luminosity than what is possible with standard photography techniques. HDR photography involves taking multiple photographs of the same scene at different exposure levels and then combining them into a single image that displays a wider range of light and dark areas.
In HDR photography, the photographer takes three or more photos of the same scene, each with different exposure settings. One photo will be overexposed, one will be underexposed, and one will be exposed correctly. The photos are then combined using HDR software, which blends the best parts of each image to create a single photo with a wider range of brightness and contrast.
HDR images can look more realistic and vivid than traditional photos because they can show a wider range of detail in both the light and dark areas of an image. HDR is often used in landscape photography, where there is a wide range of brightness in the sky, land, and water. It can also be used in architectural photography, where there is a lot of contrast between light and shadow in a building.
To use HDR, you'll need a camera that has manual exposure controls, as well as software that can merge the multiple images into a single HDR image. There are many HDR software options available, including Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, and Photomatix. Once you have your software, you can follow the steps provided by the software to create your HDR image.
To create an HDR image in Photoshop, follow these steps:
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Take multiple photos of the same scene with different exposures. Usually, you would take at least three photos, but more can be better.
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Open Photoshop and go to File > Automate > Merge to HDR Pro.
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In the Merge to HDR Pro window, click the Browse button and select the photos you want to merge.
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Check the "Attempt to Automatically Align Source Images" box to ensure the photos are aligned correctly.
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Click OK to merge the photos.
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In the HDR Pro window, adjust the settings to achieve the desired effect. You can adjust the Exposure, Gamma, and other settings to balance the image.
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Click OK to save the HDR image.
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The merged image will appear in a new window in Photoshop. You can now edit the image as desired, using tools like Levels and Curves to fine-tune the contrast and brightness.
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Once you're happy with the result, you can save the image as a JPEG, TIFF, or another file format.
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