HDR Tutorial – Important Steps To Get A Realistic Looking HDR

Images with bad HDR are characterized by halos, surreal colors, metallic look, off contrast, and a messy look. There is a step by step procedure to give a realistic touch to your HDR images. When properly used, HDR photography can give you some incredible results. The images that are produced as a result have amazing colors, perfect contrast and the detail in the highlights and shadows.

What is HDR?

HDR stands for high dynamic range. Sensors of your cameras have the remarkable ability to capture light and color. Your normal camera can have the capability to provide details in the highlights and shadows in the same shot. This refers to the dynamic range.

Over the last few years, digital sensors have got better by capturing objects in more detail. This is considered to be an important benefit for photographers and also for HDR photography. This implies that with HDR technology we can make our images much more detailed.

What is the right way to shoot HDR?

To create an HDR image involves three different processes. These processes are:

  • Image Capture
  • HDR Processing
  • Image editing in Photoshop

Image Capture

This part involves photography wherein you need to set up for the shot as per your requirement. It is important to ensure that have a well composed subject. HDR photography will take 3 to 5 bracketed images of a particular scene. These images will blend together in an HDR product to render the most real image as it can be.

Use tripod

To click a shot, you can use a tripod if you are clicking images/video in dim light. This device will help in the right composition. If you are looking for the best high definition range software to get the most realistic and smooth images, then choose Aurora HDR software.

Adjust your camera settings into Manual mode “M”

Keep ISO settings of camera at 100 or lesser than this. This will help in avoiding any introduction of irrelevant noise into the images. The HDR process will allow capturing the color and dynamic light range in the scene. High ISO settings work best when shooting at a low light scene.

But for HDR, it is always required to keep this setting as low as possible. After this setting, next step is to set the aperture to between F/8 and F/ 11. Now adjust the speed of your shutter so that your scene is getting exposed perfectly as per cameras light meter.

Click one picture at this reading

As per the scene, you may need to underexpose by 1 or 2 stops. Now capture second image by adjusting the speed of the shutter. Perform this action two times on either side of the exposed image. In this way you will get five images.

Conclusion

HDR photography offers the best combination of the shadows and highlights by properly exposing them. This makes the image look very real. These steps when implemented properly will make your digital photography looks natural and closely resemble the way your eyes see the scene.